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  • Skin problems w/ a Blue Dane.

    Hello everyone! Nice to meet all of you. This is my first time posting, so I'm very interested to hear everyone's input. I skipped the Introductions forum, so this is my intro. I'm a business owner involved in the dog industry. We board, groom, and run a day-care program. My dog is personally with me almost all hours of the day. <3

    I have a 5 month old blue Great Dane. I'm sure most you Dane-savvy people understand the common connection between his color and the issues to be explained. His skin is extremely sensitive. Perhaps you guys can enlighten me with some common skin remedies, although I've tried many techniques. Areas with the most irritation are the "arm-pits" and feet. Big pimples or in-grown hairs (whichever they are) turn up in random places.

    At this point, he's receiving 2000mg of flax seed oil with another tablespoon of olive oil during meals. The food I'm buying is an expensive line called "Evo"; I do change the flavor I buy occasionally. He sees a bath once every 1-2 weeks. We're using a few products from "Hot Spots by Jude"... anti-itch cream and medicated shampoo. (Maybe someone has personal testimonies with these)

    To ice the cake, he also has Stud-Tail. He's lost probably 3-4 inches of hair on his tail, and the spot has only been growing since I've got him. Pimples happen more often here than anywhere else. I'll be getting a thyroid test done soon, but from what I've read this issue is more connected to neutering. Is there a way to remedy it without neutering? Will the hair grow back?

    Has anyone dealt with similar cases? I hope most of this may be considered "growing pains". Otherwise his overall health is great and he's an active dog. The overall severity isn't big enough to require a vet, I just want his awesome blue coat to be pristine.

    Pics:
    Pic 1
    Pic 2
    Pic 3

  • #2
    Hi,
    We are having skin issues with our blue as well. He has dry flaky skin and pimples on his chin. From what I have heard the pimples are just a part of danes growing up and it has been suggested on here that regular yellow listerine helps with the pimples. We have used it on his chin and it does make an improvement. As for the other skin issues, my breeder suggested witch hazel which is a skin conditioner. It's super cheap and all natural which is nice. I don't about the hair loss, but I'm sure others with chime in soon. There is a similar thread called "head and shoulder shampoo for dogs", there were some very good suggestions in there. Check it out!
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    • #3
      Thank you! At least the pimples might be growing pains... did your blue have "puppy acne"? Sounds like mine has a similar thing, except on the top of his head.

      You mean the mouth-wash, right? Just rub it on or...? I've never heard of trying witch hazel either - appreciate the good input!
      Last edited by Jimifan684; 10-16-2010, 10:35 AM.

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      • #4
        My blue is now just over 1 year old and he still has pimples. They drive me crazy, but they will go away. Yes just put the listerine (mouth wash) right on the pimples. I use little cotton pads to do it.
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        • #5
          Try fish oil instead of flaxseed I think the nutrients are more bioavailable to dogs.

          I don't think it would hurt to let a vet do a scrape of those spots. A few looked pretty angry. You can also try putting lavender essential oil on them, its soothing and will help no matter if its fungal or bacterial as lavender EO had both antifungal and antibacterial properties.

          Can't help you with stud tail, have zero experience w/it. I do remember reading somewhere that neutering doesn't necessarily help though.

          And welcome to the forums
          Until one has loved an animal, part of one's soul remains unawakened.
          - Anatole France

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          • #6
            My boy and I are dealing with chin acne as well. Listerine didn't work for me

            I am currently using a new pyroben gel. Basically, you apply it twice a day. It's been pretty slow so far, but I'll stick it out.

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            • #7
              Welcome!!

              Sorry to hear you're going through this...I know some other people with similar experiences will chime in. I do have a few suggestions, though...

              With the Listerine (yes, the mouthwash...the yellow one only), just dab it on a paper towel and wipe the affected areas once or twice a day. If the zits are only on his head, it IS a common place for acne but also a common place for mange to start...a skin scraping might be in order. I wouldn't use the Listerine on the irritated areas on his body - just the head or face.

              Might be worth it to skip the flaxseed oil and switch to a fish oil instead. Olive oil is good, but no need to double up on oils, really. Coconut oil is also a good option and MSM is known to clear up a lot of problems. Lavender oil is a great topical ointment too.

              EVO is a great food, though not generally recommended (on this forum, anyway! ) for growing dane pups under the age of 1 year due to its high caloric content. It can cause dane pups to gain weight too quickly, thus resulting in growth problems. But if he has been fine on it thus far, then maybe it's okay? Just thought I would put that out there.

