My dog has acral lick. Are there any over-the-counter treatments?

It doesn't have the appearance of a lick granuloma. It could be a hotspot. Hot spots typically have an allergic component. You can discuss allergy testing, hydrolyzed diets, food elimination trials and antihistamine use with your veterinarian An e-collar (cone) can be used to prevent licking. Minor hot spots are treated topically. The spot is clipped, cleaned and an antibiotic/steroid ointment is applied until resolved. https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/acral-lick-dermatitis/ https://www.petcoach.co/dog/condition/hot-spots/ https://www.petcoach.co/article/how-to-treat-and-prevent-hot-spots-on-dogs/

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! The black hairless area is a normal elbow callus. The pink area could be a growth or irritation or a skin infection. I would prevent the licking by using an E-collar. Then I would apply a triple antibiotic cream. Force him to lay on soft bedding to prevent further trauma and you can try an antihistamine. If there is no improvement the area should be looked at by a Vet as he may need oral antibiotics and a steroid or apoquel. Those are prescription drugs that can only be prescribed by a Vet that exams your dog. Good luck! https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/zyrtec/

An e-collar (cone) is definitely recommended to prevent further licking. Keep the area clean and dry. A dilute betadine or chlorhexidine solution can be used for cleansing. A topical product, such as Vetericyn, can be used after cleaning. You can find it in the local Petco. This may be enough to allow healing, but if not then a trip to the veterinarian for an exam would be necessary. Systemic antibiotics may be indicated to treat infection.

I've found cleaning this with antibacterial soap, rinsing well, drying the area and then applying an antibacterial ointment on it will protect it from infection. I prefer to use a restraint collar so Diesel can't lick it, rather than using a bandage. Leaving the area open to the air promotes faster healing. These can be difficult to heal so preventing the licking is very important. Some veterinarians give antibiotics and anti inflammatory medication as well as treating the area with a cold laser which speeds the healing. Keeping Diesel busy with exercise and playtime will help also as this is often made worse by boredom and stress. Be patient these can take weeks to months to fully resolve. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Diesel.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Often the lesions are irritating, and usually not very painful. Continued licking will not only make the lesion worse, but prevent any chance of healing. It is important to stop the licking to allow it to heal. The best way to do that is with an E-collar. I suggest getting an E-collar from the pet store or your vet. If he is very painful you can talk to your vet about pain medications. Anything topical will likely just add more moisture and make the problem worse. Best of luck with Gucci.

It looks like a lick granuloma which can be secondary to itching, pain, boredom, stress, OCD. They are commonly treated with antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medications, and bandages or E-collar to prevent licking. If that doesn't work then anti-anxiety medications, like Prozac, can be prescribed to see if that helps. Below is a link with a website with additional information. http://www.skinvetclinic.com/acrallickdermatitis.html

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is possibly due to allergies. It really comes down to figuring out what is causing his allergies so that they can be treated or the specific allergen avoided. A secondary infection is likely and also needs to be addressed. There are many things that can cause allergies though in most cases they can be broken down into 3 big categories: flea, food and environmental allergies. Allergies are usually worked up in a stepwise fashion starting with flea allergies as this is the easiest and cheapest to take care of. If not on a flea preventative, then it would be a good idea to get started on one. If already on one then it would be a good idea to change to something else (there are many new products out in the market). If not improved in 1-3 months then it is time to move on and check for food allergies by switching to a novel diet (new protein and new carbohydrate). If that does not seem to be the issue then you are left out having to check for environmental allergies which require blood and/or skin tests. Allergies can be very frustrating to deal with at first but so rewarding at the end when we are able to treat them effectively!