Common Canine Skin Conditions, Issues, & Diseases

Acral lick dermatitis, more commonly known as lick granuloma, is similar to acute moist dermatitis, appearing as a wet area with missing fur and pink/red skin that is caused by repeated licking at a specific area -- typically on the legs, feet, or tail.

Lick granulomas can begin as a reaction to an itch, irritation, injury, arthritis, or joint pain, and they can even sometimes manifest as a product of anxiety or a behavioral fixation.

Acute moist dermatitis, also referred to as pyotraumatic dermatitis or hot spot, refers to a red, inflamed, often moist and shiny lesion that is created by consistent trauma to a specific area -- usually via a dog's licking, chewing, scratching, and/or rubbing a specific itch or irritation.

Acute moist dermatitis can be brought on by skin allergies, parasites, insect bites, bee or wasp stings, injury, trapped moisture, or friction from a collar or harness.

Canine hot spots are extremely itchy and can be very painful. If left untreated, they can easily become infected and grow worse.

Learn more and see examples on our Dog Hot Spot Resource page.

Atopy, otherwise known as atopic dermatitis, allergy dermatitis, or eczema, is is an allergy-derived skin condition that creates inflammation and chronic, excessive itching in various parts of the body.

Atopy is very common and can be a seasonal or year-round skin condition.

Learn (much) more about atopy in our Dog Skin Allergies and Atopic Dermatitis Resource.

Contact dermatitis is much like -- and often is -- allergy dermatitis, appearing when the skin comes into contact with a specific irritant, such as an allergen or a chemical substance like floor cleaners or pesticides.

Contact dermatitis may also arise from friction, for example, from a rubbing collar, leash, or harness.

Cysts are hollow spaces or sacs within the skin that contain liquid or semi-liquid matter. This matter could be natural or abnormal secretions of sweat, sebum, dead tissue cells, blood, or keratin.

Cysts come in several types, based on their structure, location, and cause:

• True
• False
• Dermoid
• Follicular
• Sebaceous
• Interdigital

Learn more and view examples of cysts on dogs on our Canine Cysts page.

Demodicosis, also known as demodectic, demodex, or red mange, is a parasitic infestation of microscopic mange mites of the Demodex genus.

These mites dwell in the hair follicles and sebaceous glands of many dogs and are kept in check by the dog's immune system. If the immune system is underdeveloped or weakened, demodicosis can occur.

Between the two forms of mange in dogs, demodicosis is the more frequent. It occurs most often to puppies less than 18 months old, dogs with underlying health issues, or senior dogs with weaker immune systems.

Learn more about mange in our Mange in Dogs Resource.

Dermatitis refers to inflammation in the skin, which is caused by the immune system's response to a determined threat or irritant that a dog has inhaled or ingested, or that has breached the skin barrier.

There are many different types of dermatitis. You can see and learn about 12 forms with photo examples on our Canine Rash and Dermatitis Resource page.

Dermatophytosis, or ringworm, is a disease with spreading lesions of fur loss that is caused by an infection of one of three different types of fungus:

• Microsporum canis
• Microsporum gypseum
• Trichophyton metagrophytes

These fungi are contracted by contact and feed on dead skin, nails, and hair follicles.

In dogs, infected areas can appear as circular patches of hair loss, or amorphous, spreading patches of hair loss. Itching can be mild to severe -- likely depending on whether a compound infection is present. Hair within the lesions and infected nails are often dry and brittle.

Ringworm can be tough to get rid of and requires isolating the dog, consistent treatment, and a deep cleaning of all surfaces that the dog has come into contact with.

Learn more about dermatophytosis and see photo examples on our Canine Ringworm Resource page.

Folliculitis is a type of superficial pyoderma referring to the inflammation of a hair follicle(s) that is caused by bacteria (most common), fungi, parasites, or injury.

Folliculitis may manifest as pimples, pustules, small sores, or scabs on the dog's skin. In certain cases where the hair follicle sustains significant damage, a follicular cyst may appear.

You can see an example of folliculitis on our Canine Rash and Dermatitis Resource page.

Impetigo is a form of superficial pyoderma that affects puppies, typically appearing as red bumps or pimples on a puppy's belly.

Like most forms of canine pyoderma (bacterial skin infection), impetigo is commonly caused by Staphylococcus pseudintermedius bacteria.

Learn more about impetigo and see examples in our Complete Dog Pyoderma Resource.

Intertrigo in dogs refers to skin fold dermatitis, frictional dermatitis, skin fold pyoderma, which is inflammation and irritation that forms between two contacting folds of skin.

Intertrigo tends to affect breeds with skin folds, short-snout breeds (bullies), obese dogs, whole male dogs, and female dogs that have had puppies. 

