Why is it one thing after another with my puppy? It's upsetting.

So now my 4 month old jack russell cross chihuaha female pup is developing black/grey patches on her skin.

I've never seen or heard of anything like this, she is my first dog.

Her skin was pink everywhere, and now very small patches of it are actually turning grey/black in colour.. I think they are grey. First she got one on her belly and then one on her outer ear, in the space of maybe 2 weeks, she now has another 2 small ones appearing on her stomach and about 5 on her ears, today I have notices 2 on her bottom as well.

They don't seem to irritate her at all, but then she has fleas so she's scratching a certain amount anyway. (she had vet flea treatment last month, and I found a flea on her last night-explains her scratching at times).

What on earth is this on her skin? Please someone tell me. I thought at first it was birth marks but they are appearing where the skin was previously completely pink.

*cries*

Edited to add - her hair is white allover except for a patch of black and tan over one eye. -Just in case that's relevant. And I have been bathing her once a week with johnsons baby shampoo.

I don't know the professional words for all this but sounds like the normal pigmentations,
As the puppy gets older they appear, My puppy has the same things , it's normal.

My mother use to raise small dogs yrs ago, chihuahua's develop these spots, My dog now is a shi-tzu,
She's white with brown splotches and she developed these spots too,
Happens naturally with these colored dogs,
Just relax, Its nothing to get all worked up about,

Your Dog is white got a patch on her eye, shows the pigmentaion is different colors

I think they are something the vet may need to see. From here, I can't see if they are like the spots my one puppy had to be treated for or not.

I would reduce the baths. They irritate the skin and could be causing the spots. What ever is causing the spots, could be creating an odor problem too. You might delay the vet visit and see if the spots go away after a few weeks without a bath. A healthy puppy, eating a decent diet, and brushed regularly, should be able to go indefinitely without a bath. I admit being an extremist on baths. Aster is 13 years old. She hasn't had a bath since returning to my care 3 1/2 years ago, and doesn't have any odor problem. It is not just me that thinks so. She is out in public frequently, even at dinners, and the only comments I ever get is how do you keep her coat so soft. She eats dry Pro Plan adult Chicken and rice and is brushed several times a week.

You may want to look into your flea treatment. I think they are supposed to resist baths, but maybe not so many. I think it is normal with some treatments to see an occasional flea. Pull the hair forward at the base of her tail. If you can see or feel dark, reddish specks, your flea treatment isn't doing its job. If reducing the baths doesn't help, talk to the vet about a more effective treatment.

Here is a picture of the spots I was referring to as Normal. It's the natural pigmentation taking place,
http://i14.tinypic.com/6g9cdpf.jpg
If this is not what your referring to then it might very well be something else & a visit to your vets may be a wise decision

Hello thank you for replying so fast, I do get worked up about things fast, I have anxiety.

That picture you posted does look like the spots on her, but hers are smaller, though she is a smaller breed than a shih tzu and they may get bigger with time.

I have a webcam so I will try to take some pictures and post them when I can.


I will reduce the baths, makes sense that would stop the flea treatment working. I feel it necessary to bath her every week because when she's out walking her paws are on the sidewalk and in puddles of germs, then she walks them in the house... and the hair around her paws gets brown with dirt. Also she doesn't clean her bottom (the female part) enough just yet, so I have to clean that too.

Thanks again, I was quite worried for a while.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by puppylove21

Why is it one thing after another with my puppy? It's upsetting.

So now my 4 month old jack russell cross chihuaha female pup is developing black/grey patches on her skin.

I've never seen or heard of anything like this, she is my first dog.

Her skin was pink everywhere, and now very small patches of it are actually turning grey/black in colour..I think they are grey. First she got one on her belly and then one on her outer ear, in the space of maybe 2 weeks, she now has another 2 small ones appearing on her stomach and about 5 on her ears, today I have notices 2 on her bottom aswell.

They dont seem to irritate her at all, but then she has fleas so shes scratching a certain amount anyway. (she had vet flea treatment last month, and I found a flea on her last night-explains her scratching at times).

