Treating Your Dog for Ringworm

February 7, 2010

in Cat Health

Ringworm in dogs is quite common. A lot of other animals, including the human animal are also susceptible to ringworm. A fundamental quality of this fungus is that it is highly infectious, and is easily passed from animals to humans and vise versa. Thus it is critical to know what the symptoms are in both dogs and humans..

One of the easiest ways to recognize ringworm in dogs is through lost patches of fur. Ringworm hardens the skin and fur follicles which causes the fur to break off at the bottom. The ringworm dog skin in the area of the infection will appear as a red raised circular rash. It may look kind of crusty or encrusted, with the middle area appearing mostly normal.

The bald spot created by the ringworm rash will probably appear as a red crusty ring. In the middle of the rash the skin will look natural. The irritation is also extremely itchy and your dog will likely scratch the spot if he can reach it. Scratching the rash will likely cause the rash to spread to other areas of the dog’s body. If the dog comes into contact with furniture the rash can easily spread to humans from this indirect contact.

If your dogs is showing signs of ringworm it is probably time to take it to your local veterinarian. The vet will be able to take a sample of the skin and make a correct diagnosis. The veterinarian can determine the right course for treatment once the test results come back. There are several treatment options available. All are reasonably straightforward to implement but must be carried through to the very end to ensure the rash will not reoccur. Because ringworm has a 10 incubation period between exposure and actual signs to the rash, it can be tricky to fully eradicate. Meticulousness in cleaning of the all potential areas of contact is essential. Medication will most likely be prescribed to your dog and should be given on a every day basis. Though there are creams that can be given to dogs, on average they do not work simply because it is simple for your dog to rub or lick the cream off. The most effectual form of treatment is through an anti fungal shampoo. Anti-fungal shampoo is the most effective treatment for dogs due to its capacity to cover the whole body with the anti-fungal medication. This helps destroy any existing ringworm fungus spores that might have not yet developed into a discernible rash.

Along with the treatment of the dog itself, it is essential to take care of your residence for ringworm. Wash your dog’s bedding each day with bleach and hot water. Avoid direct contact with your dog to avoid becoming infected yourself. If you have other dogs or cats living in your home make sure that you treat them as well. Using the ringworm shampoo on them even if they do not have ringworm will not harm them. The worst thing you can do with ringworm is to not treat it fully. So, when your dog is diagnosed with it, make sure to do everything you need to do everyday and when symptoms subside in your dog, take it back to the vet and have them retest your dog’s hair to make certain that the fungus is in fact gone.

Correctly spotting ringworm in you dog is key to successful treatment. For more information click on the link http://RingwormRemedy.com.slhost3.com and while your browsing sign up for our free email mini-course “10 Steps to Curing Ringworm”

Tags: catcare, cats, ragdollcats, pets

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