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Puppy losing fur
Submitted by Kirbydo on Mar 06, 2007
I have an 11 wk old puppy. She eats like a horse, runs, plays, barks and stays away from the cat. I have noticed the fur on her back and her legs are slowly disappearing.
I have seen her clean her legs very often; and her skin and legs look completely fine (as well as the rest of her body) Could the hair loss be caused by stress due to our new home or maybe by boredom when I'm gone during the day? What should I do for her?
Answer:
Well, Kirby - I am a cat vet, so my answer probably won't be as thorough as it would be if I also treated dogs - but since this problem can also affect cats, I'll give it my best!
In a puppy her age, the problem is most likely an "ectoparasite". Meaning - fleas or mites. Given the pattern of hair loss, I would say the most likely problem is a flea sensitivity. The fact that she is cleaning the area often means that she is itchy. Even if you do not see any fleas in your home or on her body - she may have an allergy to the flea bites, meaning even a single flea bite can cause a reaction like this. In addition, because she is licking herself so often, she is likely licking away any evidence of fleas.
The other possibility is a mite. There are two mites that tend to affect puppies - sarcoptes and demodex. The description you have provided sounds most like demodex, which will typically cause patchy hairloss without any noticeable skin problems.
The bad news? Fleas and mites an be contagious to all the other animals in the house.
The good news? Both are easily treatable with a product called Revolution. Treats fleas, both types of mites, and even internal parasites like roundworms.
It is important, however, to get an official diagnosis - this will affect how often your puppy must be treated. Your vet will likely do a test called skin scrape to determine if this is a mite infection.
I definitely do not think the problem is stress. Hairloss such as this in a puppy is almost always a medical problem, and it is most often a contagious parasite such as I have described.
Hope that helps!
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