Hotspots General Chat

Beau does and woody used to if they haven’t been to the groomers get hosed down outside and shampooed too if they were dirty, call me cruel as some people do but as I say they can go jump in freezing cold muddy puddles and go jump in cold rivers, why am I cruel for hosing them down outside? I will take them in the house after towel them off and dry them quicker than I can get home from the river. They will / did both stand there and just let you get on with what you need to do and get it over and done with, upside is they both Love the towelling down and drying off bit afterwards. Fingers crossed beau hasn’t had any skin problems as such but woody used to and I had cream from the vets that you would apply sparingly called betafuse, that would sort the problem out. Damn expensive though a little 15grm tube nearly £30

@who owns who
Sorry Marc, that dosage sheet is confusing as it gives the dose in mgs. and doesn't mention larger dogs. I would use one tablet, (they are 4mg), twice a day to start with. Maybe check with your vet before using a larger dosage. The drug is very safe, sickness and drowsiness are stated as possible side effects but I have not had any problems.

I've always washed my dogs (large) outside in the hose when needed. Now, I have an outdoor hot water tap and I use a Y connector to connect the hose to both cold and hot taps. In winter, I can easily bathe a dog with warm water if needed. Fortunately, Cat-dog doesn't get into things so rarely needs a bath and Tornado-dog has the type of coat that dirt, etc, just slides off when he gets wet. Akita coats you have to get in there and scrub down to the skin to get them clean.

Marc - would the dogs do OK getting bathed at a groomers? If so, email me at juno dot com and I will help with the cost. I know how frustrating it can be to be on limited funds when your pets are suffering.

Prednisolone is often used for allergies. It's best used as a short term as it is a steroid and can cause issues long-term.

BTW, I had to look this up: prednisone is the inactive form of prednilosone. When you take prednisone, your liver has to convert it into prednilosone before it works. I've had both prescribed over the years and never knew that. I always thought prednilosone was,a generic form of prednisone.

I am glad that I can now lift Tally into my bath, though it is a bit of a pull to lift her out! I also do an in-between half bath - that is legs, chest, underparts and tail - using a washing up bowl on the kitchen floor. Front half first, rear end second.
Thanks for that Toed. I thought prednisone was just an Americanization! It is a 5mg prednisolone tablet that I keep in stock for bouts of more determined nibbling.

Yeah, that was an interesting bit of trivia. After breaking out in hives from a can of clam chowder, I kept a couple prednisolone tablets in my purse for a few years just in case it happened again. It never did. Allergies are weird.

I always keep some benedryl on hand for me and the dogs. Started carrying it after Bat-dog broke out in hives on a camping trip.

There are different Benedryls now to the original. I didn't realise till I bought the new one. I don't suppose it would do any harm but without knowing I didn't risk it.

From what I know, you want to get the benedryl that has only diphenhydramine. I like it because dosage is easy - 1-2mg per pound every 8-12 hours.

Definitely stay away from the benedryl-D (do not use a decongestant such as pseudoephedrine on your dogs). And do not use time release versions as they are developed for human digestion specifics.

I see that in the UK, benedryl versions are available with either acrivastine or cetirizine. Acrivastine here is brand name Semprex and ceterizine here is brand name Zyrtec. I have never used either of these for dogs before (although I take ceturizine year round for my allergies). I would check with your vet before using one of them just to be safe and get the dosage right.