Skin sundays - Swollen ears, Greasy Coat and a strange smell?? YEAST!!

Yeasty Skin Problems.

I see a lot of of dogs (mostly) Westies in my salon, a lot with poor coats and sore skin, usually the same symptoms.
Itchy,
Smelly,
Sore Ears that are swollen,
Swollen ear canals,
Thick skin,
Black patches.
Greasy oily coats.

Greasy Oily coats.
The Greasy, yellow oil issues is caused by the sebaceous gland in the hair follicle that produces a natural oil. In westies the gland can produce too much oil and produce a thick yellow oily coat. This is solved with a good shampoo! (I personally like to use a coal tar shampoo with sulphur for westies with sensitive and sore skin.

Diagram of the Sebaceous Gland of a dogs skin.  "merkmanuals 2013"

Sore / Swollen / Waxy / Sore Ears.
Swollen ears, sometimes seen with dark thick skin or red sore skin. These can sometimes be very swollen and weep a smelly wax. - This is an Ear Infection, they can be caused by different bacteria's and mites, usually the bacteria is yeast and has a yeasty off smell. Ears need to be plucked, the hair that grows from your dogs canal needs to be plucked out, this will help air the ear canal, cool the skin and help prevent infection. The ears need to be cleaned out and treated with an antibacterial ear drop and cleaner. In some cases the dog may need a cause of antibiotics and in chronic cases steroids and antibiotics may be used to help. (You should always consider your natural options, instead of using steroids and antibiotics as these often cause issues with organs and skin if used on a long term basis)

Ear Infection caused by Yeast, The hair has not been plucked from the ear. 

Skin Discolouration 
This is caused by the level of bacteria on the skin, in these places the dog often loses the hair and has a strong off / yeast smell. The bacteria again is often yeast, but this can be caused by eczema and scratching at the area. This is best treated with a coal and sulphur based shampoo every 2 weeks and ensure your dog is dried after it gets wet!

Skin discolouration, Oily Coat and losing the hair on a westie.

How to Solve these issues.

Drying off after getting wet!
When your dog gets wet, make sure you thoroughly dry them. Make sure not to forget about the ears, under arms, paw pads and bum as this is where your dog will heat up. Bacteria will multiply in warm, damp conditions and this is an important step in treating a dog with yeasty skin!

Diet
Make sure your dog is on a good diet, These dogs are best suited to hypo-allergenic diets such as, raw diet, Burns, Home Made, James Wellbeloved, Royal Canin, Flint River Ranch, Nature’s Variety etc there are many brands of natural dog food. Stay away from mainstream brands that are full of additives and fillers.  This includes treats!

Shampoo's
Treatment that I have found successful is "Furstaid Shampoo for Dogs by Double K" is my favourite but there are others available such as "Coatex medicated shampoo" and "DermOpt". These Shampoos are also good for treating yeast infections, high bacterial levels in skin, sensitive and dogs with allergies, it is also good for eczema and psoriasis in dogs.

"Veterinary notes for Dog Owners" advise bathing dogs with bad skin every 2 weeks in medicated shampoo (this is classed as a medicated shampoo), I always advise to dry the dog thoroughly before it leaves the salon, as bacteria will multiply in warm, damp conditions.

Grooming
I have found that often groomers shave these dogs short and they look awful and bald. I have found the best way is to not shave too short as the hair is coarse and wired, When the hair is growing back it often irritates the skin (spiky), I have found the best way to groom these dogs is to use a short clip comb so that the hair is not as short. For example I often use a number 2 comb attachment (whal combs, dark purple) instead of a number 7 (andis / oster blade) which is often used on the back of these breeds.

Long haired / Natural coated dogs.
Dogs who are not clipped and suffer from these condition for example GSD, Labs and Golden Retrievers.  I would advise been blasted (using the blaster to get rid of as much dead hair and scurfy skin as possible) before the bath and then again after the bath. This get rid of some hair leaving the skin to air and breath.

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