Dear Dr. Robin: We have a 6-year-old female Great Pyrenees dog. The problem is that her nose is red and raw looking. She licks it all the time so we can’t tell if it is bleeding, but it looks awful. During the summer she digs up vegetables from the garden and what she doesn’t eat, she buries, using her nose to push the dirt. In the winter, she uses her nose to hunt for things that are buried in snow and ice.
We are concerned as her nose will not heal. We have taken her to our veterinarian, but we don’t know what to do to correct the problem.
– B.I.
A: Clearly a raw and bleeding nose is not normal on any dog. The most important step in resolving this issue is getting an accurate diagnosis.
A dog in this situation needs a complete metabolic profile – complete blood count (CBC), a blood chemistry panel, and a thyroid panel. In addition, the tissue of the nose cannot be appropriately evaluated without a surgical biopsy that is sent to a pathologist with expertise in skin disease. (Our biopsies go to Dr. Barb Powers, director of the diagnostic laboratory at Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine.)
The actual biopsy involves removing a very small section of representative tissue preserved in formalin for transport to the laboratory. Such a biopsy can be completed with a little sedation and a local anaesthetic.
Only when there is a complete diagnosis can any treatment recommendations be made. The reason a biopsy is so important is that the body only has so many ways of indicating a problem. That means many skin diseases can look just the same to the naked eye.
Once a treatment plan is made, it is critical to continue ongoing re-checks and re-assessments in order to determine the success of treatment. Some skin diseases require medications that may have side effects, so periodic blood tests will be recommended by the veterinarian.
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Dear Dr. Robin: My beautiful old white dog has developed a reddish-brown discoloration around her eyes and mouth. What might be causing that?
– L.J., via e-mail
A: Like any change in a pet’s condition, a change in the color of the skin or hair coat warrants an examination by the veterinarian. It is best to try to get to the bottom of any problem early. Discoloration around the eyes and mouth could be something as simple as a change in the skin pH or increase in tear and saliva production, but the risk of something more serious cannot be ruled out without an examination.
Dr. Robin Downing will respond to your questions in her weekly column, but cannot answer individually. Send questions to: Robin Downing, DVM, P.O. Box 460, Windsor, CO 80550 or drrobin@windsorvet.com.
