I'm kinda worried about Nebo...

This morning Nebo was biting at a spot on his back and got a mouthful of fur from it...I mean, I guess that's normal, he *is* a husky...but it wasn't undercoat, it was guardhairs. I know they shed those too, but not in clumps like that usually, do they? I started feeling around there and pulled a bunch of clumps of white guard hairs out...I mean, a lot...

And then later on this evening he was biting there again and I looked over and he's got another clump of fur hanging from his mouth. I took him outside and brushed him and just got.....:eek: an amazing amount of fur out of him! The thing is, I just took him to work and blew out his coat/bathed him/brushed him *really* well last friday.

And now I'm feeling him, and that spot where he was biting (about the middle of his back, a little closer to the shoulder blades then the tail) feels really weird. The fur is so thin just right there...it's noticable...

So I held him down and looked through his fur seeing if his skin looked different, and I found something. He had 3 (possibly more?) small scabs around that area.

I'm not sure what it could be from. :confused: What I've thought of so far is the scabs could be from him biting himself...which there should be a reason he'd be itching there though...my mom mentioned maybe he layed some ants in our backyard and they bit him.

If it's the first thing, I've been trying to think of a reason he's itchy. I recently changed dog food (from Nutro Lg Breed Puppy to Lg Breed adult) and of course, I recently bathed him too (but it was the same stuff I use every time) and he was also recently at Strut Your Mutt and around a bunch of dogs.

Also I swear he's lost weight. My mom won't stop saying he looks skinny....he feels somewhat thinner to me too. I know that it's normal for huskies to not eat much, and he doesn't eat much. I feed him and he just kind of sniffs it and walks away. He acts fine, he has plenty of energy and acts like his same old self. Besides that spot being so thin, his coat overall feels really soft and shiney.

Also, I discovered we carry this dog food at Petco, and I was thinking maybe it would be better because it doesn't have chemical preservatives and crap in it that could be bothering him. I've also wondered about some of those pills, etc. that are supposed to be good for the coat.

I'm probably just being paranoid :rolleyes: but I'm going to keep an eye on that spot.

Poor nebo! I'd just keep an eye on him for a while. If it continues, it's best to ask your vet. Maybe it's stress?

Any sign of fleas? That or other bugbites ... I'd put medication/anti-itch stuff on it, and keep an eye on it.

Yeah, I'll definitely take him to the vet if it gets any worse. It could be stress, but I can't think of anything he'd be overly stressed out about, he's a pretty laid back dog.

Poor Nebo,

You might want to put something on the bite to sooth the itching like neosporin?
Sheba seems to loose a lot of guard hairs in the summer along
with her undercoat. (at first I was wondering if you use
a top spot like Frontline, and thought, that might have
irratated him. But than you mentioned the bites and I was thinking bug bites?) Please keep us posted, if
Nebo's itching doesn't go away.

Supposedly we don't have any fleas here. I've never groomed any dog with fleas, and neither have the other groomers....so if there are any in Utah, they aren't close to where I live. I've never used any sort of flea/tick medication on him. I guess I should, we do have ticks (more in the mountain areas) but I've heard of health risks to those products, and I don't know if it's worth it or not.

And I have looked closely in his coat, and nothing else unusual besides that spot.

It may be possible that it's bug bites...

It could certainly be bites.

Is he off his food at all? I would watch him for another day, and if you feel he is not better, take him to the Vet just in case. I would.

I don't think you are being paranoid.:)

Sorry to hear that Nebo is experiencing some discomfort with the itching situation. I am guessing it might be a bug bite and he has scratched the heck out of it resulting in scabs and his fur coming out.

I would just keep an eye on it and see how it looks in a few days. If the problem persists in that area or other parts of his body, then a trip to the vet is in order!!

Hugs to you and Nebo.

I hope the problem clears up soon, keep us posted.

I hope Nebo gets better soon!

Poor Nebo. :( I hope he gets better soon! Keep us updated, please.

Since there don't seem to be a lot of bugs in your area, it sounds to me more like allergies. Cincy gets scabs on her skin from itching, and she will chew/lick all the fur in areas off. They have been much better recently, and her fur is fianlly growing back. I don't know if it has been the food, vitamins, Benedryll or combination, but we finally seem to have found a "program" that has her allergies under control.

Hope Nebo feels better soon :)

My cat, Angel has been doing that recently too....i think it could be fleas:( If it gets any worse, ill take her to the vet

Thanks everyone. :) Honestly, if I took him to the vet right now they'd think I'm nuts. It took me a good 10 minutes to even find the scabs the first time, I probably couldn't even find them at the vet. :rolleyes:

That spot on his back is driving me nuts though....the thin fur....it feels so weird running my hand across his back!

I don't know if you can tell.....but here's a profile shot of his back.....

There's a big dip in the middle, that's not the way he's sitting, its where the fur is thin right through there.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/...d/fc19cefd.jpg

The same thing happens to my mostly husky mix, Mylo about 2-3 times a year, EXCEPT he does not get any scabs. He totally blows his coat, his fur gets very thin & coarse almost wirery. He also seems to get skinnier. This has been happening since we got him @ 4 months of age it has been 6 years now. He also was itching a lot. We took him to quite a few different vets & specialists, got allergy tests & many different bloodwork tests done on him. We found absolutely nothing wrong w/ him, thousands of dollars later. We have tried different foods, supplements, medicines & nothing works. He has always acted like his normal self & had no other symptoms. Every vet & specialist we went to after finding nothing wrong said that it just must be his own way of shedding. It has been know for dogs to shed like this although it is not too common but it does happen, so that is the conclusion we setled on.
Maybe Nebo also just sheds like that although I am not sure about the scabs? Maybe from insects or just from itching? Maybe he did get something from another dog at srtut your mutt?
The fur in your pic looks just like Mylo's fur when he blows his coat. Some people think I shaved him in some areas & is starting to grow back, like a reverse mohawk.

Praying Nebo gets better.

I hope it's nothing.

Ash

My Nattie had the same thing - kept licking and licking and fur was coming out. Took her to the vet and she had "hot spots". They can give them something or you can put cortizone or neosporin on the area but you have to make sure that they can't get to that area or they will lick themselves raw. Nebo could have been bitten by something and once he started scratching, it just made the itch worse.

It could just be allergies but it could also be thyroid problems, with thyroid disease they can either gain or lose weight, skin is different and loss of hair, If it continues and you take him to the vet ask about it, where i live a thyroid panel is not expensive. and if it is thyroid disease, it is easily treated. I do hope that Nebo is feeling better. and gets well soon.

His back seems to be somewhat better now. I can't see any scabs, and he isn't biting and scratching at that spot anymore...however, the fur is still very thin at that spot.

I'm glad to read that Nebo is better, Amy.....

Poor Nebo :(

Maybe you should call the vets and see what they say?

Also, Pets first has great foods, and allegy formulas too.

www.pets1st.com

Try them, their food is expensive, but it's worth it. No bi-products, only vitamin preservatives, human grade meat and vegetables.