Skin problems in dogs and cats are common occurrences. It often involves itching, which can be maddening. Not only can it be distressing for your pet, but you as the owner can feel helpless when nothing seems to work. Following a clear step-by-step plan in diagnosis and treatment significantly improves the quality of life.
Skin problems in dogs and cats are common occurrences. It often involves itching, which can be maddening. Not only can it be distressing for your pet, but you as the owner can feel helpless when nothing seems to work. Following a clear step-by-step plan in diagnosis and treatment significantly improves the quality of life.
Skin complaints are troublesome and often challenging and time-consuming to resolve. We frequently encounter skin allergies, ectoparasites, and skin infections in practice. Additionally, autoimmune diseases and skin cancer can affect animals. The cause may lie in the body’s largest organ itself: the skin, but can also be due to an underlying problem in one of the other organs. Think of conditions like hypothyroidism, diabetes, hepatitis, or kidney failure. A seemingly simple complaint like hair loss, ear infections, or inflamed nails can sometimes be very difficult to resolve.
Reasons why skin problems are complicated
- With various chronic conditions, skin changes almost always look the same. This is because the skin does not have many ways to react.
- The same condition can look completely different in different dogs.
- Secondary infections almost always cause generalized itching and skin damage. The primary problem is therefore not clearly visible. Medication for the ‘original’ problem may even seem ineffective if secondary infections are present.
- Different conditions can be present simultaneously.
- Many skin conditions do not have a single identifiable origin but multiple.
It is extremely important that we follow a fixed protocol, systematically eliminating causes step by step to arrive at the correct treatment. Resolving a skin problem is never straightforward, and it can take weeks and sometimes even months before we have the issues fully under control. Therefore, a lot of patience is required from you! Ultimately, fortunately, provided we carefully follow the step-by-step plan together, we can achieve itch- and symptom-free results in almost every patient. The step-by-step plan depends on the skin problem but involves multiple appointments both in the clinic and over the phone.
Step 1
We start with an introductory conversation to map out the complaints and conduct a comprehensive questionnaire. We preferably schedule a longer 30-minute consultation for this. This gives us the time to thoroughly examine your pet’s skin and take scrapings and impression preparations for examination under the microscope. This allows us to determine if we are dealing with secondary infections that have arisen due to unhealthy skin. We will treat these secondary infections as a priority. In case of itching, your pet will also be prescribed medications to alleviate the itch.
Step 2
At the follow-up appointment, we check if the secondary infections are under control and discuss with you the further steps to reach a diagnosis and appropriate treatment. We do this together with you because you are ultimately the one responsible for the care.