My dog is loosing hair and there are little red bumps/pimples under the skin. What could it be?
The problem could fall into a number of categories: food allergies, demodex, environmental allergies, low thyroid, or reactions to medications. If there are actually pimples, it is usually an infection of the skin and needs medical attention. In puppies this can progress to puppy strangles in a few cases. Dogs with these symptoms need medical attention BEFORE or concurrent with the dietary changes, etc. Delaying medical attention can be harmful to many of these dogs. If your dog is not on a natural lamb and rice or venison and rice kibble, then you should change foods to one that is natural or another food in order to minimize or eliminate any food-related involvement as a possible allergy source. If this continues or other symptoms arise, then it would be wise to have a full thyroid panel done and send it to Michigan State or an OFA certified lab for analysis, and also do the blood testing for allergies.
