Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 12/27/2010

Question
Hi there,

Our german shepherd dog of 8 years has been diagnosed with Atopy which is a skin condition. We have been given some shampoos to treat the scabs under her fur but it hasn't really helped all that much and is very expensive. Today we have shaved all her fur down to number one which has revealved all her scabs. She is on steroids with this condition but it has caused her to have 'Cushins Desease'. She is really suffering with these skin problems. The whole of her under belly is red and scabbed over and from shaving her fur there was a real cheesy dog smell (though she was actually showered thoroughly the day before with her prescribed dog shampoo) (Malaseb) This isnt really helping her skin condition and was wondering if you could suggest something a little cheaper and more effective? I had in mind maybe some alcohol spray to spray her with or something?

This would be so helpful, thank you very much indeed :)

Mart.

Answer
If she has had so much cortisone to cause Cushing's disease, that is why the skin won't heal.  YOu need to get the dog off the cortisone as soon as possible.  Atopica is an alternative.  YOu are not going to be able to use anything cheap in this case. If ther are scabs that won't heal because of a bacterial infection, there may be a problem with a resistant bacteria.  In that case, a bacterial culture and antibiotic sensitivity may give you an option to treat with a more effective antibiotic.  The dog should be allergy tested and you should begin hyposensitization right away to decrease the skin reaction to his allergens.