# Hair loss/Balding Chihuahua



## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

Poor Tyson is losing his hair. It seems to have started on his legs and slowly gone up towards his back. His chest and tummy are also almost bare. It happened rather quickly, and each day seems to be getting worse. After the allergic reaction to the K9 Advantix flea medication from Chloe i thought it was possibly a reaction from that but in another form on him so i waited (I noticed it last Sunday). Hes not scratching and its not red or irritated at all.. just going bald. Im so worried about it. He has a vet appt tomorrow at 4 but im so nervous about it. Does anyone have an idea as to what it could be?


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

here are a couple pictures


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## Ms_P (Apr 25, 2004)

Does he go outside? Have you or any of your neighbors had your grass treated recently? You know those places that come and put fertalizer and stuff on your lawn.
How old is he?
What color is he normally?


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

We go for walks but not daily. Im not sure about the fertilizer.. i guess that is a possibility, and he hasnt been outside for about a week and half. Hes chocolate and tan and my other 2 chis are fine. 

If its an allergic reaction will the vet be able to tell? Im sure theyll do a skin scraping which he hates but that will only show parasites and things like that right? I didnt want to stress him out and have him going through all that but its getting worse. I dont really feel i have a choice.


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## Ms_P (Apr 25, 2004)

They should do a skin scraping. It cold be some kind of parasite, there's alway a chance. Demodex is NOT contagious, so your other dogs wouldn't have it anyway. There are lots of things that can cause hair loss, so your vet will probably do some blood tests too. 
Does he smell musky? It could be a yeast infection.
It could be a fungus infection.
Hopefully your vet will be able to get some answers for you.
Try not to stress yourself too much. And definatly let us know what he/she says.


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## dolly'sgrandma (Nov 8, 2005)

I just wanted to let you know that we are definitely going through hair stuff here too, so you're in my thoughts. And do let us know what the vet says.

My golden retriever did that after ONE flea bite...she is terribly allergic to fleas. All the fur on her back legs was just GONE. However, she was itching and scratching like crazy, so it's probably not that.

With my pup, it IS the demodex. But the hair loss is minimal right now. I don't know how fast it can start to go bald all over. I think your boy lost his too fast to be that. And, that's right, it's not contagious to human or other dogs. Poor guy!


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## Katie (Apr 9, 2005)

Thank you for your nice replies. Tyson was very good for the doctor today. The vet took a good look at him and asked some questions and said "I think we need to get the book for this one." He left and came back with a huge book and looked through some of it to see if he could anything that sounded like what Ty looked like. He said he had seen the exact same thing on ONE other chi his entire career and that chi was healthy and normal but he still had some missing hair due to pattern baldness or something with his hair follicles (i forgot the name). He told me that he doesnt think its anything serious and that Ty is fine in his opinion. He told me they could do a biopsy, or blood work if i wanted a real answer. I decided not to put him through that just yet. Im going to watch it and see if Tyson has any changes in behavior and watch for the hair to change. He said he thinks its pattern baldness or maybe a diluted coat color (i learned that it can be in any color but more common in blues). He also said it could by a thyroid or adrenal glad problem, but that it usually occurs in older dogs and there would be noticable changes in his behavior. As long as Tyson isnt in any danger and hes healthy and happy im fine with it. Hopefully itll get better and not worse. The vet suggest getting some Melatonin and giving him that at night (it makes you sleepy but he said it helps the hair). So we'll see what happens. So far so good  I want to wish Dollys Grandma good luck with the mange. Im sure everything will be just fine after the treatments :wave:


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## Kezza (Dec 1, 2005)

Heidi my yorkie has a similiar problem, her hair on her back has gone very thin but it could just be her age though as shes is almost 13 now. she also gets dry skin and i oil her coat now and again :wave:


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## Bluezmom (Apr 1, 2005)

Blue had the same problem when he was a pup and my vet prescribed Malaseb shampoo. I had to bathe him daily for 10 days and the shampoo had to stay on him for 10 minutes, but it worked like a champ. It's been OVER year since and his coat is beautiful now.


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## Ms_P (Apr 25, 2004)

Just thought you might like to know that Malaseb is an antifungal shampoo. I don't think it will do any good on Alopecia X.


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## dolly'sgrandma (Nov 8, 2005)

I sure hope he does well! Can I just say, melatonin sounds like the perfect puppy medicine if it makes him sleepy at night!! (this coming after a late night of zoomies with Dolly!!!) :lol: We'll both get through this, no fear!


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## Kristin (Nov 12, 2004)

That looks kinda like what Lilo has! She has a bald spot on her side that has no fur at all, but below it she is losing hair too. I'm taking her to the vet to find out. I hope it's something they can reverse and make it grow back. It looks just awful.


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## Snuffy (Sep 27, 2015)

Did Tyson hair come back my chi is losing his hair too


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