What on earth is this on her skin? Please someone tell me. I thought at first it was birth marks but they are appearing where the skin was previously completely pink.

*cries*

Edited to add - her hair is white allover except for a patch of black and tan over one eye. -Just incase that's relevant. And I have been bathing her once a week with johnsons baby shampoo.

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Take your pup to vet and ask for a treatment and at the same time ask for free advice on the skin. That would be the safest route.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by puppylove21

Hello thank you for replying so fast, I do get worked up about things fast, I have anxiety.

That picture you posted does look like the spots on her, but hers are smaller, though she is a smaller breed than a shih tzu and they may get bigger with time.

I have a webcam so I will try to take some pictures and post them when I can.


I will reduce the baths, makes sense that would stop the flea treatment working. I feel it necessary to bath her every week because when she's out walking her paws are on the sidewalk and in puddles of germs, then she walks them in the house....and the hair around her paws gets brown with dirt. Also she doesnt clean her bottom (the female part) enough just yet, so I have to clean that too.

Thanks again, I was quite worried for a while.

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They do start small, & oft times get bigger with age, in some cases they will grow together and consume a large part of the body. It is nothing to worry about,

Im not really 100% sure this is all it is.

Because the patches look a darker grey to the one on that picture. And Im not certain but I think she has a strange odour now. She smelt fine before, or good if anything, and now its weird. Someone came in here today and asked what the smell was. But because Im with her all the time, I'm not sure its her that smells or something else...

I only go to the vet when its an emergency or for the vaccinations, because It's far away and difficult for me to get there, as it isn't affecting her in any other way than appearance, its not worth the vet visit to me.

If its not the natural pigmentation going on,
You should have a vet look at her,
Its better to be safe then sorry later.

OK Also, she has been dragging her bum about on the floor like she's in discomfort by it...

Take her to the vets, it's the anal ducts (think that's what its called) they just need cleaning,
Vet just takes a piece of Kleenex or such, presses in the right place on either side of the bum and it squeezes out the poop that's caught up there,

Anyway, her dragging her bum has probably already fixed that problem.
*
You should consider taking her to the vets concerning the spots, sounds like your not convinced that it's the pigmentations thing. And get the vet to check her anal ducts at the same time,

If you love your Dog and unsure of anything, Don't risk its health, take it to the vets for a check

If she's scratching at her skin and she has an odor you need to rule out these mysterious spots as being a skin infection, demodex or allergies. The frequent baths would also cause a mild irritation which would cause the itching. The more you wash away the natural oils of the skin the more the skin will get pissed off. It does just sound like her skin pigmenting as she gets older. JRT's have little under pigments all over there.

She either needs her anal glands expressed if she's scooting. At least checked to see if they are full. Pull up her tail and at about 4 and 8 o clock are her anal glands if they feel full you can either try to express them yourself on the outside, or you'll have to stick your finger in there and express them yourself. You should check that first. Anal glands won't express themselves by just scooting on the ground. Scooting could also mean worms. It could also be cause by her itchy skin. Good luck. I'm sure she'll be fine after her moms stops worrying :D

Thanks guys! Really appreciate that advice. I know I worry too much and panic... can't help it. Lol

Anyway yes I think her skin patches of grey is just the pigmentation developing now after thinking more about it. Because they don't irritate her at all... they aren't raised from the skin like a spot would be... they are actually in the skin like its just turned that colour, she's eating, playful, going to the bathroom fine, so I see no need to keep worrying about that.

About her scooting, I read online what jenna said that it sounds like its her anal glands that need expressing. It says this is likely due to being fed wet food (which she is half the time and half dry) so that makes the poop softer and causes it to build up in there and get stuck on the glands... or something like that from what I understand reading online.

Are the 2 sides on the outside of a dogs bum its anal glands? They look slightly bulged out I guess, but not really... they look different to me now because they were pink until about 2 days ago and now they have changed grey with the pigmentation thing. I don't think its worms as she had them a few weeks ago and was treated by the vet, her belly is not swollen or bloated like it was then either.

