Dermatology services: Keep your pet looking and feeling great!

Your pet’s skin and hair reflect their internal health. Likewise, your dog’s or cat’s skin and fur can affect the health of their entire body. For instance, diabetic dogs may have dull-looking coats because their bodies are not converting and absorbing essential nutrients properly. Additionally, pets with allergic, bacterial, or fungal diseases may damage their skin from biting or scratching frantically. Broken skin is vulnerable to secondary infections. 

“Dermatology” refers to preventing, diagnosing, and treating diseases affecting a pet’s hair/fur, skin, and nails. Our clinic, Bluestar Pet Hospital & Grooming in Jacksonville, Florida, takes dermatology seriously. After all, “grooming” is in our name! 

Services for a happy, healthy-looking pet

As part of our in-house wellness plans for pups, kittens, adult dogs, and cats, we offer generous discounts on services such as nail trims to maintain your pet’s healthy gait and mobility. Additionally, a “nose-to-tail” check is standard during comprehensive wellness exams, which are 100% covered as a preventive service within our Bluestar plans. 

So, in addition to checking your pet’s teeth and eyes, we will also palpate or feel by touch for any lumps or bumps that may indicate skin diseases or other conditions that require prompt treatment. Evaluating the condition of your pet’s skin, coat, and nails also presents insights into their overall health. 

As a knowledgeable and experienced veterinarian team serving the Jacksonville area at Bluestar, we are intimately aware of the common conditions affecting dogs and cats in our region. The heat and humidity in our area can give rise to conditions such as skin fold pyoderma. Dogs with skin folds may be more vulnerable to this itchy rash and infection. Medicated shampoos may be recommended to eradicate excessive yeast or bacteria. 

Paw pad burns that may cause severe damage to your pup’s feet can be avoided by avoiding scaling pavement, concrete, or asphalt. Protective products, such as Musher’s Secret (used famously on Iditarod dogs), are also helpful to protect paw pads from damage on rough terrain. 

Other dermatological conditions that we look for and treat include: 

• Allergies in response to foods or environmental allergens, such as dust mites and pollen
• Hot spots or irritation caused by allergens, fleas, ear or skin infections, even mats
• Highly contagious ringworm, a fungal infection spread through contact with other infected dogs, or contaminated linens, brushes, and other supplies
• Demodectic or sarcoptic mange, the latter of which is highly contagious and caused by the scabies mite

These and many other skin disorders may display classic symptoms of a red, angry rash accompanied by pawing, scratching, and licking. Or, dogs with the same condition can show vastly different responses to allergens, fungi, yeast, bacteria, parasites, and other culprits. So, it is vital to seek prompt care from the Bluestar Pet Hospital & Grooming team. Call 904-720-4272 to schedule an appointment at our Jacksonville location. 

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