Allergies and microbial growth between these folds further exacerbate itch and irritation.

Skin fold dermatitis affects several areas, and can be categorized by its location:

• Facial fold
• Lip fold
• Neck and body folds
• Tail fold
• Scrotal and vulval fold

Learn more about canine intertrigo and see what it looks like on our Dog Skin Fold Dermatitis Resource page.

Malassezia dermatitis, also known as a yeast infection of the skin, involves an overgrowth of the fungus Malassezia pachydermatis, which naturally dwells on the surface of a dog's skin. The vast majority of all canine yeast infections of the skin and ears are caused by this Malassezia fungus, so the terms are often interchangeable.

A Malassezia infection of the ears is referred to as Malassezia or yeast otitis.

Learn more about canine yeast infections and see what they look like on our Guide to Malassezia in Dogs and our Canine Otic Infection Resource.

Otitis refers to inflammation and/or infection of the ears. It is usually distinguished as otitis externa (outer ear), otitis media (middle ear), and otitis interna (inner ear).

Learn more about canine otitis and otic infections in our Itchy Ear and Dog Otitis Resource.

Papillomas, or warts, are benign skin tumors brought about by the canine papilloma virus (CPV).

Once CPV invades the skin cells, the virus upsets the regular cell division process and causes cells to divide at a more rapid, irregular rate, causing cauliflower or sea-anemone-like papillomas to grow until the dog's immune system can get the virus under control.

Warts can occur anywhere on a dog's body, but they tend to appear on dogs in areas like:

• Inside and around the mouth
• Genitals
• Eyelids
• Ears
• Between toes.

Learn more about canine papillomas and see examples in our Warts on Dogs (Dogwarts) Resource.

Psoriasis is a chronic condition in which the immune system becomes overactive, causing skin cells to multiply too quickly and create inflamed, often scaly and red patches of skin. 

Psoriasis is not recognized as a true disease in dogs, and to date, there have been scarce cases that have been  officially diagnosed as psoriasis.

There are several known skin maladies that affect dogs which resemble psoriasis, such as:

• Atopic / allergy dermatitis
• Flea allergy dermatitis
• Mange mites
• Cheyletiella mites (walking dandruff)
• Dermatophytosis (ringworm)
• Malassezia (yeast) dermatitis
• Pyoderma

Pyoderma means "pus in the skin," and is generally used to refer to a bacterial infection in the skin.

The great majority of all canine pyoderma cases are caused by an overgrowth of the bacteria Staphylococcus pseudintermedius.

Fun fact: RadiQuell® has a patent for its ability to inhibit and kill Staph bacteria, including the S. pseudintermedius species and its drug-resistant form.

Pyoderma is classified based on its depth:

• Surface - affecting only the epidermis
• Superficial - affecting to the hair follicles
• Deep - affecting the dermis and below

Learn more about pyoderma and see examples in our Complete Dog Pyoderma Resource.

Scabies, or sarcoptic mange, is a parasitic infestation of the Sarcoptes scabiei mite.

These mites are typically picked up from other infected animals, where they burrow into the skin, feed on dead skin and hair, and reproduce.

Scabies are extremely itchy and can result in fur loss, redness, darkened skin lesions (hyperpigmentation), hardened skin (lichenification), infection, and if untreated, eventual death.

Learn more about sarcoptic mange in our Mange in Dogs Resource.

Sebaceous adenomas are benign tumors that grow from the sebaceous gland. They are sometimes referred to as "old dog warts," as they commonly affect senior dogs.

Sebaceous adenomas look somewhat similar to warts, resembling pink, red, or pale "brain-like" growths that grow between 1/4" (0.064 cm) - 1" (2.54 cm) in diameter. 

They are common in poodles, cocker spaniels, terriers, schnauzers, and Labrador Retrievers. They can occasionally ooze sebum (oil produced in the sebaceous gland of the hair follicle).

We have a few photo examples of these growths on our Warts Resource page.

Scabies, or seborrheic dermatitis, is a skin disease caused by an abnormal production of keratin, a key protein that forms skin and hair.

Keratin is produced and shed in a cycle, and in dogs with seborrhea, that cycle is greatly accelerated. This creates a keratin buildup on the skin, which resembles flakes (dandruff) or chunky yellow or gray scales on the skin.

Seborrhea can be categorized as primary or secondary.

Primary seborrhea is acquired genetically and cannot be cured, but it can be managed.

Secondary seborrhea -- the more frequent form -- typically arises due to another issue, such as allergies, infection, parasites, hormonal disorder, or autoimmune condition.

Learn more about canine seborrhea and view examples in our Seborrhea in Dogs Resource.