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Rings of Hair Loss on a Pit Bull After Flea Drops

by A reader

Reader Question
Last year I treated my Pit Bull and another small dog with flea and tick drops from the vet. The small dog was fine, but within a couple of days I noticed circles on the Pit Bull. He's white, and his hair looked yellow. I was afraid he was allergic to the drops, so I bathed him well. A few days later I put on a flea collar, and the next day there was blistering under it, so I removed it. He still gets circles on his coat with no redness or itching, but when I brush, the hair falls out of the circle and quickly grows back. On his belly the edges of the rings look like peeling sunburn. I've tried many things. Please help.


Answer from Our Team

Rings where hair falls out and the edges peel like sunburn, with no itch, are very typical of a superficial bacterial skin infection (often called epidermal collarettes). Short-coated white dogs are prone to these. Blistering under the collar suggests he reacted to it, which may have started the problem.

A vet can confirm it with a quick tape test and treat it with a medicated antibacterial shampoo, sometimes with antibiotics if it's widespread. Rings that keep coming back usually mean there's an underlying allergy, so ask about allergy management too.

Please stop trying multiple creams, iodine and home remedies, which can irritate the skin. A skin scraping and fungal culture can also rule out mites and ringworm if needed.

See ringworm and ring-shaped skin lesions and skin infections in dogs.

This is general information, not a diagnosis. Please follow your own vet's advice.

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