# Basils Poorly Skin, should I bathe it?



## Alula (Feb 3, 2013)

Hello all, some of you may know that Basil has always been an itchy dog, we have ruled out and removed any foods that may have caused reactions and it may be a simple as him being a white dog or a dust allergy.

Well he is not feeling too great 



His skin flared up yestersay and over night this red, bumpy, slightly weepy patch appeared and all the hair has gone.





I've been watching him like I hawk and he has itched all his usual spots but hasn't even come close the itching there once and he certainly cant reach it with his teeth to pluck the hairs 

I can't get a vet appointment till tomorrow. In the mean time should I clean or bathe the area do we think? Or is there anything I can do to soothe it? Or is it best to not touch it at all?

Thanks guys x


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## Lisa T (Sep 3, 2010)

HI Jemma, poor Basil I'm sorry he has a skin problem, it's just not fair. I used to have a Bichon so I know what your going through. I'm a nurse and often work with dermatology patients, the advice we give for bad skin irritations is to keep the sore areas dry but moisturised with appropriate emollients to reduce the itch. I think if I were you I would leave it alone and see the vet tomorrow, if you can get some Benadryl to see him over till then it might help. Good luck. x


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## Alula (Feb 3, 2013)

Lisa T said:


> HI Jemma, poor Basil I'm sorry he has a skin problem, it's just not fair. I used to have a Bichon so I know what your going through. I'm a nurse and often work with dermatology patients, the advice we give for bad skin irritations is to keep the sore areas dry but moisturised with appropriate emollients to reduce the itch. I think if I were you I would leave it alone and see the vet tomorrow, if you can get some Benadryl to see him over till then it might help. Good luck. x


Thankyou my dear that was exactly the kind of advice I was hoping for! I have doggie antihystamines that they sell in the pharmacies here that I have tried him on as we cant get benadryl or similar here, all those types of meds have other stuff added here  

Will see what the vet says but she is no dermatologist I am afraid, I may have to look for one I think x


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## Chiluv04 (Dec 19, 2013)

I don't know what this could be. Poor Basil, I hope he's feeling better soon. Sending hugs your way little man.


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

Hope he's ok it does look raw,poor baby


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

I usually put coconut oil on things like that, as i know mine are OK with it.
I recently found this advice, which i thought was very useful;
Dr. Becker's Comments:
Hot spots are also known as pyotraumatic dermatitis or superficial pyoderma. Those tongue-twisters are just scientific labels for inflamed, infected skin.
How Hot Spots Develop
Hot spots are created when your dog’s natural bacteria overpopulates parts of his skin. When an infection arises from a dog’s own bacteria, there is almost always a root cause. Hot spots often occur in dogs with underperforming immune systems.
Hot spots can come on very quickly. You might leave your perfectly healthy pup one morning to go to work, and by the time you return home that evening, she’s completely preoccupied with an area of skin that is irritated, inflamed and oozing. Hot spots can be very painful for your dog and quite sensitive to the touch.
Any dog can develop hot spots, but they’re much more common in dogs with thick coats, dirty and/or moist skin, and dogs with allergies, including fleas.
Let’s say your dog jumps into a pond of dirty water on a hot, humid summer day, then gets out and lays in the grass under a tree for a nap.
This activity has created a dirty, damp, warm, very hospitable environment for your dog’s natural skin bacteria to overgrow. It’s a set-up for a potential full body allergic reaction, including multiple hot spots, on your pet’s skin.
If your canine companion develops a hot spot, you’ll need to do two things:
Treat the wound
Identify the underlying cause
Treating Hot Spots
Hair removal. To treat the wound, the first thing you need to do is remove the hair on, in and around the affected area.
You may not want to do that, because, for example, you show your dog in the ring.
But if you don’t remove the hair, it will become trapped in the wound by the pus and you’ll have a much harder time healing the hot spot. In fact, hair in and around the affected area can create a perfect environment for the wound to get bigger and the infection to get worse.
I recommend you shave the area of the hot spot, and then mark the edges of the lesion with a Sharpie type pen so you can tell if the infection is expanding.
If the infection appears to be spreading, you know you’re not treating it effectively at home and you should get your pup to your veterinarian as soon as possible.
Some hot spots can result in fever and serious underlying skin problems, so if you see the wound growing rather than improving after a couple of days, it’s time to seek veterinary care.
Disinfecting the wound. Once you’ve shaved the area and identified the margins, clip the hair back until you see healthy skin. Then you can begin gently disinfecting the wound with a solution that will remove bacteria.
I recommend using povidone-iodine, which is often sold by the brand name Betadine. It’s an organic iodine with has no side effects and does a good job controlling most skin bacteria. You can buy povidone-iodine at most pharmacies and some health food stores.
Dilute the solution with purified water until it’s the color of iced tea. Apply it to the wound using a soft wash cloth or gauze.
In the beginning – at least days one and two of the disinfecting routine – while there’s a lot of oozing from the wound, you’ll want to repeat the disinfecting procedure as often as necessary to keep the area clean, dry and pus free.
Your goal in managing your pup’s hot spot is to keep the area clean and dry at all times, so the first couple days you might need to disinfect the wound as often as every two hours.
Depending on the severity of the infection and the amount of pus the wound is producing, disinfecting two times a day should be an absolute minimum. Remember – a consistently clean and dry wound is critical to healing the infection.
Applying a topical solution. After you clean the wound you can apply a topical solution like colloidal silver, or raw aloe, or a thin layer of manuka honey, which is a raw honey made from the tea tree plant. You can also use a cool chamomile tea bag against the wound to provide a soothing effect.
Don’t use anything with stinging or astringent properties on an open, raw wound. Solutions like vinegar or tea tree oil, while anti-microbial, are really painful when applied to an open, raw wound, so I don’t recommend you use those types of aggressive solutions when you are treating an infected hot spot.
Repeat the disinfecting procedure and application of a light, natural topical soothing gel afterwards until the wound shrinks in size, the infection clears and your pet is no longer bothered by the hot spot.
Keeping your dog away from the wound. Insuring your pet leaves the hot spot alone is critical to healing. You’ll probably need to put an E collar on her (one of those lamp shade shaped collars that are so annoying to pets) to prevent her from licking and biting the affected skin.
If your pup continues to re-traumatize the wound, the infection won’t clear up and the hot spot will get bigger.
As an alternative to the E collar, you might be able to manage the wound by applying a light wrap or putting a t-shirt on your pet, as long as you are sure she is leaving the wound alone.
Finding the Root Cause of Your Pet’s Hot Spot
The second step in managing hot spots is to identify why they happen.
Allergic sensitivity. Allergies, both food and environmental, can cause hot spots. If you notice that each time your dog eats a bit of your wheat bread crust she gets a hot spot, there’s a very good chance she has a grain-based allergy. If that’s the case, you’ll want to evaluate the content of the food you feed your pet and make adjustments as necessary.
Environmental allergies can also cause hot spots.
Ragweed, grasses, pollens and molds are typical allergens, but it can also be polluted water or even toxic air that causes a secondary hot spot on your pet. You’ll need to evaluate not only your dog’s diet, but also her environment to search for sources of allergens that could be causing hot spots.

