skin allergies

[Erin]

Please help! I have a three year old Golden Retriever. He has had problem skin his entire life. About 1 1/2 years ago, he was diagnose with an underactive thyroid. He was placed on medicine that greatly helped his skin, however, he has seasonal allergies. Around the middle of the summer into the fall, he is prone to hot spots. The skin on his head, neck, and chest becomes covered with small red bumps. They begin with a yellow head and then scab. Does anyone know what could be causing this or a hollistic approach for dealing with this? He is such a wonderful friend. It breaks my heart to see him in discomfort!

[Dax]

Erin, have you tried shaving him down for the summer? Have air on the skin seems to help. Also my girl (also has thryoid issues) has gotten some benefit from adding some human grade acne wash in her shampoo. I can give you more info in a pm.

[Erin]

The vet shaved him (Bettis) in the areas where he was infected. It helped. He has been taking an antibiotic and steroid for the past 2 weeks. His hot spots cleared up, however, he is still breaking out with little red bumps.

[GretaJack]

Erin, there are allergy tests that can be run to see what he is allergic to. And then shots can help. I agree that a summer shave might help him. Shave him entirely. It keeps air flowing to the skin with helps prevent infections as well as aid in keeping the skin clean and catching an infection at an early stage.

What is the weather like by you? Hot, humid? Ask if you might be able to give a reduced dose of benadryl for the peak allergy season. I am just not a big fan of benadryl all the time since it makes them so sleepy, but sometimes sleepy is better than miserable.

If your dog has been suffering from this for a long period of time, get on your vet to see if you can pinpoint what is causing the hot spots and see if there is a good treatment regime that he can recommend. Good luck. I wish the best of luck in making your doggie feel better