How long does a hot spot usually last?

[joeysmama]

So the vet diagnosed Cooper with a hot spot. It's on his chest, just below his chin. He jumps suddenly and runs as if he's tyring to get away from whatever just hurt. Tom put some polysporin on him last night and he was just crazy for about 5 minutes after that. You could tell that it really irritated him. I've given him some Children's benadryl, liquid and that seems to calm him down and let him rest for a bit and the other thing that I think works pretty well is a children's tylenol.

The vet also gave us antibiotic with a steroid in it and he had a pretty good afternoon but I noticed he likes to be lying down with the hot spot touching the floor. He's stay flat to the floor if he can, or flat on a soft pillow or blankie. When he does get up and move around he wants to push his chest on the floor. (We clap to stop him scratching so I maybe he thinks he's fooling us by scratching that way?)

It's been just 48 hours since we noticed him having problems. Started on Thursday night and went to the vet on Friday morning. He just gave us the antibiotics today though when we called again worried that he might be in pain. So he's had only one (maybe two) does.

We're wondering if it's normal to still be miserable or if this takes a week to go away or what ????

[Gail P]

Hot spots are very irritating and the more they lick/chew/scratch/rub them the worse they become and the longer they take to heal. It seems to be a bad year for hot spots and nose problems. There have been a few different posts about crustiness or spots around the nose and hot spots, and I've been battling both with one of my dogs recently as well. I'm thinking it's some kind of environmental allergy in my collie Noah. Last fall he lost the pigment just above his nose and it took a couple of months to return to normal. A couple of weeks ago it started again but much worse this time, loosing hair and getting all scabby around his nose, eyes and mouth. And, he got terrible hot spots, in the matter of 24 hours he went from having perfectly clear skin to it being all red and raw on his belly and between his hind legs. Poor guy looked like he'd peed his pants the way he was walking because I'm sure moving rubbed it and hurt. I've been going at it every which way, Benadryl, antibiotics, hot spot spray, and for his face hydrocortisone cream. The face has stopped scabbing and the skin in the bare areas has almost all turned from pink to black, and the skin on his belly is now back to normal. It was also around the back of his back legs, one much worse than the other. That is almost all healed now too, but he's since developed one more hot spot up in the flank area, though not as raw as the other areas were. We're still working on that one.

ETA: polysporin may not be the best idea. Although it's an antibiotic, it may keep the spot too moist for it to heal easily. You want something to help dry it up so it's not all oozy. Usually the hot spot spray has some kind of drying agent in it (one kind I had from the vet just smelled like rubbing alcohol). The one I've got now has something else in it that has more of a menthol/camphor smell.

[Rottielover]

What I did for Harley s when he had it, exact same area was, I shaved around it, and cleaned it with witch hazel. Hot spot lasted max 2 weeks before fully healed

[joeysmama]

Ok, I'm feeling better the more I learn. Thanks Gail and Rottielover. I guess I shouldn't be panicked after 2 days.

He's much more comfortable today than he was yesterday, so things are looking up.

[hazelrunpack]

Our lab used to get hot spots--they'd last from 1 - 3 weeks, depending on where they were and how easy they were for him to lick He could be very insistent...

We didn't have all the options for treatment back then, either...and for the life of me, I can't remember what we used on them

[CearaQC]

This website

http://www.ehow.com/how_4474757_trea...hot-spots.html

says to use a cool tea bag as a compress a couple times a day.

[Shaykeija]

When Akeija had hot spots in places she could not lick, we used Gold Bond Medicated powder to help dry them up. Worth a try...Poor little bug must be pretty uncomfortable right now.

[joeysmama]

He's very uncomfortable and he's not the kind to suffer in silence. There's a big basket in the family room with blankets and throw pillows and he's spending a lot of time in there, didn't even want to come upstairs last night and he usually pitches a FIT if we're upstairs without him for even a minute.

I'm going to go get the Gold Bond. The ointment made him crazy so I think that dry may be a better way to go.

Thanks everyone!! I can't tell you how much I appreciate being able to come here and get advice !!

[Frenchy]

Sam had a big one once. Vet prescribed Topagen (antibiotic spray) I don't remember how long it lasted but I know that it seemed to make Sam less itchy.