[dogo22]

hello dogforum community i could really use some insight on this issue i’m experiencing with my dog, any help is greatly appreciated! my dog is a 3 year old dogo argentino male unaltered. he’s been healthy since i got him up until about 5 months ago. in october i noticed scab like wounds forming on his forehead and his muzzle. they started out as very small circle scabs, and over the weeks it expanded to about 1 inch in diameter.
after 3-4 weeks of not getting better we went to the vet. the vet prescribed him antibiotics and they also shaved his head where the scabs were to knock them off. after this vet visit it healed but he experienced the same problem in january. this time the vet gave him anti allergen medication and shaved the scabs off again. he healed the second time but a month later the same problem resurfaced on his forehead and muzzle.
i keep up with his hygiene and make sure his bed is clean. we live in the pacific northwest and it rains a lot here, don’t know if that impacts this issue. he doesn’t go to the dog park where he could contract this problem. the scabs only form on his forehead and muzzle, nowhere else. i am confused and don’t know what to do. i have pictures that i can link but didn’t want to disrupt anyone. wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar with their dog? thank you in advance to anyone that can help!

 

[JoanneF]

Pictures would probably help.

First thoughts are either a parasite or allergy.

 

[dogo22]

Pictures would probably help.

First thoughts are either a parasite or allergy.

upper left part is where the vet shaved

 

[JoanneF]

Ooh, those look quite nasty, I admit a lot bigger than I expected.

We have members with veterinary experience, I hope they might have ideas but if not, perhaps a referral to a dermatologist might be necessary.

 

[MaisieAndGem]

Looks like some form of skin ulcer. What sort of diet is he on? Does he spend a lot of time outdoors?

Skin ulcers can be from a range of things, from nutrient deficiencies to fungal infections, which are bit more complicated than regular bacteria infections. However, given his breed and coat colour/pigmentation, my biggest concern here would be a form of cancer. If you can, see if your vet can get a sample sent off for testing, that should help determine the root cause or at least rule some things out.

In the mean time, bathe daily in some warm diluted betadine (weak tea colour) to help keep out any extra infections and soften the scabs a little.

 

[dogo22]

Looks like some form of skin ulcer. What sort of diet is he on? Does he spend a lot of time outdoors?

Skin ulcers can be from a range of things, from nutrient deficiencies to fungal infections, which are bit more complicated than regular bacteria infections. However, given his breed and coat colour/pigmentation, my biggest concern here would be a form of cancer. If you can, see if your vet can get a sample sent off for testing, that should help determine the root cause or at least rule some things out.

In the mean time, bathe daily in some warm diluted betadine (weak tea colour) to help keep out any extra infections and soften the scabs a little.

we are going back to the vet in a few weeks to get a skin scrape done if that doesn’t work my next step is a biopsy

 

[dogo22]

Looks like some form of skin ulcer. What sort of diet is he on? Does he spend a lot of time outdoors?

Skin ulcers can be from a range of things, from nutrient deficiencies to fungal infections, which are bit more complicated than regular bacteria infections. However, given his breed and coat colour/pigmentation, my biggest concern here would be a form of cancer. If you can, see if your vet can get a sample sent off for testing, that should help determine the root cause or at least rule some things out.

In the mean time, bathe daily in some warm diluted betadine (weak tea colour) to help keep out any extra infections and soften the scabs a little.

he was eating half raw meat and half dry kibble dog food. the vet recommended to stop feeding raw meat for a few weeks. he lives indoors but goes on several walks every day outside

 

[MaisieAndGem]

That's solid advice - if you are feeding just plain raw meat, that is nutritionally unbalanced and should only make up 10% of his diet or you risk causing deficiencies. If you are interested in raw feeding, that's great, and you can definitely do 50/50 raw and kibble, the raw just needs to be balanced. Hopefully you get some answers soon

 

[dogo22]

That's solid advice - if you are feeding just plain raw meat, that is nutritionally unbalanced and should only make up 10% of his diet or you risk causing deficiencies. If you are interested in raw feeding, that's great, and you can definitely do 50/50 raw and kibble, the raw just needs to be balanced. Hopefully you get some answers soon

he was getting 50/50 raw/kibble, raw food in the morning and kibble in the evening. out of the 50% raw he was getting 40% chicken, 40% beef, 10% bone 10% organs

 

[forgotten]

I you are going to change his diet around I most certainly would not stop the nice variety of raw food that you are feeding. 50/50 meat and kibble is very similar to the old fashioned meat and biscuit, dogs did not have so many health problems then.
Get his skin scrapes done next time it flares up.

