Why is my Spaniel losing hair around its nose and mouth, dry/scaly?

These types of lesions are normally seen with a skin infection, but ringworm does not typically look like this. The fact that she has been licking more may be the reason for her developing a skin infection of her muzzle. These infections often develop when there is excessive moisture, or when something is irritating the muzzle. This can happen when their mouth has contact with a plant, or substance that irritates the skin. These type of infections are usually managed well at home with daily cleaning. I recommend rinsing the are with cool water, then wiping it with a medicated wipe (can get this at the pet store). It's best if you can do this twice a day. If the lesions are not starting to heal after a week of treatment, or are getting worse, then I recommend taking her to the vet. The vet will be able to diagnose the specific cause of this and provide the best treatment. I hope that helps and Little Bear gets better soon.

Hi. For Toffee's skin looks pretty severe with redness, hair loss, and what looks like dermatitis. He most likely has an underlying allergy. This can be to the protein in the food, or environmental allergens. Other possibilities for this presentation include a deep skin infection, ectoparasites, immune mediated conditions, or low thyroid. No matter the cause, it looks like he may be pretty miserable. He will need a exam and prescription medications from your veterinarian, a long with some skin testing to try to find the cause. Good luck.

Ronda may have a bacterial or fungal infection around the mouth, or mange, or some other skin condition. To find out what is going on and how to treat it, you need a visit to your vet for an examination and potentially a skin scraping to diagnose the hair loss.

Although I can't tell for sure, the area in the picture appears to be a hotspot. A hotspot occurs when an animal scratches or chews at an area to the point of causing trauma to the skin. Often times these areas are moist and very irritated but a large scab can form after some time has passed. Given the location of the lesion, I would be concerned that Lola has been scratching at her ear. I would monitor her for shaking of the head, discharge or redness in the ears or scratching at that area. If you notice any of these signs, she may have an ear infection. Other potential causes for the lesion other than a hot spot would be trauma, mange or an auto-immune issue. If the lesion is not resolving or seems to be getting worse, I would recommend that you have Lola seen by your veterinarian. They may recommend a skin scraping or cytology to better determine what is going on.

Hello. Toby has a type of dermatitis going on, but the underlying cause cannot be determined just from a photo. It could have a bacterial, autoimmune, fungal or even parasitic ( mange mites ) cause. Your veterinarian can use a couple of rather simple diagnostic aids ( skin scrapes, hair plucks, dermatophyte cultures ) to determine the cause of the hair loss & lesions, then the correct treatment can be started to resolve this. Good luck & thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I'm sorry to hear Billy is having skin issues. Skin lesions like you are describing can be due to a variety of reasons, including allergies, skin parasites (such as fleas or mites), an infection (bacterial or fungal) or another underlying disease process. I would recommend having his skin re-evaluated by his veterinarian to try to determine what may be causing his issues, and have any necessary testing done (skin scrape, bacterial culture, or biopsy, for example) that may lead to a diagnosis. Good luck!

Poor Angel! It could be mange but the thickness on her ears looks like yeast and bacteria could also be involved. If she didn't get worse on the prednisone, this make mange less likely but not impossible. With her sores being so bad on her nose, I would strongly recommend to have it biopsied and also cultured to get a quicker diagnosis so she can be treated properly quicker. The quicker we can get her started on the proper meds the quicker she will start to heal. I hope this helps!