I will think about pressing on them to expel the trapped waste myself, I think I can do it, gently pressing with some tissue.

I will cut out the wet food, and baths. -She loves the wet food. I'll go get her some flea treatment too.

Food for thought so to speak, a firm stool makes the dog express his own anal sacs. Soft stools are the ones more prone to anal sack problems. This can be adjusted by diet. Sticks are not a good source of fiber, people have actually asked me that, lol

Also a growing puppy till age 1 can actually have color changes to the rectum. Anal gland inflammation is usually best described as bright red, like a new zit on a teenage kid, we all remember those days. I will type up some more on anal sacs and glands.

Anal sacs (also called anal glands) are two small glands just inside your pet's anus. The material secreted into these glands is thick and foul smelling. Most animals can empty these glands voluntarily for scent marking or in self-defense, like a skunk might. Lots of people don't know this. Domestic animals have largely lost their ability to empty these sacs voluntarily. Walking around and normal defecation usually serves to empty the glands but some animals become unable to empty their glands on their own at all. The sacs become impacted and uncomfortable.Pain in the butt. Dogs with impacted anal sacs usually scoot their rear on the ground in an attempt to empty the glands. Some dogs will lick their anal area and other dogs will chase their tails. Cats often lick the fur off just under their tails.To avoid the expense of having the sacs emptied, you can learn to empty them yourself at home but most people feel it is well worth having someone else perform this service. A non-invasive technique that helps some patients is a change to a high fiber diet. This will produce a bulkier stool that may be more effective in emptying the sac as it passes by. If the sacs need to be emptied every few weeks or more, you may opt to have the sacs permanently removed. This procedure is complicated by many local nerves controlling fecal continence, the fact that any change in the local musculature of the anal sphincter area can affect fecal continence, and the fact that with chronic anal sac problems anatomy is distorted. Draining tracts can develop after surgery if the gland is not completely removed. Still, despite these pitfalls, anal sac removal is considered a relatively simple surgery by most board certified surgery specialists. :) If this procedure is to be done we generally recommend that a specialist (a vet with extensive experience with anal sacculectomy fancy word for anal gland removal) perform it. Many people own pets for years without ever learning that anal sacs exist at all, and the wives' tale that worms cause scooting erroneously continues. If you have further questions about anal gland disease, ask and I will elaborate more.

Doc Will, wow you are a real vet, People on this board should learn a lot from you. I don't have a dog yet, but I am gald that this place exist. How helpfu,l I am so impressed.

Doc will I am sorry I did not mean to make you angry.

Oh no not at all,. I just like to help, I am far from perfict. I just like to think I am though, lolol
Not everyone wants to hear from me, I tell it like it is, and If I don't know I say I don't know or can't remember that's happened to me before.

DocWill! My Aster is an occasional scooter. I have though about switching to a bulkier diet for her, but wondered if what the stools gained in size, they would lose in texture. Are large soft stools better at discharging anal glands than smaller, firmer ones. I am considering Purina senior formula. After all, she is pushing 14, and most days isn't that active. Being a lab, I have no doubt she would eat all she needs of it. One reason I haven't switched is because we have so many other dogs around that are eating Pro Plan too. I would also have to send food with her when we leave her with her old partner.

I find it quite humorous where people expound on some expensive dog chow that is free from fillers and then suggest adding beans or other veggies to add bulk. Regular Purina comes straight out of the bag with the bulk. It also is lower in salt than canned beans are. Aster did fine on the regular formula her first year.

I talked to my vet yesterday about increasing her activity level. Before her repeated bouts of pneumonia last year we used to walk over a mile in the woods. Now she doesn't seem interested in walking in the woods. She would much rather go for a sniff at the mailboxes along the street. In my experience with older dogs, it seems to me, the older they get, the more interested they are in sniffing and marking. Aster spends much of her day flopped on one dog bed or another. She does remind me she is entitled to a walk every afternoon. He mother was the same way. The trouble is, when I take her out to a fund raiser of some sort, she is often dragging before it is over. I don't want to make it an endurance contest. I am hoping more daily activity would add to her stamina.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by puppylove21

ok Also, she has been dragging her bum about on the floor like shes in discomfort by it....

