Hot Spot Question

bagofweasels

My lab developed a big hot spot seemingly overnight. She was horribly distressed this morning so we brought her to the vet and she's on steroids and antibiotics. The vet gave me a supply of hibi-scrub to wash the area with. I'd like to know if I should clip the area around the hot spot to allow the air at it? She has a very dense coat and after the first wash with the hibi, she is still very damp in that area.

andreac

Yes clipping the hair is good to let the air at it to help dry it out.

Whereabouts is it located? Reason I ask is, can she scratch it with her paw? If it's up near her head/neck I suggest one of those collars to stop her getting at it as you will find it hard to heal if she keeps scratching at it.

I'm a pro at this stage with hot spots with my Rotties and that's one thing I make sure goes on them as once they can scratch it it makes it worse and won't dry up when it's scanning over.

bagofweasels

andreac wrote: »

Yes clipping the hair is good to let the air at it to help dry it out.

Whereabouts is it located? Reason I ask is, can she scratch it with her paw? If it's up near her head/neck I suggest one of those collars to stop her getting at it as you will find it hard to heal if she keeps scratching at it.

I'm a pro at this stage with hot spots with my Rotties and that's one thing I make sure goes on them as once they can scratch it it makes it worse and won't dry up when it's scanning over.

It's on her chest six inches below her chin. She is obsessed with scratching at it with her front paws and then licking them non-stop! I'll pop in to the vets and get a collar for her and clip the hair back too. I've never seen a dog as miserable or change personality so fast (Jekyll & Hyde springs to mind!!!).

tk123

My dog had some on her neck a few months ago. I clipped the area to let it dry out and put socks on her paws to stop her from scratching and doing too much damage. She had a very bad eye infection the last few weeks and kept licking her paw to try and clean it... so out with the sock again!

bagofweasels

tk123 wrote: »

My dog had some on her neck a few months ago. I clipped the area to let it dry out and put socks on her paws to stop her from scratching and doing too much damage. She had a very bad eye infection the last few weeks and kept licking her paw to try and clean it... so out with the sock again![/]

Will try that too (will be interesting to see how long the socks last ðŸ˜).

andreac

Yeah they are very sore for the first few days but the steroids will take the itchiness out once they kick in.

tk123

bagofweasels wrote: »

Will try that too (will be interesting to see how long the socks last ðŸ˜).

I used strapping/tape (you'll find it beside the plasters in the supermarket/chemist) and wrapped that around the socks to keep them on. If you have tiles or wooden floors get some kids socks in penneys/dunnes with non-slip on the bottom. The ones we have are baby socks but fit them both fine

bagofweasels

Thanks for the advice guys - she's much calmer now that she can't keep scratching.