Why does my dog get recurring infections in different body areas?

I recommend to have Harley examined by the veterinarian. Green discharge may indicate that a bacterial infection is now also present in addition to the yeast infection. This often requires systemic antibiotics, clipping of the hair, a topical solution, an anti-inflammatory and protection from scratching or rubbing to heal quickly. Chronic skin issues can be related to several things including allergies to fleas, allergies to something in the environment, food allergy or endocrine disease. Each one of these problems is detected and addressed differently and I recommend to discuss with your veterinarian which one to start hunting down first. Parasites are often ruled out with an oral medication like Simparica. Food allergy is best ruled out with a diet trial using a hydrolyzed protein. Endocrine diseases are detected with blood work. Environmental allergies are a little more difficult to detect but a response to therapy or a blood test can give an indication. Once you figure out and address the underlying cause, the lesions should not come back. There are a couple things you can do at home and they can help but they may not address the underlying cause. You can try adding in an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for dogs, this can help improve the skin health. You may also try changing his diet to something like Royal Canin or Nutro as they are aimed at skin health. Best of luck and please feel free to post any additional questions.

It looks as if your dog has a skin infection, most commonly caused by an allergy, a skin mite (Demodex) or fleas. 

The allergy could be a due to a protein in your dog’s food or an environmental allergy like to dust, pollens, grasses, etc. 

The allergy causes your dog to itch and chew at the skin which breaks down the skin barrier. This then leads to infection. Skin infections are typically characterized by large areas of hair loss, redness, crusting, flaking, and pustules. A thorough skin examination by your veterinarian should be able to determine the cause of the itch so it can be treated appropriately. Your dog will most likely need antibiotics to help clear up the infection and possibly an allergy/anti-itch medication like Apoquel, Atopica, or Cytopoint to give some relief while the infection clears up. A medicated shampoo may be beneficial as well. I would also recommend he be on a good flea control routinely too. Once the infection has resolved a long term allergy medication (like Apoquel or Cytopoint) can be given on a regular basis to prevent any future problems. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Your dog likely has underlying allergies and typically 2 weeks of antibiotics is not long enough to treat a skin infection. Most require 4-6 weeks. The problem is that if you don't resolve the cause of infection, it will always come back. I would consider trialing a hypoallergenic diet. Make sure he is on flea medication every month and consider allergy testing. Licking creates moisture and damages the skin. This creates an ideal environment for bacteria and yeast to grow, So as long as he is licking, his skin won't heal.

It sounds like Harley has some sort of infection in his skin. Abscesses, infected cysts, reactions to something stuck in his skin (like a thorn) and less likely some sort of tumor are all possible. Clean the area with soap and water and rinse it well. Then plan on making an appointment at the veterinarians office to have it evaluated. Make sure he cannot lick or scratch that area as this will cause further damage. The doctor will likely put him on an antibiotic and send you home with an appointment or special shampoo. Hope this helps.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Harry. If his skin lesion does not resolve with the antibiotics, then I would recommend skin tests. Skin scrapes are used to evaluate for mites and a fungal culture looks for evidence of ringworm. These are common causes of skin disease. Allergies can be harder to diagnose, but are seen frequently this time of year. Allergies can be to something in the environment, diet or even fleas. Lesions due to allergies typically respond to antibiotic and anti-itch medications, but can recur. I hope this information helps!

Oh my. This is a pretty severe case of alopecia, with redness, and likely infection if you are seeing pus. I would highly recommend having your pets skin cultured to determine what antibiotic is going to get rid of this infection. I would also recommend having your vet test Mylo for demodex mites to make sure we are not missing anything here. These tests should get us on the right track towards an appropriate treatment for Mylo moving forward. If Mylo is very itchy, then we have to consider an underlying allergy as the cause for this as well, and start him on allergy medication (Apoquel or Cytopoint) right away. I hope that Mylo's skin heals up well soon! Best of luck moving forward and take care.

I'm sorry to hear that Mungia is dealing with skin problems. A lot of skin infections in dogs can be secondary to scratching themselves from allergies. The can react to something in their environment such as weeds, grasses, pollen, mold or even something in their diet. I'm glad that bathing her seems to help. It is a great maintenance option for her so she doesn't need to be on medications. If the problem is not resolving, you will need to discuss longterm management strategies with her veterinarian. You will also want to rule out other issues such as mites, fleas or ringworm. I hope this information helps!