Red Rash on Dog's Underbelly

by Jennie C.
(Ixonia, WI)

Rash on Underside of Belly

Our 1 yr old male Stephens Cur mix started losing hair about 6 weeks ago on the inside of his legs and belly. Now, as of a couple days ago, he developed a red rash on the underside of his belly.

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He licks it at times and itches occasionally, but does not itch out of control. When he DOES scratch, he is scratching his head, shoulders and areas other than the underside. He licks there instead and will put his legs in his mouth sometimes and just sit there with his leg in his mouth.

When he first started losing hair and presented mild redness, we took him to the vet who gave him a steroid shot and said it could be one of many possibilities ranging from allergies to mites.

When we first got him from the shelter in April, he was put on a round of Ivermectin and antibiotics for ear mites, conjunctivitis of the eyes and kennel cough. That all cleared up well, and it was about a few weeks afterward that he started losing hair.

His eyes still remain red at times (especially at night), but the discharge has stopped. The vet has given us a cream as well as a steroid drop to try for the eyes, but we started to think the eyes might clear up if we could figure out the possible allergy?

Initially, we thought the hair loss might be the food we were feeding him. At that time, we switched his food from Purina ONE chicken and rice to Wellness Core grain free. He is responding well to the food, but the apparent allergy symptoms didn't go away.

We have been giving him Benadryl morning and night and that seems to help the redness and any itching. We wipe him down after coming in from outside in case it is a grass allergy.

And, we noticed the rash started a couple days ago AFTER we cleaned the house which included spraying of Febreze and using CarpetFresh carpet powder. So, yesterday, we steam cleaned the carpets and cleaned all the furniture to get rid of those chemicals to see if it helps.

The only other new thing we gave him in the last few days was an Omega 3 supplement. He IS also on preventative Frontline Plus and Heart Guard.

Since we just got him from the Shelter in April, we don't have enough information about his environment before. We know he came up to WI from TN.

The picture posted is from last night.

I hope that is enough information to help us figure out what the problem is and how we can help alleviate it.

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Red Rash on Dog's Underbelly

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My Online Vet Response to Red Rash on Dog's Underbelly
by: Dr. Carol Jean Tillman

Hi Jennie,
What a great background history! And a good photo, too. It seems that when you adopted your dog he already had some health issues.

Often, when adopting from the pound or shelter, they will give numerous vaccinations. Giving more than one vaccine at a time can cause problems. But the main goal of the shelter is to find a good home for a dog, so the pound will often try to 'compress' a number of treatments and vaccinations very close together in order to get the dog adopted.

You did not mention if your dog received any vaccines. But he was treated with numerous medicines for earmites, conjunctivitis and kennel cough. These medicines would have suppressed his symptoms (of kennel cough and eye discharge), and this was followed by the hair loss, and now the skin eruptions, and itching.
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Certainly a change of environment, exposures to irritants, allergens in the air, pollen, grass, etc. might continue to trigger his itching. And where the rash is located on his underbelly would be where he is coming into contact with an irritant by laying on it.

Going back to when he was 'suppressed' from the medicines received at the shelter, and possibly vaccinated, may be the key to start treatment holistically.

Your diet change to a grain-free food is a logical choice, but you might consider a raw natural dog food diet for him, and avoid DRY dog food.

Primal, Nature's Variety, Barfworld.com, auntjeni.com, are some of the raw foods you could consider, among others.

I would not use the Frontline. Decrease the Heartgard to every 45 days.

It is ok to add the Omega 3 fish oils, about 250 mg two times daily to the food.

And use a mild shampoo to bathe him, like Baby shampoo, or an oatmeal/aloe shampoo would be fine. Bathe him once a week, or even 2 times per week, if it seems to relieve the itching.

Rinse his eyes 2-3 times daily with Saline, purchased from a local pharmacy. You can use the Benadryl as needed to provide some relief, the dose is 1 mg per lb 2-3 times daily. Therefore, if he weighs 25 lbs, the over the counter Benadryl is 25 mg per pill. So he would need one pill 2-3 times daily.

Answer continued below...

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Submitted by: Dr. Carol Jean Tillman

Title

Comment
 <span style="clear:both;"> <div class="AdSenseBoxMid" id="mid_add">  <script type='text/javascript'> GA_googleFillSlot("OPD-sbi-c2-template-CONTENT-midleft-300x250-wrap"); </script> </div> </span> Hi Jennie, What a great background history! And a good photo, too. It seems that when you adopted your dog he already had some health issues. Often, when adopting from the pound or shelter, they will give numerous vaccinations. Giving more than one vaccine at a time can cause problems. But the main goal of the shelter is to find a good home for a dog, so the pound will often try to 'compress' a number of treatments and vaccinations very close together in order to get the dog adopted. You did not mention if your dog received any vaccines. But he was treated with numerous medicines for earmites, conjunctivitis and kennel cough. These medicines would have suppressed his symptoms (of kennel cough and eye discharge), and this was followed by the hair loss, and now the skin eruptions, and itching.  </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script> </span> --> Certainly a change of environment, exposures to irritants, allergens in the air, pollen, grass, etc. might continue to trigger his itching. And where the rash is located on his underbelly would be where he is coming into contact with an irritant by laying on it. Going back to when he was 'suppressed' from the medicines received at the shelter, and possibly vaccinated, may be the key to start treatment holistically. Your diet change to a grain-free food is a logical choice, but you might consider a <a href="http://www.organic-pet-digest.com/raw-natural-dog-food.html">raw natural dog food diet</a> for him, and avoid DRY dog food. Primal, Nature's Variety, Barfworld.com, auntjeni.com, are some of the raw foods you could consider, among others. I would not use the Frontline. Decrease the Heartgard to every 45 days. It is ok to add the Omega 3 fish oils, about 250 mg two times daily to the food. And use a mild shampoo to bathe him, like Baby shampoo, or an <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/m-pr.cfm?merchantID=6187&userID=282357&productID=453483032">oatmeal/aloe shampoo</a> would be fine. Bathe him once a week, or even 2 times per week, if it seems to relieve the itching. Rinse his eyes 2-3 times daily with Saline, purchased from a local pharmacy. You can use the Benadryl as needed to provide some relief, the dose is 1 mg per lb 2-3 times daily. Therefore, if he weighs 25 lbs, the over the counter Benadryl is 25 mg per pill. So he would need one pill 2-3 times daily. Answer continued below...

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Online Vet Response Part 2 Red Rash on Dog's Underbelly
by: Dr. Carol Jean Tillman

...continued from above:

Dog homeopathic remedies like Nux vomica, and Pulsatilla are good remedies to use for suppression of symptoms. Followed by Sulphur, Silicea or Thuya for vaccinosis. But once a homeopathic remedy is started, the 'conventional' drugs should be decreased or stopped. They might interfere with the remedy action.

Which of these remedies to choose should be determined by a holistic veterinarian. Specifically, one that practices homeopathy in your area.

Please keep us posted by coming back to this page and clicking the 'click here to add your own comments' link below.

Take care,
Dr. Carol Jean Tillman

DISCLAIMER: This educational advice is based on the depth of your question and the picture you submitted. The above should never replace the advice of your local veterinarian, as they have the ability to evaluate your dog in person.

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