It happens that Ambrosius pays visits to the Veterinarian and I will write some stories and his treatment here. However, I will not translate all into this english page, since treatment and medicine are not similar in all countries. What I describe here is how it is done in Sweden - so I will not count on that the treatment is the same in other countries.

HOT SPOT - MY OWN STORY AND TREATMENT

Here you see fester coming from the hotspot. It is thick, yellowish and must be totally cleansed from the skin.

Here you see how it looks when cleansed. It is often bleeding a little and is an open liquid wound.

13 augusti 2000.... and 14 augusti

The discovery:
Two days ago I noticed that Ambrosius fur was feeling "hard" on some spots at his cheeks. I lifted a little on the fur and became very scared.

Yellow, thick, a little liquidlike secretion was coming out of his skin. It was fester...

I went to the animal hospital and they diagnosed it as "Hot Spot" - a VERY COMMON skin desease on dogs and especially on rottweilers. They can get it either on the back body (back, buttom by the tail etc.) or on the front body (cheeks, neck, throat etc.).

Possible cause:
The vet told me that if it was located at the front area of the body it CAN have its cause from ear infection (you notice ear infection if the dog shakes its head often, making the ears flip or don't want to lift the head and walks with it low and on the side).

It can also have its cause in - as in Ambrosius case - if the dog have had a bath and not been PROPERLY dried. Abbe took a swim in the ocean a couple of days ago and I let him dry by himself when running around...

I have now learnt that this was a very stupid act (but it is not easy to know when never heard of hot spot before) because now there will be a lot of work for me to do with cleaning this area until it is healed. The hair at the rottweilers' cheeks is SOOOO thick that if the fur gets wet through to the skin there will not come much air under to dry it.... so the skin literally started to "boil" under all this hair - with Hot Spot as an outcome.

Treatment:
The sick area and approximately 1 centimetre around will be shaved down to the skin so that it is possible to treat with medicine that dries out the crusts and wounds (for example Jodopax). It is important to start the shaving from the fresh skin area and towards the sick area so that the hot spots doesn't spread. Hot Spot must be treated AS SOON as spotted because it grows VERY rapidly and if it gets big it starts to really hurt on the dog.

Abbes' Hot-Spot is approximately 1,5 centimetres in diameter and this counts as a SMALL hot spot..... Me myself thought this was BIG, but the vet just laughed a little and said "10 x 10 centimetres is big".

I tried to treat it myself:
So, it was time to shave... hahaha I thought... I decided to cut with a scissor instead... I have been laying on my four legs in the garden for two hours now and cut, cut, cut to get down to Abbes' skin. GUESS if a rottweiler fur is THICK at the cheeks (oh my god it is work for eternity).

I used two kinds of scissor. One is a "crocodile" teeth scissor and I was lucky to have it because I could catch the fur with it and cut, cut, cut - then I cut the last with a small scissor that is a little bend upwards.

Ambrosius did much resistance for about 30 minutes and even threatened to bite me - BUT if you are a mistress you HAVE to do things sometimes that the dog doesn't like... THIS IS AN EXCELLENT LEADERSHIP TRAINING AND PRACTISE OF PATIENCE.

I discovered little by little, as I was cutting, that there were starting to be hotspots around the discovered area (dry crusts hear and there) so it became a larger area to cut than I originally had thought.

After the first - little hysterical - halfhours Ambrosius just gave up with a big sigh. He layed down and almost fell asleep so that I could cut in peace and harmony. Thank you Abbe for that. (It helps to be MORE stubborn than the dog - it is only a question of time hahahha).

When approaching the skin area with the wound/s all crusts will be taken away and washed THOUGOUGHLY with a medicine that dries out the wounds. If the crusts is left behind there will be hotspots "boiling" underneath and the skin will not heal thoroughly.

Patience with the scissor ended...
After about two hours of cutting I suddenly realized that I NEVER could come so close to the skin as needed... I started to cry a little and walked around the home cursing for myself. Suddenly Master had enough. He yelled at me that I was a real sissy that couldn't just shave the damn dog. Then he just took his own shaving-machine, went out to Ambrosius and TOLD him to lay down.

...he did, without any arguing - and Master shaved the cheeks. Well, SOMETIMES it is truly nice to have a Master in the house that is not so "bleeding-hearted" as Mistress is.

And then I washed Ambrosius cheeks with jodopax.