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This sounds like her anal glands need to be expressed. This could also account for the smell as she is dragging her anus on the floor and leaving anal fluid on them. Most any groomer can express her anal glands for you. I think you may just have the pigmentation and a full anal gland happening at the same time.

Thank you all very much!

Im thinking it is her anal glands/sacs, because she chases her tail often, and scoots often in the mornings usually, however...

Nothing around her anus is red... and I tried pressing on it with a pad yesterday, she didn't seem to mind, but nothing came out.

I have completely stopped the wet food now. I was unsure about this, and still am a bit because her poop goes very hard... looking hard to push out as though maybe she gets constipated. The wet food helps it be softer, but isn't good for the anal glands.

I'll keep her on dry food and see how it goes, but when her poop looks hard and more difficult to come out, I feel like she's probably constipated and it likely hurts her pushing it out all hard like that, and being a dog -she can't tell me. So I don't know...

Is what you are feeding a concentrated, meat based chow? In 1992 when I started raising dog guide puppies, the school was using regular, dry, corn based Purina, but switched to Pro Plan a few years later. I didn't see than much difference in the dogs. My reaction to the stools was that, yes they were easier to clean up, you could almost just put them in your pocket. If you didn't clean them up, somebody might step on one and hurt their foot. I think what you are seeing is normal.

I have tried emptying anal glands without much success. I was afraid to try to do much. I have noted a lack of warnings on them. Use plenty of paper towels, as the very foul stuff comes squirting out. Emptying them may be one of those things that is much more difficult than it looks. I have also heard of dogs being injured from bad technique. Some things are best learned with hands on help.

Food for thought... 1.why don't you give her the wet food with her dry in different amounts until you come up with a stool consistency that does not alarm you. 2. did you ever think maybe she is just playing with her tail. 3. I have a rescued chi/ rat terrier and when he was small his spots developed over the course of the months 4. have a pom/dashund and she scoot's sometimes after a b.m She doesn't have anal gland problems nor does she have worms. Maybe you are just getting yourself worked up over nothing. labman is right get a vets help with the anal glands. And stop worrying so much and enjoy your dog, you will figure everything out, because you care. :)peace

As long as she isn't giving up on a bowel movement only to try again soon, I doubt there is a problem. I don't know what you are feeding, but many of those that urge expensive dog chows go on about how firm the stools are.

I believe the content of the dog food is what counts... be careful of the fillers that is why I check the back of the bags.. find out what bone meal... and all those other terms mean before you decide that that brand is good for your dog. :)

Seems like you have a lot of trouble with your dog! I am sorry for you!

There is no doubt that you must feed more of a grain based chow, and the dog will have larger, softer stools. However if cleaning up the stools isn't an issue, they can be an economical alternative. I find it very tiresome for people to endlessly condemn fillers without presenting any evidence of problems. My son is feeding his Foxhound Purina, and she is doing fine.

I still don't know exactly why this is happening to my dog. She's a 4 month old jack russell cross chihuaha female. They are small black patches of skin that were previously pink, on her belly, ear flaps, and butt.

She always had them on her feet pads black with pink, so as someone already suggested, its likely just the skin pigmentation she's supposed to have right?

Just concerns me a bit because they are now on her butt of all places.

Does anyone know what else it could be or mean? I can't find anything about it on Google.

I merged your new question into the one you originally brought up the skin patches to make it easier for everybody to have all the information before answering.

Your puppy seems to have a number of problems, some of which may be related. I am afraid some of them won't be solved without a vet examining her. Text on the internet is no substitute for eyeballs. Smell, skin scrapings under a microscope, etc. help too. I hope you can find a way to have her examined soon.