Sitemaps

What is wrong with this dog2007-11-25 2:53:18

We found a dog on the street who looks very old and ill, but she is very smart. She can sit, shake, bark, etc. and she will not leave our yard no matter what we do.

Here's the problem. She has hair missing in some areas and has been biting her hair out. She has cavaties in a lot of her front teeth and one of her canines is loose so it's hard for her to eat. She throws up a lot and she lets off an extremely foul, fishy odor that you can smell throughout the house.

Even after bathing her, the smell does not subside and it's worse around her breath. Not only that but she has dry, scaly skin, and it looks like she's grown a few extra nipples. Her skin is very dark colored (grayish) and she also has what appears to be puss pockets on certain areas of her skin. Her ears have also appeared to shrivel up and they are very hard.

Shes a black lab, but she is barely recognizable as one, however. We have all become attached to the dog, but we would like to know what this could be.

Answers:

First things first, bring her to a vet. She sounds like she has a nutritional deficiency and possibly an underlying medical problem, but I won't advise anything.

As an online "forum", we can't give a diagnosis. Not only is it ethically and medically immoral but it's completely dangerous as well. However, I can tell you one thing. Infected and rotting teeth can lead to a plethora of health problems. From what you've told us, it sounds like her teeth are in the later stages of periodontal disease. This requires intensive treatment and professional anesthetic cleaning with possible teeth extractions. If you don't plan to get anything else done, please schedule a teeth cleaning with your local vet. You can potentially save her life (again =]).

---

If you are committed to helping this dog, a trip to the vet is in order. The dog has suffered extreme neglect and probably has multiple health problems going on and is clearly miserable. The vet can help you assess if these problems are treatable and what to do next.

---

She has some MAJOR problems and only a vet is going to be able to help her. Please take her to one asap. Good Luck

---

This poor dog has a lot of problems. The sink near her mouth is probably teeth that are abscessed and need to either be pulled or cleaned. The scooting is probably worms. The hair is probably Mange or serious allergies. If you intend on keep her than a trip to your vet is certainly in order for her.