Our springapoo mix is 12 years old and recently began to lose hair in a large patch on his back. We took him to the vet, and he's convinced it's not mange or anything like that. They ran a test to check his thyroid and it came back completely normal. The vet said we could also check for cushings (sp?) but its 200 dollars and he thinks it will probably come up negative anyway. Any ideas on what this could be? Do old dogs just go bald like people can?
He's had no diet change, no new hair products, nothing.
2007-02-28 11:53:03 · 9 answers · asked by dolly 6 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Like I said, he's had no new food or hair products. He doesn't even eat human food. He's had no contact with other dogs, and basically just stays at home. He has been needing to urinate slightly more often then usualy, but the vet just wrote that off to old age.
2007-02-28 11:58:47 · update #1
get new vet!! FAST
2007-02-28 11:56:23 · answer #1 · answered by Sarah72 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You checked for hypothyroidism, does this mean you also ran a general chemistry and CBC. If you did it should show some indication of other endocrine dz's (IE Cushings /hyperadrenocorticism, maybe Addison's/ hypoadrenocorticism). Have a skin scraping done (it can't hurt) perhaps he has demodectic mange (not common in older animals but can occur), fungal culture.
Has his anal glands been checked? Sometimes if they are impacted they will lick, chew excessively and cause hair loss.
Maybe you need a diet change? As animals age their dietary needs change also.
Unfortunately, skin problems are one of the hardest to diagnose due to all the systems that have an affect on it.
To CS: Cushings is a disease of the adrenal gland not the thyroid. You need to check your facts.
2007-02-28 13:41:58 · answer #2 · answered by Cassandra K 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That doesnt make any sense. Cushings is a disease of the thyroid, so how could they have run a normal test and still want to test?
2007-02-28 18:02:36 · answer #3 · answered by cs 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I had a dog when I was younger that started losing her hair when she was 9. We took her to the vet and it turned out she developed allergies. Good Luck!
2007-02-28 12:09:45 · answer #4 · answered by Curious 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Maybe you could try a doggie dermatologist in your area if you still suspect something is wrong. It is expensive but worth every penny. Most of the time they can diagnose what the problem is right in the exam room, and rarely do thae have to do any bloodwork.
2007-02-28 13:06:16 · answer #5 · answered by Jessica♥sRRidgebacks 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yea they do. My 9 year old shitzu is losing some of her fur.
2007-02-28 11:56:32 · answer #6 · answered by K 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you can get another vet or just do some research and find out if its normal! I think it is!
2007-02-28 12:01:17 · answer #7 · answered by d я э э α ☆ 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
our dog did the same thing when she got that old.... they could not figure out either..... sorry I could not help more
Asta La Pasta
2007-02-28 11:57:39 · answer #8 · answered by Fishs girl 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
is there some thing new you are giving him?
2007-02-28 11:57:20 · answer #9 · answered by ? 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