Normally the Summer months are the worst for skin problems. Allergies are at a height, and the heat and humidity allow microorganisms to grow quickly. There are seasonal allergies in the Spring and Fall, but the worst seems to be in the Summer. Combine these conditions with a growing flea problem and you have a recipe for dermatology disaster. It's something we know about and expect. Which makes it surprising when you have a run of cases that break from the season.
Over the last week my associate and I have been bombarded with itchy dogs and cats. Most of them have come in with sudden intense itching to the point of causing severe self-trauma. The itching is bad enough that they chew themselves raw, creating large hot-spots. We expect this in dogs with flea allergies or other severe allergy disorders. But we've been seeing pets come in that don't typically have skin problems. Frankly it's been a bit perplexing since it's not a typical season for it and we're seeing 25-30% of our patients with these disorders. Our area has had a lot of rain in the last month, including a lot of flooding, which makes me consider that there may be molds releasing spores that the pets are allergic to. We do see autumn allergies, but not normally on this scale. Thankfully they're responding to therapy, but it's still a strange surge of dermatology problems.
Hopefully as the weather cools off (here in the northern hemisphere) we'll see some changes, and things will get back to normal for the season.
