Common skin Diseases in Cats & Dogs
Skin allergies, sensitivity to fleas and foods, skin bacterial infections, mange, yeast, and fungal infections can make a pet miserable. Really miserable. And smelly and gross. And irritable and restless.
Treatment can often be frustratingly ineffective.
So often, pets with sensitive skin are suffering from not one but several things all at once. For example: A single pet may be extra sensitive to fleas. And reactive to several different food groups. And allergic to dust mites and pollens. And because this pet's skin is chronically inflammed and irritated, it might also suffer from both bacterial and yeast infections. If a vet misses just one of these problems, the pet continues to itch and itch and itch.
Remember that this information is intended not as a guide for home treatment but to impress on you how complicated a safe and successful treatment can be: for good results you need to go to your vet. And with skin disease being as frustrating as it often is, you may need to make several visits in order to finally get everything under control.
Notice I said control and not cure. It's just a fact of medical life ... at least for the present ... that there is no actual cure for many of our skin diseases. But with diligence and an armory of some fairly effective medications, we can usually make your pet comfortable, happy, sweet smelling, and nice to have around again.