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Dog with first hotspot

MyokyoMc

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Feb 1, 2025
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Listen is an unspayed as of yet 2-year-old Alaskan Malamute of ~85 lbs. BEAM is very good, especially with very hot weather this week. Her diet is mostly lightly poached frozen raw meat/vegetables - chicken, turkey, pork, beef and a bit of dental kibble with kefir for evening meal, additive Nulo Omega3-6-9 oil. Treats: dried liver, occasional raw chicken carcass. She had a vet visit about 6 weeks ago as she had a split heat and I was worried about pyometra. All ok, she had her rabies booster, long overdue, and a kennel cough vaccination in prep for her spay surgery in the fall (requirement of the vet clinic). She has up until recently been chewing her wrists but this seems to be much less frequent in the last month.

She lives in the garden, which is either a mudbath or a dustbin, much of her waking hours except for when the weather is hot... She lives in an urban environment so slow city walks on a long lead which are basically sniff fests, regular group walks with 2-5 other dogs and two dogwalkers. We do a fair amount of mental stimulation at home with Movement Puzzles, calming signals training with the Nordic Dog Education folks in Norway, and regular treat searches. I built ramps/platforms for Listen in her garden and she is quite agile. Also she is a master digger!

The primary problem is that she has what appears to be a small hot spot on her tail which she is worrying a bit, not at all constantly. She did go into the park fountain with her friends a few days ago ie got wet. (Last year, she loved her kiddie pools, this year not at all interested).

I tried, with a friend, to take a photo of her hot spot but Listen fled each time we touched her tail - very panicked. I haven't seen her like this. She was pretty chill at the 75-minute vet visit 6 weeks ago, even with me holding her for a shot and for the rectal thermometer!
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I spoke to a vet tech at the local vet clinic (not her vet who is a drive away) and she said that she could book for Listen to come to get shaved around her hotspot and send me home with Sulfadene? for home treatment (I have a cone at home). But she suggested, when I described Listen's fleeing style ;), she suggested that Tradazone? might be a good idea 12 and 2 hours before the appointment... So, I can go with my reg vet or with this local clinic but need a presciption for the sedative in any case.

My question: is it possible for me to treat the hotspot without shaving/clipping? And will an herbal spray/poultice work as well as the Sulfadene? I never thought that I would consider sedating my dog for a trip to the vet - she was so chill the last visit.

You will laugh but maybe the best is for me to schedule her spay operation and have the hot spot clipped, nails trimmed and teeth cleaned while she is anaesthetized...

@Dr. Jeff @Dr. Christina
 
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Thanks for making your first post about Listen!

And thanks for being such a great pet parent and part of the HA! community.
: is it possible for me to treat the hotspot without shaving/clipping?
Yes (as long as you can see the exposed spot)!
And will an herbal spray/poultice work as well as the Sulfadene?
Aloe vera gel covered with cayenne pepper is less suppressive and often works better (in my experience).
 
Great suggestions, Dr. Jeff. If the aloe does not help, I have had great success with the oozing, goopy kind of hot spots by making suds from old fashioned lye soap and rubbing it on and letting it dry. Keep applying more till it is dry. Most dogs do not like the taste.
Dr christina
 
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