Anyone have any experience with hot spots?
 

Poor Rylie is developing a hot spot on his back I think :( Last summer my mom had bought Zodiac Spot on Flea Treatment after a Petsmart Employee recommended it and he had a pretty bad reaction to it...got a large hotspot between his shoulder blades and had to go to the vet twice and was given two steroid shots. He's been on revolution since then with no problems.

I normally use Advantage on Lacy and my cats and recently got boxes of ProMeris. I don't have any revolution so I decided to treat him with what I had. I hadn't tried the ProMeris before so I decided to use that this time. I put it on all my cats (cat one smells REALLY good) and on Lacy and Rylie. None of my pets have ever been bothered by any flea preventative (I've used frontline, advantage, and now ProMeris with no issues) but I guess Rylie is really sensitive to some of them.

I just looked at his back and it looks like he's got a little bump popping up in between his shoulders. When I felt it, he started moving his foot like dogs do when you scratch a place that itches. Otherwise, it doesn't seem to be bothering him, but I'm afraid it may get worse.

I've never had any issues with hot spots on my pets and honestly, haven't had much experience with them. Do any of you have suggestions for what I can do for the spot? I do not want him to have steroid injections unless it is absolutely necessary...and I'm hoping the spot doesn't get any worse. Have any of you used Benadryl for this or any type of creams?

Is that what these are called? Tucker has gotten some little bumps lately. They didn't really bother him, and after a little while they went away. I really don't know what to tell you, but I hope you can get it figured out! Good luck!

yeah, that's what I've always heard them called. They are normally caused from an allergic reaction or a bacterial infection. It usually starts as a small spot and sometimes spreads..hair can fall out and the spot can get red, raw, and itchy. Rylie's is probably no bigger than a dime right now...it's just a little red and feels like a bump...he's not scratching it or anything so I'm hoping it'll go away on it's own. For now, I've cleaned it with hydrogen peroxide and will probably do that a couple times a day and just keep an eye on it.

hot spots
 

Boy, do I have experience with hot spots. My Cosmo used to get terrible itchies and hot spots. I have held him and rocked him and walked the floor with him and comforted him to keep him from scratching. I figured out how to stop them, thank goodness, by changing his food. I'm not sure what you're describing is a hot spot. Hot spots are raw and itchy. I used Gold Bond Medicated Powder and clear aloe gel and always covered a raw spot until it dried up. I had several onesies for Cosmo and he wore one to keep him from licking or scratching a hot spot. If he got a really raw spot, I would clean it up and put neosporin on it to heal it, cover it with a gauze pad secured with medical tape (sticks to fur but comes right off) and put a onesie on him. You could check with your vet and see what he recommends. I have tried about everything there is out there, but there are always new treatments coming along. I got good at treating hot spots because each hot spot that the vet treated cost at least $100 and at the rate Cosmo had them, that would have gotten very expensive. Good luck with your little guy and I hope you find something that will clear it right up.

I've heard of people using benadryl, also using an oatmeal wash to soothe it.

hot spots
 

I used benadryl, too, and it helped a lot. Also can wash with Listerine, which cleans and helps stop itching.

Poor Rylie Bleu And Mommy Send Big Hugs And Tummy Rubs! Your Mommy Will Take Care Of You In A Jiffy Dont You Worry!

Malaseb shampoo works very well and if you want to go a more holistic route you can try vinegar, it usually dries it up pretty fast. I have a GSD that has horrible skin allergies and we battle this all summer and fall.