<p>Our elderly (He thinks he’s 3, but is really 12) Golden Retriever has a hot spot on the back of his leg. We’re planning on taking him to the vet but thought I’d ask here for any suggestions that someone may have used successfully. We went on vacation and it appeared while we were gone. It seems to be growing daily.</p>
<p>Vetericyn. It is a spray that comes in liquid and gel and can be found at most pet stores I believe. It is kid of expensive but is amazing. We use it on our dogs and horses and it works wonders for all kinds of skin conditions.</p>
<p>Which works better,the gel or spray? there are a couple of choices on Amazon.Do you know what the differences are? One is All Animal.Another is VF wound care and there is just plain wound care and hot spot wound care. Does it matter?</p>
<p>I’ve always found the gel works better because it tends to stay in place instead of running off. I have used the original wound and infection spray and the hydrogel spray and they both are great. Vets are even starting to recommend and sell it now. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.jeffersequine.com/vetericyn-universal-hydrogel-spray/camid/EQU/cp/0035201/[/URL]”>http://www.jeffersequine.com/vetericyn-universal-hydrogel-spray/camid/EQU/cp/0035201/</a></p>
<p>This is the exact stuff I have right now (hopefully the link works, I’ve never posted one before).</p>
<p>Although if they make one specifically for hotspots now, they may be worth a try. But I have used the original on my dogs hot spots and it worked well as long as we kept her from licking it off right after we put it on.</p>
<p>I’ve heard the term, but what IS a hot spot?</p>
<p>Cut off hair all around the hotspot first, as close as you can to the skin. This is really important. It needs to get dry. So trim hair around wound so no hair even lays across hot spot. Even if you have to go four inches in all directions. </p>
<p>Put on the medicine and then take dog for a short walk so medicine can work it’s way in.</p>
<p>We found that cutting the hair immediately helped the hotspot heal quicker and the dog actually licked it less.</p>
<p>We’ve been recently going through the same thing with our 10-year-old Corgi, kathiep. Back in May, we noticed excessive scratching and some very red areas, especially on her underside and on her right side where she had scratched so much she had almost developed a bald spot. We’d tried over-the-counter sprays and oral Benadryl, but that didn’t seem to do much. We took her to the vet who diagnosed her with Staph Pyoderma secondary to allergies and gave her a steroid shot and a prescription for some antibiotics. She was doing pretty well but, about three weeks after completing her antibiotics, she started scratching again. We took her back to the vet and he said she had the same thing going on, but said he thought it looked even more severe and wondered aloud if she might have Lupus. He gave her a stronger steroid shot and stronger antibiotics. He suggested giving her Benadryl every 8 hours. She has done better, but the Benadryl was making her lethargic so we’ve now switched to Claritin 5mg twice daily. Occasionally, we notice her scratching but there is no redness and she seems to be okay at this time. The vet said if it gets severe again, he’ll consider the possibility of Lupus and will need to do some skin biopsies.</p>
<p>
Hot spots on dogs are areas where they’ve been scratching or licking so much due to irritation that is can cause the area of skin to become broken and scabbed. Our dog gets them due to allergies. I think it’s similar to eczema in a person.</p>
<p>The Cone of Shame. </p>
<p>Seriously, keeping a cone on the dog when you can’t supervise to make sure he’s not licking the spot will help it heal much more quickly.</p>
<p>I think we can cut the hair around the hot spot but no way would we be able to shave it off. Even cutting will require a muzzle and at least one person to distract and hold down. I don’t think he can reach the area to lick it, so if the Vetericyn. gets rid of the itch, that should make our dog stop scratching, right? No cone of shame required? How funny, I cross-posted with you dmd!</p>
<p>SplashMom–Interesting about the Lupis. Our dog has what we have thought have been bad allergies for a long time. I might have to look up Lupis in dogs to see if she fits. She has had off an on infections various places, etc. too. We have a steroid spray we use when she gets really bad-probably similar to the above link.</p>
<p>OK–looked it up, she doesn’t have those symptoms at all.</p>
<p>I strongly recommend the cone. It’s worth it.</p>
