What You Should Know About Hot Spots in Pets
When their skin feels on fire from itching, your pet may scratch, lick, and chew so much that they create a hot spot. Help your furry pal beat the itch by learning more about these incredibly uncomfortable sores.
What do pets’ hotspots look like?
Hot spots are inflamed lesions that appear on a pet’s skin and are also referred to as acute moist dermatitis or pyotraumatic dermatitis. These spots frequently appear out of nowhere and can quickly turn into an excruciating mess for your pet.
What results in hot spots in animals?
Hot spots are typically brought on by allergic reactions to food, fleas, or the environment. Nevertheless, anything that prompts your pet to lick, chew, or scratch an area until raw skin is exposed can be the cause.
Hot spots can be triggered by:
- Ear infections
- Skin infections
- Matted fur
- Urinary tract infections
- Anal gland issues
How are animal hot spots treated?
To avoid a severe skin infection, you must act quickly to treat your pet’s hot spots. Your pet needs to wear an Elizabethan collar (also known as an e-collar) as soon as you notice a small area of inflammation in order to prevent further skin irritation.
As hot spots can be excruciatingly painful to the touch, when your pet comes to our hospital for hot spot treatment, we may sedate them and give them a potent analgesic. We will clip away matted fur to make the area more airy once your pet is at ease. To help the hot spot heal, the wet, matted fur that acts as a breeding ground for infection must be cut out.
To remove fur and other debris, we will gently clean the area with an antiseptic rinse. Next, we will apply topical medications to the clean, dry skin to relieve the itch and treat the infection. Depending on what caused the hot spot in the first place, we may advise allergy medication, anal gland expression, ear medication, routine grooming, or other therapies.
If you notice an irritated, inflamed area on your pet’s skin, don’t wait. Call our team to schedule an appointment before a minor irritation flares into a large, painful hot spot.