              EDIT: Ouesi and I must have been posting at the same time!!!
              Last edited by Meatos; 10-16-2010, 11:37 AM.
              Katie & Scarlett
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              • #8
                Ok, my guy looked similar you yours... Mainly around his neck but at one point it was his whole body. I commend you for being brave to post pictures, for the longest time I couldn't bring myself to take pictures of Fesuts while he was like that.

                First things first, what are you feeding him and has he been tested for mange from a veterinarian. (Just realized he is on EVO, while it is a great food I think he needs more elimination than EVO and EVO isn't recommended for young pups)

                Secondly what have you tried on your own and as recommended by your vet? Reason I ask is that I have tried pretty well all of them and after much trial and error I found something that worked for my guy.

                I have him on an all raw diet, just meat few veggies for taste at times but you should start out with just meat. For treats I use a freeze dried liver and freeze dried chicken. Add in some coconut oil to his food as well (olive is also good but I find the coconut works better). His diet was very limited and very strict that way there was nothing in there that I didn't know about, no chemicals, no grains, no preservatives, no veggies.

                I cleaned all my carpets with Tide Free as well as my own clothes with the same laundry soap (Tide Free). For his bedding I use Eqyss Mega Tek blanket wash (found online or at a horse store), I used this on my own bedding as well as that is where he sleeps at night and during the day.

                Topically for him what worked is the Eqyss Micro Tek spray daily as well as weekly baths with the Eqyss Micro Tek shampoo.

                This is very simple what I have done for him and his hair is coming back in, body hair is all back, we are just still waiting on neck hair.

                He went from this when I started taking pictures and using the Eqyss spray


                To this is current. Keep in mind that it did take a long time (weeks) for him to get to this point:






                Festus' case was to a greater extreme than your boys so hopefully you can get it all figured out before it does get worse.

                Is your breeder offering any support either?

                ETA: is there a reason for you not wanting to neuter him?? Neutering will help with his hormones settling down and might help in the long run if his body isn't trying to adjust to hormones as well as his skin issue.
                Last edited by Paradis; 10-16-2010, 11:40 AM.
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                • #9
                  He may have Color dilute Alopecia or Demodex Mange. His hair appears too thin to be just typical blue coat which is commonly less dense than black coats, both conditions can cause pimples, hairloss, and flaky skin, I suggest a skin scraping soon just to weed out possible mange.
                  Demodex will be an over abundance of mites which naturally occur but are normally keep in check by immune system, most causes are self limiting as pup grows older and immune system strengthens, some vets withhold treatment unless pup gets multiple skin infections. Typically fixing a dog is the best course as hormonal changes can trigger outbreaks. Ivermectin is typical treatment, done orally is the best or shots.
                  Color Dilute Alopecia can range in how much hair loss it causes some dogs, it is were the melanin is over deposited on the hair shalf and pores and causes hair loss. It can start as early as 12 weeks or as old as 8 years, it's not something that can be cured like mange. Typical treatment is food supplementing with fish oils, vitamin E, raw diet, some egg whites Frequent bathing with a non-soap based shampoo to clear pores. Using a 5% benzoyl peroxide shampoo or skin topical gel watered down will clear out pores and keep skin good on dogs with extensive hair loss and acne. People have claimed Listerine dabbed on acne will also work. Never brush a blue dog with thin hair only use a curry comb or hand mitt, never push hair in opposite direction that it grows in! Dilute alopecia can be confirmed by looking at fair follicle under a microscope, it will have a great accumulation of melanin near pore of hair shaft. This is why hair breaks and pores clog on many blue dogs in general, if you feed supplements, and bath with non-soap based shampoos you should see improvement. Remember if your shampoo leaves any sort of residue or soup scum it may be clogging pores and making problem worse!
                  I've worked around plenty of blue dogs and have a blue dane, pimples on the top of the head is normally hormonal young pup problem, I still use the Benzoyl peroxide on them just so they can't spread and they clear up in a few days and pores stay clear for new hair to grow in, sometimes blues won't regrow hair since pores are so prone to clogging.
                  Best sites to look up on blue coat problems are doberman and pit sites! My vet had two blue dobermans and one hadalopecia, I am very careful with my blue dogs coat because she has one of the more thin types no hair loss as of yet, but when she was 5-6 months her coat did get pretty thin, she never sheds on a day to day basis rather she sheds seasonally and her coat gets extremely thin then new hair comes in.
                  I needed to add for others considering blue danes, Color Dilute Alopecia is very uncommon in danes in general, it may be becoming more common since more blues are being breed in general. Part of the Dane standard is that a dog has a thick coat so, very thin blue coats are even rare, most, but not all show line Danes do not have this coat problem. A breeder of blues should know of this condition and in my opinion discuss it's potential since it is caused by a gene mutation and can show up. Several blue breeders told me thyroid problems are more common with some blue dogs thus causing hair loss.
                  Last edited by angeldane; 10-16-2010, 12:17 PM.