Besides food and environmental allergies, flea allergy dermatitis is also a major reason why animals get hot spots.
You might not even be able to see the fleas, but if your dog is sensitive, the bite of just one flea can cause a raging hot spot. Check your pet with a flea comb for fleas and flea dirt regularly.
Underlying painful conditions. If your dog has a painful spot on his body and he starts digging and chewing at the area, he can create a hot spot. For example, if you have an older dog that has never suffered from hot spots but suddenly starts bothering the skin over a hip joint, it could be a response to underlying pain.
If your pet has neuralgia or perhaps sciatica -- which is an irritated, tingling nerve pain similar to how your foot feels as it wakes up after falling asleep -- you might notice him chewing on an ankle or a toe.
This can bring on a secondary infection that your veterinarian may label a hot spot. In this case there’s no underlying allergic condition, but rather an underlying muscle, nerve or bone problem.
Emotional or mental causes. Sometimes there are underlying mental or emotional causes for your dog’s hot spots, such as obsessive compulsive disorder, separation anxiety, or even boredom.
These behavioral issues can cause licking and chewing which creates hot spots.
Behavioral causes of hot spots are unfortunately the hardest to successfully treat. If your pet is obsessive about licking certain parts of his body and it leads to open wounds, the problem can be very difficult to fix long term, even using behavior modification techniques.
Hopefully I’ve helped you today to identify the root cause of your dog’s hot spots, along with an effective plan for wound treatment.
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## Alula (Feb 3, 2013)

Chiluv04 said:


> I don't know what this could be. Poor Basil, I hope he's feeling better soon. Sending hugs your way little man.


Thankyou my lovely, He's just a bit subdued but I could stay at home with them all day for the first time since Thursday - there has been a lot of sofa time today!




michele said:


> Hope he's ok it does look raw,poor baby



He actually doesn't flinch when I touch it but I know dogs in general have very high pain tolerance. It looks awful, it goes up and down and when it comes up and goes red his ears go red too so I'm sure its tied into his allergies 




Wicked Pixie said:


> I usually put coconut oil on things like that, as i know mine are OK with it.
> I recently found this advice, which i thought was very useful;
> Dr. Becker's Comments:
> Hot spots are also known as pyotraumatic dermatitis or superficial pyoderma. Those tongue-twisters are just scientific labels for inflamed, infected skin.
> ...


