[Dober4Ever]

My 2 1/2 year old bitch has a skin problem that first appeared 1 year ago: small 2-3 mm raised bumps that appear mostly on the back of the neck (attached photo) and shoulders, but also elsewhere on her body. If squeezed, the bumps will sometimes burst and release a little pus.

The vet has taken skin-biopsies and skin scrapings and ruled out bacterial infection and demodex. Thew biopsies came back from the lab with the comment "almost certainly an allergic reaction to insect bites" - however, I'm at a complete loss as to what insects these could be especially since she had the bumps mid winter where no insects are active outdoors and we have no infestations indoors.

Right now we're on the third week of an anti-allergic exclusion diet consisting exclusivly of "Royal Canine Hypoallergenic" to check for the possibility of food intolerance - but with no improvement so far.

Does this ring a bell to anyone? Any similar experiences? Suggestions?

 

[dobekiss]

Poor baby...I haven't had them come up quite so bad but when I have had bumps/itchies, I use a lotion call Mirco-Tec pet Gel..It's a leave on gel that is especially good for rashes & bumps. The other thought, if you can get ahold of Comfry Leaves and make a little compress and place that on her bumps, it will actually draw the pus out & help relieve the sores (use a nylon, put leaves inside, tie it up & pour hot water over it in a bowl, let it steep & cool a bit) If it's being caused by a food allergy it seems like you're doing the right thing with the food Hope something works FAST....

 

[dobedream]

I am certainly no expert, but when I got my girl, she had skin issues that her previous owners couldn't figure out. She was also on a Royal Canin vet-recommended food.
Checking the ingredients on the Hypoallergenic formula, there are several things that stand out to me, that I would tend to avoid with a true exclusion diet.
I am only saying this because I did an exclusion diet with Roxy and had to eliminate a lot of common ingredients.
Now her coat and skin are 100%.
Perhaps you might want to look into it...cuz it sounds like you are covering a lot of bases already with the vet tests. Good luck!

 

[VZ-Doberman]

That's what Bacchus looks like when he eats anything with corn in it. Starts off as little mosquito bites looking then they turn into pustules, hair gets thin and skin is hot to touch. Also it took 2 months to see any real improvement. Also antibiotics for almost two months. Now as long as he doesn't get anything with corn in it he is fine. I'm not familiar with the food you are feeding you dog. Also a dermatologist is the way to go IMO. I took Bacchus to the emergency vet when he had his initial breakout and the vet diagnosed it as flea bite dermatitis, which is most definitely was not.

Also just because a food says hypoallergenic doesn't mean it really is.

 

[Daisygirl]

Rash

our year old red male has the same thing; diagnosed by dermatologist (finally) as "Follicular Dysplasia". genetic, incurable, but manageable. He has to go on antibiotics when it flares up like this, but afterwards his skin is good and the hair grows back.

 

[Dober4Ever]

Thanks for the helpful suggestions. I Googled "Follicular Dysplasia", but am pretty sure this is not the case here - for one thing she's not showing any hair loss. The last 5 days I've also been giving her allergy tablets - Cetrizine - 10 mg per day - and she's showing considerable improvement.

This seems to back up the hypothesis that the root cause is some kind of allergic reaction.