<p>After looking it over and talking with my sons, I decided to spring for the cone. I stopped at our vets and got one. The vet recommended making a homemade brew of 2 cups of black tea and then steeping aspirin in it, allowing it to cool and then painting it on. Anyone try that?</p>
<p>Neither Petsmart nor our Vet had the Vetericyn but I see I can get it from Amazon. I often use them because of their fast, free shipping with the Amazon Prime, but may call the nearby farm supply store in the morning to see if they have it. When I looked the Vetericyn up it turned up on horse forums and people there said they used it for hot spots on both their horses and dogs.</p>
<p>All the meds, cone etc arefine, but until you cut that hair, the hotspot won’t get better.</p>
<p>I would forego the home remedies and get the dog to the vet stat. Our Lab had a patch of wet eczema (another name for a hot spot) in an area we didn’t notice immediately. By the time we spotted it, she was a very sick animal and had to be hospitalized. The infection can move incredibly rapidly–in her case, it was hours.</p>
<p>I don’t agree - I’ve never shorn my dogs’ hair to deal with a hotspot. I simply rebuke when they start to irritate the area, praise if they stop (treat helps), then distract them with something else or lightly scratch with the pads of the fingers on the affected area. Works like a charm, no medicine, shearing, or topical sprays required. Remember that for most (if not the vast majority) of hotspots, there isn’t really anything wrong - it’s just itchy/painful for the dog in that area so they don’t stop biting or scratching at it. Which compounds the problem and develops into a real lesion. The key is to catch it early in the cycle, like keeping your cholesterol down before you need quadruple bypass surgery.</p>
<p>If you really want to avoid hot spots, brush your dog more frequently. Shed hair that gets stuck in the coat is a leading cause (this is probably what happened to the OP’s golden), as is damp fur for an extended period of time.</p>
<p>We have a 13 year old Maltese with terrible seasonal allergies. He scratches and bites himself and gets ear infections and hot spots on his tummy that inevitably turn into secondary staph infections. Our vet used to give him a steroid shot and then put him on prednisone for 2 weeks, in addition to Simplicef (antibiotic) tablets for the staph. A few months ago he decided to prescribe Atopica, which is Cyclosporine. Atopica works with the immune system of the dog to stop it from reacting to the allergens (in layman’s terms) It has worked wonders, and our vet prefers it to the constant use of steroids, which come with their own problems.</p>
<p>Atopica needs to be kept in the freezer, which helps do away with stomach issues that can occur. We give it to our dog once a day every day, but the vet said if it works really well to drop it to every other day and see how it goes. </p>
<p>Kathiep perhaps you might want to ask your vet if Atopica would be a viable option for your dog. It’s so hard to watch them suffer, isn’t it?</p>
<p>We’re going to go for the tea bag/aspirin thing first. Just waiting for it to cool. I think it started because we went on vacation and he was bored. He had one behind his ear before and it healed pretty quick. I can’t remember what we used, but we borrowed a neighbors cone and it seemed to go pretty quick. I may order the Vetericyn but the gel kind is not available via Amazon Prime and shipping is from California - across the country.</p>
<p>We had to give our dog cortisone during fleas season. His vet said he was allergic to fleas and just one would give him hot spots. It did help.</p>
<p>When a dog has a wound, of any kind, what does the vet do? He cuts the hair around the wound. To allow for medication and for air. </p>
<p>A wet wound will never heal. And you can’t get to the sore spot if there is hair covering it. All you are doing is medicating the hair.</p>
<p>Pretty much every website i looked up talked about clippomg hair around hotspot. So the dog has a bald spot. Better then a hotspot that lasts longer and having to use the cone longer. How can you medicate the wound if it’s covered in hair?</p>
<p>Sure it would be nice to go stop it, but unless you are awake 24hours a day and with them in the room, they will lick. </p>
<p>You will find if you cut the hair and cut the long hairs around wound so they don’t fall into wound, as is verymlikely with a golden retriever, the wound will heal faster, the meds will work better and actually get to the wound.</p>
<p>Not cutting the hair? Why not? Appearance? Dogs don’t care.</p>