# gold bond powder



## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

ginger&diego said:


> why do so many say the gold bond powder keeps them from going to the vet. I used it and it helped but i still had to take him in because the licking and scratching never ended. doesn't that just prolong the problem. he ended up having staph, a bacterial infection which they say is not contagious to humans. they think he may have some allergies and said i could do the allergy testing but the shots aren't guaranteed to help, so at this point he is just on the usual medicine. so what is the gold bond useful for if you have to end up going to the vet anyway. a frustrated 1st time dog owner just wondering-tired of throwing money out the window.


It is important to note that this is an internet forum. Nothing more, nothing less. Suggestions are made based on anecdotal experiences of other pet owners, never with the intent to replace veterinary care. Gold Bond, at a few dollars for a container, is useful to have on hand for any number of ailments - human and pet related. But again, it is not necessarily going to be a curative for underlying health or genetic issues. Taking your pet to the veterinarian if s/he is unwell is, IMO, NEVER a waste of money, nor is the few dollars spent on some OTC preparations that may make him more comfortable at some time in his or her life.


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## Jo Ellen (Feb 25, 2007)

Gold Bond powder is good for treating hot spots and for managing minor skin irritations -- it's probably not going to be effective for treating more serious skin conditions like a staph infection.

It helps to know what you're dealing with before making a decision about how you're going to deal with it. If I knew that my dog had a staph infection or something that was not a hot spot, I would take her directly to the vet without trying any home remedies. If I knew she had a hot spot, I'd be very comfortable getting out the gold bond and using that before trying anything else.


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## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

Jo Ellen said:


> Gold Bond powder is good for treating hot spots and for managing minor skin irritations -- it's probably not going to be effective for treating more serious skin conditions like a staph infection.
> 
> It helps to know what you're dealing with before making a decision about how you're going to deal with it. If I knew that my dog had a staph infection or something that was not a hot spot, I would take her directly to the vet without trying any home remedies. If I knew she had a hot spot, I'd be very comfortable getting out the gold bond and using that before trying anything else.


Exactly, the Gold Bond powder is not meant to take the place of prescription meds. It's something to keep on hand in your doggy first-aid kit along with Benadryl, styptic powder, Listerine, gauze wraps, etc. Gold Bond can work great on minor skin irritations or hot spots caught early.

Hope your guy's feeling better.


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## ginger&diego (Jan 8, 2010)

Pointgold said:


> It is important to note that this is an internet forum. Nothing more, nothing less. Suggestions are made based on anecdotal experiences of other pet owners, never with the intent to replace veterinary care. Gold Bond, at a few dollars for a container, is useful to have on hand for any number of ailments - human and pet related. But again, it is not necessarily going to be a curative for underlying health or genetic issues. Taking your pet to the veterinarian if s/he is unwell is, IMO, NEVER a waste of money, nor is the few dollars spent on some OTC preparations that may make him more comfortable at some time in his or her life.


I do appreciate some of the suggestions in the forum. it's nice to see how others handle things and what they use especially since i'm a first time dog owner. and i do love my dogs and do take them to the vet(lately quite often). and in the reality of the economy that we live in, yes, at times i do feel like i'm throwing money out the window, esp. during moments when i'm spending more on my dogs than my kids. i always take them to the vet when they are unwell & never implied it was a waste just that it was a frustration-nothing more, nothing less.


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## ginger&diego (Jan 8, 2010)

Willow52 said:


> Exactly, the Gold Bond powder is not meant to take the place of prescription meds. It's something to keep on hand in your doggy first-aid kit along with Benadryl, styptic powder, Listerine, gauze wraps, etc. Gold Bond can work great on minor skin irritations or hot spots caught early.
> 
> Hope your guy's feeling better.


thankyou for your concern. i took him to the vet and she put him on meds and her suggestion was to pull up any hay out of the yard since this is his first time having problems in the winter and to try switching his food-so i'm going to try the avoderm and see how that goes.


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## Practically_Human (Jan 21, 2015)

Hello! I realize this thread is a bit old but I expect the issue of Gold Bond powder and hot spots is an ongoing one...
We are trying Gold Bond Extra Strength powder on our boy's first hot spot. How do you apply it, and how long should it be before we see improvement?
His hot spot is on the side of his face, under his ear flap. We've tried to trim away hair, but it's difficult since the spot is near his eye (and our guy isn't very cooperative with the treatment!). We are just squirting the Gold Bond powder on the hot spot; probably less than 10% actually reaches his skin. We've been doing this for 3 days. The spot doesn't seem worse, but doesn't seem better. We're wondering if this is really working or it's time to head to the vet. 
Thanks in advance for any input an advice!


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## DogOwner (Jul 30, 2015)

If the hot spot isn't getting better, then go to the vet. So much easier to control and remedy a hot spot when it is small.

I'd put Neosporin on it in the meantime....but to the vet ASAP!


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## GoldensGirl (Aug 2, 2010)

CalMom said:


> If the hot spot isn't getting better, then go to the vet. So much easier to control and remedy a hot spot when it is small.
> 
> I'd put Neosporin on it in the meantime....but to the vet ASAP!


Yes, definitely go to the vet ASAP. A hot spot on the face, especially near the eye, needs immediate treatment. The fur around hot spot needs to be closely clipped and then the area needs to be carefully cleaned. The vet will probably prescribe antibiotics and maybe a topical treatment. We have had very good luck with the antiseptic version of Douxo Mousse, which is a prescription product. 

I also highly recommend a BiteNot collar, which keeps the dog from turning his head towards his back legs. Because it goes around the neck and doesn't enclose the face and/or ears, it less uncomfortable for the dog than the usual cones and also less likely to promote spreading of the hot spot. The only thing to watch for is whether the BiteNot would come up so high as to irritate the hot spot.

Good luck!


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## lgnutah (Feb 26, 2007)

Be careful not to make the mistake I made one time with Gold Bond powder. I saw Brooks licking a big place raw on his back so I just went and got the Gold Bond powder and shook it all over the spot.

I repeated that the next day or so and it formed a horrible crust over the top of where he had licked and then infection formed underneath that powder crust.


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## Practically_Human (Jan 21, 2015)

lgnutah, thanks for the warning. I can see how this could happen. Also, Gold Bond doesn't contain anything that would kill a bacterial or fungal infection already underway, so it seems that it really could only work for an itchy spot before the skin is broken.


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