Dog Hot Spots on a Midnight Run
Frank was out for an evening run when he spotted a Golden Retriever on the sidewalk ahead of him. He looked around for the owner and didn’t see one. He stopped and the dog approached slowly wagging its tail.
“Where’s your master?”, Frank asked as he reached down to check its collar. The collar was gone, but Frank did find an area under the dog’s chin where the fur was missing. Upon further inspection, Frank found the section smelled terrible, the skin was red and oozing.
Fortunately for Joe, a good friend of his was a vet and Frank called him while keeping an eye on the dog. The vet told Frank that it could be a dog hot spot and he should bring the dog by so he could check it out. “Dog hot spots can be serious and spread.”, Joe said, “It will cost you wings and a drink”, he said and laughed as Frank hung up the phone.
Joe checked the dog before closing up his office for the evening. He confirmed that the red, inflamed, oozing area on the dog’s chest was indeed a dog hot spot. Joe then got a tech to hold the dog while he shaved all of the hair from the area. Once the hair was removed, he used an antiseptic to clean the area and gave it time to dry. “What do we do with her now?”, Frank asked, and Joe told him he would have a tech take her to a kennel to spend the night.
Before going out that evening, Frank and Joe drove around the neighborhoods near where the dog was found. While Frank drove, they talked about dog hot spots. Frank learned that they can occur in just a few hours and are typically caused by a dog allergy. Dog hot spots are more common in long haired breeds with thick fur, but can occur in other dogs as well. Joe told Frank that calling a vet was the best thing to do when dog hot spots are found.