Know common dog skin conditions that could cause your dog skin problems. Learn about dog hair loss and how dog skin cancer can seriously harm your favorite dog.
If you have a dog, you can expect your dog to have dog skin conditions at some point in their life. Due to many breeds sensitive skin, they are more prone to dog skin problems, leaving them to have possible dog hair loss or other skin issues. As a pet owner, it is important for you to know the various dog skin conditions so that you can see when your dog needs to go to the vet. While you may not be able to do something about all of your dog’s skin issues, you can at least keep them from being more uncomfortable.
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Dog Skin Problems That Affect Your Dog
Well Known Dog Skin Conditions
For dogs, having dog skin conditions is just a way of life. As their human, it is your job to see when they are feeling uncomfortable, since they depend on you to make them feel better. The most well known dog skin conditions include:
- Staph Infections
- Food Allergies
- Ringworms
- Parasites (like fleas)
- Skin Cancer
Since most dogs can’t tell us what is happening, it is our job to know what to look for with these dog skin conditions.
Signs of Dog Skin Problems
Many of these conditions have similar symptoms; making pinning down your dog’s issues a bit challenging. To play it safe, it is best to know the common symptoms for most dog skin conditions. If your dog is showing any of the following symptoms, it is time to schedules a visit with your veterinarian.
- Hair Loss
- Odd Growth
- Discolored Skin
- Raw Looking Skin
None of us like to see our dogs feeling uncomfortable or pain, so make sure to take these signs seriously. In many cases, your dog will tell you something is wrong by trying to bite or scratch these areas. Dogs naturally want to get rid of the area where they are sick, leading to possible other injury if they don’t have a human nearby. Sometimes the answer to these problems can be as simple as finding fleas, but take any sign of a skin condition seriously.
Dog Skin Cancer
One of the worst dog skin conditions that your dog can have is dog skin cancer. For almost every dog, the first sign of dog skin cancer is dog hair loss or increased skin sensitivity. Most of the time, it looks like your dog has either been in a fight, or is going bold. As well, your dog may have a growth in this area, depending on how serious of a case your dog has of dog skin cancer. Either way, make sure to bring your dog to the vet immediately if they are showing sign of any dog skin conditions.
Many other health problems manifest themselves through changes in coat and skin (for the worst), to include, but not limited to thyroid deficiency (very common in dogs), Cushing’s syndrome (a severe metabolic problem involving the adrenal gland), and sarcoptic or demodectic mange. Do not attempt to diagnose skin probems yourself; get the dog to the vet.