Our First Hot Spot Of The Season :(

[Katdogs]

Stevie's first hotspot of the season is on her cheek/jowl, and it's the size of a 20c coin already even though I swear there was nothing there last night when I was studying/adoring her beautiful face.

I've shaved a bit and put neocourt on, but we usually end up getting antibiotics from the vet. I've tried the various zinc powders, tea washes and betadine over the years. She's had allergy treatments and is on a virtually grain-free diet.

Any new ideas?

[GoldenGirl85]

I have the most success with curash powder

[Crisovar]

Curash Powder here too packed on :)

[Jumabaar]

Chlorhexadine was to get rid of any dead skin cells and kill some of the bacteria. Then curash to dry the area.

The bacteria live in warm moist areas so I have found creams tend to make them worse.

[espinay2]

I have used medipulv powder from the chemist with success. Wash with warm salty water or betadene, dry as well as you can then apply the powder. Powders tend to work better as they dry up the area.I have never shaved the area, but you do need to have the hair well brushed out so air is free flowing.

If the hotspots reoccur in a similar location, you may want to check if there is an underlying 'weakness' of some kind in that location. One dog of mine would get a hot spot of the same area of the back each year for a number of years, right over an injury site.

Edited November 18, 2012 by espinay2

[eyeopener]

Curash talc n a Pink anti bacterial n fungal livestock spray for 1 dog that nothing else worked for. I find too much processed feed dose it to mine.

[Poodle Mum]

I always clip the area short, with a 40 blade if you have. I have hibiclens that i scrub the area with, wipe off then apply a cream with cortisone, such as neo. I have also used listerine mouthwash when desperate! (it has the same ingredient in the hibiclens solution)

[Katdogs]

Thanks folks. I'll give the curash another go. Last year it didn't seem to do much except pack into a scab/cover of its own and the hotspot kept spreading, but it was quite a mucky and hidden one that had a while to fester.

Eyeopener what is the pink spray?

Stevie's on Big Dog BARF patties and meaty bones (plus random tuna, sardines, eggs, yoghurt, people scraps etc). The Canidea dry food is grain-free and she only has a couple of cups per week, when we're in a hurry or run out of ideas.

Edited November 18, 2012 by Katdogs

[mixeduppup]

Sulfur powder is great for hotspots

[Katdogs]

Of course, today was the day I was going to try for Santa photos and now Stevie looks poxie and is in a grumpy mood after I shaved her spot.

[Jumabaar]

Thanks folks. I'll give the curash another go. Last year it didn't seem to do much except pack into a scab/cover of its own and the hotspot kept spreading, but it was quite a mucky and hidden one that had a while to fester.

Eyeopener what is the pink spray?

Stevie's on Big Dog BARF patties and meaty bones (plus random tuna, sardines, eggs, yoghurt, people scraps etc). The Canidea dry food is grain-free and she only has a couple of cups per week, when we're in a hurry or run out of ideas.

I have found that washing first with an antibacterial spread because it gets rid of the sloughed skin which the bacteria like to grow in. I have found the same thing when I havent been able to wash the area first. And i have always eventually had to scrub the area clean.

[persephone]

shave/scrub/debride down to clean skin/ dry/ ( use colloidal silver, perhaps? )spray with pink spray (or apply straight betadine several times daily.)

cetrigen

Edited November 18, 2012 by persephone

[tdierikx]

When Connor used to get hot spots, I used to shave the area, apply Neocort for the first 24 hours, then used EDP powder until it dried up.

I still have some powder here if you'd like to give it a try...

T.

[indigirl]

My golden got the hot spot from hell last summer I'm worried this summer she will get another similar. She's turning 7 this month and has had a few over the years but nothing like the one she got last year. Se had to be sedated to have it shaved and scrubbed ugh.

I used neocort on it. I tried everything else, curash betadine etc and nothing was working. It just seemed to triple I'm size in 24 hrs, was really nasty so keep an eye on your dog.

[Mashlee08]

I can vouch for medipulv as well, that stuff is magical.

[Aphelion]

My boy got his first hotspot of the season just yesterday. The day before that there was nothing, and I definitely didn't notice anything yesterday morning either. After just two hours alone, hello huge hotspot. They sure can spring up and spread quickly! I've been using hibiclens, but am taking note of the other suggestions!

[SarasMum]

I find my staffy x gets a hot spot on her cheek if she lays on the grass in the sun, her fave spot being right next to the water bowl that I have a constant drip into to keep it fresh. The grass must be damp around that area.

I use curash too. Clean it well with salty water or betadine and keep applying the curash. I also found an elizabethan collar worked because she kept scratching it and making it bleed.

[Mumsie]

you can also try bathing the area in apple cider vinegar, this will hopefully kill off any underlying yeast infection. I would try to bathe the area with the apple cider vinegar and then the medi pulv

[Katdogs]

All great ideas, thanks.

But how do I stop Nurse Jodie the Kelpie from licking everything off? She tries so hard to keep Stevie's face and ears clean. She's cleaned off two goes of powder already tonight, even with a bit of wound guard near it. She doesn't care about bad tastes or pain, she sees it as one of her jobs

[mumof4girls]

I have had Neem Oil spray recommended to me which I bought for clipper burn that worked beautifully.. Rogue has a hotspot beside his ear so I'll be using it on that.. It was amazing for cliperburn, I bought it online, also got neem oil soap but you can buy that in liquid form I just wanted to try it first and it is lovely..