 

[Wellspan]

Hi. Awww. That’s tough for your fur baby. I suggest if you don’t want to bathe the whole dog everyday, you could just do a spot bathe once or twice a day on the affected areas. If it dries up, it’s working. I use Chlorhexidine shampoo. For me, has worked for a lot of skin issues that are known and unknown. There r are two strengths, 2% and 4%. I would start with the 2%. Just apply about dime size or quarter size amount on a warm washcloth and suds up and apply, gently rub in a little, making sure not to get it in the eyes or mouth, leave on for about five minutes, stay with him, then with the warm wash cloth rinse it off.
Somewhere in my dog travels I was told not to remove scabs, that that is part of the healing process. To let them fall off by themselves.
It may or may not be related to the food. Idk. I have tried three dogs on raw though and for my experience, it does not work.

Like someone else suggested, maybe parasites, worms? The skin scraping may help. Where does he lay his head?
Does he scratch at it? If he is scratching you may want to apply a soft e collar. And if he’s not scratching it may not be allergen, but you may want to use the e collar as a preventive from anything rubbing against it, to protect. Check with the vet. Can’t hurt. If he was healthy up to five months ago, what changed? What was going on prior to five months? Did he have some shots? Check your records. If u got him from a breeder, give them a shout and see if anything they can tell you about the dna, blood line. They may want to know anyway for breeding purposes. Or find a breeder and give them a call and ask about if there are any common diseases you should watch out for with this breed, that could be in the blood line. Send them a pic. Start writing everything down u observe. And what the vets say and do. I am not a vet or vet tech.

 

[dogo22]

Hi. Awww. That’s tough for your fur baby. I suggest if you don’t want to bathe the whole dog everyday, you could just do a spot bathe once or twice a day on the affected areas. If it dries up, it’s working. I use Chlorhexidine shampoo. For me, has worked for a lot of skin issues that are known and unknown. There r are two strengths, 2% and 4%. I would start with the 2%. Just apply about dime size or quarter size amount on a warm washcloth and suds up and apply, gently rub in a little, making sure not to get it in the eyes or mouth, leave on for about five minutes, stay with him, then with the warm wash cloth rinse it off.
Somewhere in my dog travels I was told not to remove scabs, that that is part of the healing process. To let them fall off by themselves.
It may or may not be related to the food. Idk. I have tried three dogs on raw though and for my experience, it does not work.

Like someone else suggested, maybe parasites, worms? The skin scraping may help. Where does he lay his head?
Does he scratch at it? If he is scratching you may want to apply a soft e collar. And if he’s not scratching it may not be allergen, but you may want to use the e collar as a preventive from anything rubbing against it, to protect. Check with the vet. Can’t hurt. If he was healthy up to five months ago, what changed? What was going on prior to five months? Did he have some shots? Check your records. If u got him from a breeder, give them a shout and see if anything they can tell you about the dna, blood line. They may want to know anyway for breeding purposes. Or find a breeder and give them a call and ask about if there are any common diseases you should watch out for with this breed, that could be in the blood line. Send them a pic. Start writing everything down u observe. And what the vets say and do. I am not a vet or vet tech.

the breeder told me it could be related to feeding kibble out of a stainless steel bowl. i noticed this issue started around the time i got the bowl. i don’t know if that’s true or not but i started using a bpa free plastic bowl. they also recommend hibiclens 4% chlorhexidine foaming wash.
also i want to ask should i continue feeding him half raw meat and half kibble? every vet is against raw diet but everyone online feeds it. i’m feeding him kibble only to see what happens. he does not like kibble at all and barely eats

 

[JoanneF]

Do you know why your vet is against raw? Is it specifically related to your dog's condition, or is he anti-raw for all pets?

 

[dogo22]

Do you know why your vet is against raw? Is it specifically related to your dog's condition, or is he anti-raw for all pets?

the vet told me she’s totally against raw diet for all dogs

 

[JoanneF]

That's clearer - if she doesn't think it's related to the skin problem, then she is of course entitled to her opinion. But vets notoriously get very little training in nutrition so if you and your dog prefer raw, then if he were mine I'd be going for it.