Quick Tips for Soothing a Hot Spot

These tips are NOT meant to replace the recommended trip to the vet, but rather, offer your pet some quick relief and to help quell the spread of the hot spot until your vet can see your pet.



The first thing to do is speak with your veterinarian. Due to the rapidity of spread and possibility of deeper skin infection, it is wise to start treatment with your vet. Also, these hot spots can be very painful to the animal -- caution is advised, use a muzzle if need be for your protection.

1. Shave the area. The first treatment for hot spots is to dry them out and get air to the area. Hair loss is a feature of hot spots, but hair can also mat over the inflamed area, covering up a potentially much more severe and large problem.
2. Cleanse the area with cool water and a gentle skin cleanser.
3. Cool compress the area 2-4 times a day with a cool wet washcloth.
4. Medications - Depending on the severity and size of the hot spot, your veterinarian may prescribe oral antibiotics, topical drying sprays or medications, and/or special shampoos.
5. Prevention of licking, biting, scratching -i.e. Elizabethan collar

Additional home remedies that can be used until you can see your vet:

• Tea bag compresses (black or green tea) to help dry the area out. Tea can be used as a wash or as a compress.
• Domeboro's (Burow's) solution (aluminum acetate) - available over-the-counter at pharmacies to help dry the skin out. Can be used as a compress or as a spray.
• Hydrocortisone creams - Some people advocate using a thin film of an over-the-counter hydrocortisone cream.

I would recommend talking to your vet first -- in general, creams and ointments only serve to "gunk up" the area and prevent proper drying if used incorrectly. Also, if the pet licks it, you want to make sure that it isn't toxic.

source: About.com