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                  • #10
                    Thanks everyone! All your input is awesome. I appreciate all the dietary suggestions as well, and I'll begin taking up some different ideas in those areas. Perhaps raw food.

                    Regarding the topic, he has been skin scraped with negative results. Our vet even put him on Promeris for a short while, in case the scraping missed turning up positive for Demo. I believe this is a case of Color Dilute Alopecia; although, I don't know the severity.

                    The breeder seems to stress heavily on the Raw Food issue. I've seen his kin (parents, cousins, aunts) and none seemed to be sensitive like him. He's been on Earthborn foods for the majority of his life - I've only switched to Evo in recent weeks. (Thanks for the calorie heads-up!)

                    He actually doesn't have acne on his head. He just gets random, isolated, pimples on his body. Only consistent spot they appear is on his stud-tail spot. Perhaps these are clogged pores from melanin? I'm going to try shopping for new shampoos. The regions with most irritation are under the legs, where there's moisture. Seems like sweat or what moisture it is makes his underbelly itchy.

                    And oh yeah, on the neutering... he's my boy - I don't think I can do that to him :x No plans of breeding though. Again, thanks for all the info guys!!

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                    • #11
                      my female setter has stud tail...
                      don't know what neutering has to do with it!!!!
                      (she is macho, like her mamma!!!!)
                      good luck with your cute boy!
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                      • #12
                        Did you read my post?

                        Try a raw diet, it is the only way to eliminate food issues in the long run as you can totally limit what they are getting and you know everything that goes into their mouths.

                        I have been there done that with my guy for his skin spent literally thousands (I can't bring myself to look and tally the bills).
                        Try the Eqyss Micro Tek shampoo along with the spray see if that helps.

                        With his stud tail being as bad as it is, hormones likely have a part to play with his skin issues. Again is it a pride thing that you are not neutering your dog? I don't see any other reason for you to keep him intact if he is not actively being shown and campaigned. Is your breeder all for keeping him intact?
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                        • #13
                          my merliquins head looks like your dogs neck. two weeks ago i had been washing her blankets everyday and using a lot of carpet cleaner.i stopped those two things and it hasnt gotten worse but i dont know if its gotten better either .im considering switching her to raw on top of all this because apparently dogs are often allergic tp fish oil?. right now i spend like 40-60 a month in dog food. what could one expect to spend for raw?

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                          • #14
                            For the skin, adding natural (with Mother in it - it's cloudy) apple cider vinegar works wonders for dilute coats and skin. Put in in both the drinking water and on the skin affected. It usually works VERY fast!

                            As for keeping your dog inact, I soooooooo do not appreciate your excuse for not neutering your dog You're not neutering yourself afterall.
                            If you try, you may fail but you will fail if you don't try!

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                            • #15
                              Wait!

                              You have gotten some great advice here, so i can not really say much else.
                              I do have to chime in on the nuetering thing...I recall reading a post called "help" the other day where a young family had their first Great Dane and he was about 10-11 months I believe. His name was Diesel. He had always been such a wonderful, loving dog and adored the family's young son and everyone in general. They were taking their son to school and Diesel was along for the ride. Out of nowhere, Diesel lunged at a little girl, growling and went straight for the little girls face. By the grace of God, the little girl did not get bitten, but is probably emotionally scarred.Diesel is not neutered(though has an appt. on Monday) and is at the age his hormones are really coming into play. I also couldn't help but notice you say you work in the animal business...and your pup comes to work with you..There are lots of other dogs in Day Care/Boarding I am sure. How do you plan on controlling him when he is "of age" and keeping him from impregnating your clients dogs? What will you do when he tries to fight with the other males over a female? Even if a female is not in her season, it could be a couple weeks before/after and believe me...The Males will know!!! Not only are you taking on a huge liability by not neutering him, you are doing it as his expense. For a dog who is not going to be shown for possible breeding purposes in the future,(with all his problems,I do not think he would be a good candidate), the most humane thing you can do is alter them. Lets think about this in human terms for a minute...keeping in mind that they estimate Male dogs experience testosterone 100 times more potently then a Human man, how would you feel if you could never have sex? Neutering him will not only help his over-all well-being and health, but will also help with his behavior and obedience.

                              I was a Vet tech for 7 years and have had animals my entire life. Trust me on this please...If you have no intentions of showing, then you really should neuter.
                              Last edited by MillyVanilly; 11-05-2010, 10:37 AM.

                              ~Jeanne, Jason & Emily(6)-The Humans~
                              Milly-Harl GD,
                              Tank, Tigra Cougie & Jax-The Cat Crew
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