dog has a rash and loosing hair

[lovepets]

There is a dog that came to my street that has a rash and she is loosing her beautiful fur. I started to feed her once I found out from the neighbors that she was homeless. I want to bathe her but I am afraid of her rash. I know she NEEDS to go the vet soon before she goes into heat! Is there a product over the counter that will help her?

[gravy]

Unfortunately you need to determine what is causing the rash.

It could be many things including poor nutrition, ringworm, other parasites etc.

The dog may also need anti biotics to get rid of possible infections.

Your instinct to go to the vet is a good one beacuse only the vet can determine WHY the dog is losing fur.

Kudos to you for helping out and for hinting that you will get the dog spayed.

Best of luck,

Gravy

[markcain]

sounds like mange without having any proper assessment of the dog's status. however, you don't mention any scratching behavior.

This is going to end up costing you a couple hundred bucks, easy.
there are a couple of things you can do; you can call the dog catcher or animal control officer, he/she will come take the dog away if he can catch it. the ACO will probably ask you to trick the dog with food into coming to your door. you then will have to betray the dog by capturing her to give her over to the ACO. 4 weeks later, she will be euthanized as no one will come take her with her problems. or

you can feed her, befriend her, take her to the vet, ask for an ivermectin injuection ( 200 ug/kg dog bodyweight). this will be about 20 bucks for the visit and 10 bucks for the shot. this will be repeated twice more. you will have to shell out 50 bucks for a tick bath, shampoo and grooming. the vet may wish to have X-rays, dental assessment, skin biopsies / tests, allergy tests and all the rest but that is not needed.

There are sulfur shampoos and nedicated sulfur petrolatum gel rubs that you can use yet are not as effective as others.

once you start treatmet and caring for this dog, you are bound to it's completion. it's akin to the saying" once you have seen paris, how can you go back to the farm". in for a nickel, in for a dollar.

good luck with your choice; whatever it may be.
mark cain