Thankyou, I love Dr Becker and had guessed it was an allergy related hot spot, it did indeed appear very quickly. As I mentioned above the area acts in the same way as his allergies manifest themselves. I wish allergy testing for non food related allergies was 1, more accessible and 2, more acurate so I could avoid this for him together.


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## AnnHelen (Nov 29, 2010)

Poor baby....maybe give him a oat bath...the once you get for itchy kids.. I think he is just sensitiv...just like my boy.. XOXOXO


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## Jayda (Jun 15, 2012)

Hope he is doing better. I not sure I have any helpful advice but I'm think about Basil.


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## woodard2009 (Aug 4, 2010)

I would recommend that when a reaction happens, you could try bathing to remove any allergen that caused this irritation. It could be something so simple as burning a candle, hairspray, spraying scented perfumes through the house or the allergens from outside being brought in on our clothes. I keep a pan of 1 gallon water mixed with 1 cup vinegar by the front door and when my chi is itching and/or chewing, I give her a wipe or dip her feet in the pan. It doesn't hurt them when they lick it. Benedryl helps to ease them when they have outbreaks. From experience, I don't recommend putting any animal through allergy testing as they have proven to be very inaccurate for me. You learn to stick with foods you know don't cause reactions and you have to read labels. I strongly believe that my chis allergies are 95% environmental. She's allergic to dust mites, trees, grass, barley, etc. I also use coconut oil constantly to keep her skin moisturized which helps to minimize itching. 
HOpe your baby gets to feeling better soon. Poor baby. If you do take your baby to the vet, please be careful about steroid shots. Most vets go to steroid shots to ease the dog temporarily. The problem with these shots is they don't fix the problem and they're very hard on the dogs internal organs and too many of these shots can cause organ problems in the future.


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## Alula (Feb 3, 2013)

woodard2009 said:


> I would recommend that when a reaction happens, you could try bathing to remove any allergen that caused this irritation. It could be something so simple as burning a candle, hairspray, spraying scented perfumes through the house or the allergens from outside being brought in on our clothes. I keep a pan of 1 gallon water mixed with 1 cup vinegar by the front door and when my chi is itching and/or chewing, I give her a wipe or dip her feet in the pan. It doesn't hurt them when they lick it. Benedryl helps to ease them when they have outbreaks. From experience, I don't recommend putting any animal through allergy testing as they have proven to be very inaccurate for me. You learn to stick with foods you know don't cause reactions and you have to read labels. I strongly believe that my chis allergies are 95% environmental. She's allergic to dust mites, trees, grass, barley, etc. I also use coconut oil constantly to keep her skin moisturized which helps to minimize itching.
> HOpe your baby gets to feeling better soon. Poor baby. If you do take your baby to the vet, please be careful about steroid shots. Most vets go to steroid shots to ease the dog temporarily. The problem with these shots is they don't fix the problem and they're very hard on the dogs internal organs and too many of these shots can cause organ problems in the future.


This exactly my issue, we home made raw feed him so I know exactly what he is eating and have previously had him on an elimination diet to rule out any food culprits so I too believe these to be environmental reactions.

Our vet is great and hasn't resorted to steroids yet but any meds she gives are really just to calm the skin, or eyes and ears till the next attack. I would love to see an animal dermatologist but can't find one around here. We wash him with a cidre vinegar rinse too, initially it was to keep ticks at bay but I have since seen benefits in general coat condition too. 

How do you apply the coconut oil topically? He gets some in his food but I have never applied it to his coat and skin, can you over do it and he'll get greasy?


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Any health food store will have coconut oil. Make sure it is PURE coconut oil. Yes it could make him greasy if you rub it all over, but if you just put it on the sore spot it should not. I have used a coconut rinse on my girl, and being a longhair I just left it on one day. You cannot really 'overdo it' with coconut oil as far as health goes. Too much may cause diarrhea, just like any oil.


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

I meant to say if you give more than a few drops for the dog to EAT, it MAY cause diarrhea just like any oil.


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## Alula (Feb 3, 2013)

I have it in the cupboard, we buy the ours for eating for both us and the dogs from the health shop so I may try a little on the hot spot over night, perhaps with a little honey for added antibacterial benefits aswell, thankyou for the advice


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## woodard2009 (Aug 4, 2010)

Yes, you apply it just like you would any lotion or oil. Rub it in. Vinegar is a natural antibacterial as well. As for a dermatologist, I have yet to find any specialist that has a cure for allergies because the problem is there is just to many irritants in the air to be able to pinpoint. If you are determined to find a dermatologist, I would try to find a holistic one. As I said earlier, the vets try to prescribe drugs and anti-inflammatories that are only a temporary relief and doesn't fix the problem. It sounds like you're doing everything right and all you could possibly be doing for your pup.


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## Sharrielynne (Oct 14, 2014)

Have you tried a medication called Nu-Stock? I would dilute it for chis with baby oil, but I have had a lot of success with my mini foxy.


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