# Scabs behind ears and arm pits...what could this be?



## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

bumping up for opinions


----------



## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

Does she play rough with other dogs at daycare? I wouldn't automatically rule out bite marks just b/c you found some under the armpits. Teeth could come in contact with that area during wrestling/play.


----------



## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

I would rule out a staph infection..... common skin infection. Also, Penny would get the armpit sores with allergies.


----------



## AmbikaGR (Dec 31, 2007)

Has the dog been swimming recently? Could be a reaction to something in the water. 
As long as it does not get any worse and remains scabbed over I would not worry too much. I find in these instances that combing the area several times a day can cut back on the dog's scratching - which can make it much worse.


----------



## DebsDog (Mar 28, 2008)

*I took Wallace to the vet*

and they tested for skin mites which he did not have. They think he has a skin infection and perscibed cephalaxin for 10 days. They asked a series of questions around his behavior and recent experiences and we came up with one idea...Wallace went swimming in a chlorinated pool and he was not washed down after the swim. This could have irritated his skin and caused an infection.

I will keep you posted on his progress on






the medication.


----------



## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

So glad you took him in. BTW, he's GORGEOUS !!!!!


----------



## Lego&Jacub (Jul 18, 2006)

awww what a cutie!!!! Sawyer had a similar sort of thing happening on the bottom of his tail and around his armpit areas (both front and back)... but they have since cleared up. Hopefully your little man will be free and clear soon too!!!


----------



## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Great swimming picture you have of him. Glad he is going to be ok.


----------



## OliveLoaf (Sep 1, 2012)

I have the exact same problem with Olive! 
She has little clusters of scabs behind both ears and in her armpits, but nowhere else on her body. They aren't bug bites or punctures, just weird little scabs.

I think I figured out what caused them, though, and now they're starting to go away.

Olive is a swimmer. I cannot keep her out of the water. We don't have a pool at home, but I take her to the beach a lot, to the dog park (which has a little pool) and to a river nearby to swim.

After swimming, I noticed that behind her ears and her belly seem to take forever to dry - especially the 2 areas where she's getting these scabs. It seems that the water is softening the skin behind her ears and armpits and is irritating her. Then, when she scratches, it tears the skin, causing a little scab to form.

So, I've been using a small towel to dry her ears and armpits off really well after she swims, so that the skin isn't moist anymore in those areas. I've been doing this for about a week so far and she has about half as many scabs now - seems to be clearing up really well.


----------



## newport (Aug 8, 2011)

I would say allergies and or fleas or mites. When I got Lola at 11 months old she had scabs at her temples.. I never noticed but the vet did. I put her on antihistamine and realized she had come to me with little mites! I took care of the mite problem and everything healed up.:wave:


----------

