My Dog Is Losing Hair

by Anonymous Reader

Reader Question:

I just adopted a 7 month old lab. In the past few weeks I have been noticing that her hair has been thinning. She now has several spots that are hairless. It seems to be in stripes on the hips.

Then this morning My son was playing with her and noticed that her chest area was all red. Could you please give me some ideas as to what this might be?

There is no redness or anything on the hairless areas.

Thank you

Suggestion from our Veterinarian When Trying to Determine the Cause of Dog Hair Loss

Hello,

The list of potential problems that could be causing the symptoms you describe in your dog is quite long.

It’s possible that she might have something like a yeast or bacterial skin infection (which often develops secondary to other problems like allergies or hormonal disturbances), ringworm, mites, fleas – these are just the common causes. There are many more.

If your dog were my patient, I would start with a physical exam and a few simple tests including a skin scraping for mites, cytology for yeast and bacteria, and a fungal culture for ringworm. Treatment would depend on what we found on this initial work up but could include medications to eliminate parasites, medicated baths, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatories.

Make an appointment with your veterinarian so he or she can evaluate your dog’s skin and come up with an appropriate treatment plan.

Regards,

Jennifer Coates, DVM