WROC’s Westie Skin Success
Westie Skin Protocol
We receive many Westies in our program that were relinquished by their owners or turned in to shelters because they suffer from skin disorders. Many are due to neglect, some because they are at their wits end trying to rectify the problem, and others because countless veterinarian visits at an extraordinary expense and a variety of medication does not fix the problem.
A PILL WILL NOT FIX THE PROBLEM, but with time and patience and proper and methodical diet, veterinarian prescribed medications to jump start the immune system, and medicated soft brush baths, you too may experience the success that WROC has achieved.
DOES YOUR WESTIE EXHIBIT: Excessive scratching, black, oily, dry, & crusty skin, thick skin, hair loss, bleeding or open sores, bad yeast odor or chronic ear infections?
IF SO, PLEASE READ ON:
Diet
Every Westie that comes into our program is immediately put on our Westie Diet, regardless of their skin issues.
Those with skin conditions are seen by our vet and started on medicated baths. All of the dogs featured on this page are no longer on medication & are being maintained by diet alone.
Ready for the Challenge?
If you are ready to travel the road to wellness with your Westie, bear in mind this is a lot of work, but the results in just a few weeks are so worth the effort.
It is important to take pictures every few weeks. This will document your progress and will keep you encouraged. The daily baths won’t last forever. Your commitment & dedication will result in a happier Westie and a happier you!
Vet Care
Our vet will perform a skin scraping to determine the presence of yeast, bacteria, or staph. In most cases, we administer vet prescribed antibiotics orally for 2-4 weeks, depending on the severity of the infection.
All dogs are different, and their response time varies, so antibiotics could be administered for longer periods. Cephalexin, Clavamox, and Baytril are broad spectrum antibiotics that are used to treat bacterial infections and Ketoconazole is a synthetic antifungal drug used to prevent and treat skin and fungal infections.
We often use Ketaconazole for the first few weeks. The medications that we use are prescribed by our vet. Depending on the fungus and depending on the dose used, Ketoconazole may kill the fungus or just inhibit its ability to reproduce. We normally use ½ or ¼ tablet twice a day, depending on the severity of the condition.
A Cytopoint® shot provides long-lasting itch relief for dogs with allergic or atopic dermatitis.
Ask your veterinarian how Cytopoint can provide lasting relief for your itchy dog, so everyone can get back to enjoying life’s precious moments.
Medicated Baths
Our preferred shampoo of choice is Nizoral which can be found in any drug store. We also recommend Malaseb, Chlorexiderm, or Pyoben shampoos.
We start with daily soft brush medicated baths for 7 to 14 days. Depending on the severity of the condition and how well the dog is responding, we will cut back the frequency of baths slowly. Using a boar hair soft brush while bathing our Westies doubled the positive effects of the medicated bath by removing the dead lipids from the skin allowing healthy lipid to emerge. This technique softened the thick skin, eradicated the black skin and quickened the healing process. This brush can be found in any drugstore, or order from AMAZON, search “Boar Nail Brush”. OR Link to Herbspro Foot Brush
The soft brush medicated baths provide tremendous relief. We completely blow-dry our Westies taking special care not to let the dryer get too hot. We also put our Westies in toddler/baby t-shirts that are snug. This prevents our dogs from causing further trauma to the skin.
The information contained on this page is for informational purposes only and is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own veterinarian. Always consult your veterinarian for diagnosing the health of your dog.