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Here you see Abbes shaved cheeks. You don't see very much though because his hotspots are quite small. Most of it is in their beginning (crusts). Before we shaved him he was all sticky in his fur from the hardened fester. The shaving helps air to come to the sick place so that it can dry up and heal with the medication.

THE VETS' TREATMENT OF HOT-SPOTS... 14 augusti 2000
This morning (the day after) I couldn't stand Ambrosius' trying to scratch his cheeks. The sound of the paw against the plastic collar made me phone the veterinarian to get some medication for his itching.

....and WOW....

I thought that WE had made this shaving and washing thoroughly... sigh. It is just to realize that I am a soft-hearted Mistress.

The vet shaved ALL THE WAY down to the skin. The crusts flew around. Abbe didn't react at all. The vet told us that the dog likes when all crusts is shaved away because it feels like the "itching the dog has longing for". And it seemed that Abbe liked this treatment. Then she cleaned with a cortisone-liquid (Celeston valerat 0,1% liquid).

She told me to rub quite roughly so that all crusts and wounds would be thoroughly cleansed. Abbe hasn't scratched himself for six hours now...

So, now we have to keep the area shaved and clean until properly healed and then I will make a new daily routine - lift Abbes' fur at the cheeks so that air can come into the skin to try to prevent hot spots again.

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PLASTIC COLLAR
This device is truly good to have at home. Put it on when the dog is not allowed to scratch, itch, lick or bite itself.

Worse thing with this is that I suffer more than the dog (I believe). We have practised in the beginning so that he is used to have this plastic collar on. We practised with sausage so that he connect this collar with positive experiences.

I suggest that you buy such a thing and have it at home because you'll never know when you need it - and often it is good to put on IMMEDIATELY you notice something wrong with the dog - to prevent ugly infections due to scratching with dirty claws for example.

When Ambrosius has this on I make activities often with him, just so that he can have it taken off some moments during the day. When I supervise him 100% I take it off so that he gets a break now and then. It is VERY important that you see to it that he doesn't itch, lick or bite himself when this collar is off.

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How the treatment is going day by day:

We will treat with the cortisone for approx. 10 days as a recommendation from the vet. Rub with the liquid two times per day. I also use a terry towel, dipped in cold water. This I hold for a little while on his cheeks and head for him to feel a little cool now and then. He likes that.

Sunday: We went to the veterinarian (se story above)

Monday: It is still festering from the two spots. I rub with the cortisone liquid and he still likes that. Unfortunately it is an opressive weather today (will probably thunder later tonight). This makes the dog with black, thick fur "suffer" a little. I let him lay outside in the garden to feel the little cool breeze. Some of the crusts are very red but not festering, so I hope for them to heal quickly.

Tuesday: Festering from the wound. Phoned the vet. She said that if it is not better within four days we have to come back. MAYBE we need to give antibiotics. I continue with daily cleansing twice a day. HAVE NOTICED something upon his forehead (I DO hope its not hotspot...)

Wednesday: Crusts is starting to build up. I peel them off and it bleeds.

Thursday: Crusts is starting to build up. I peel them off and it bleeds.

Friday: Today I left him for 5 seconds without plastic collar (was only picking up cotton in the bathroom)...when coming back he SCRATCHED himself on his right cheek. OH MY GOD.... the blood just pored out and there was a large open wound. I just screamed "STOP". And then I treated with the bacterial killing Jodopax.

Saturday: Large crust is starting to build up where he scratched. I don't dare to peel it off. I just treat with jodopax so that it can heel from under.

Sunday: The left cheek starts to look much better now - but of course there is hard, dry "crusts" to peel of every day. Vomited today.

Monday: Same. Vomited two times today.

Tuesday: Same - he has started to shake his head OFTEN. I am scared that he has got ear infection. Have now written a letter to the veterinarian where I demand some sort of examination of the WHOLE dog - just to see that everything is okay. Also think he has got fungus in his back paw.... The whole situation is now awful for me. Vomited one time today.

Wednesday: Vet has phoned me today (24th august) and want to see him tomorrow (thursday) morning. Thank God for that because I am now worried. I will report here on how it went.

Thursday: Visted the vet today. Ambrosius got really examined and it was as I suspected..... the hotspots was not much better - and I found two small new ones yesterday - so the veterinarian prescribed antibiotics for 20 days.

He also had a plug of wax in his right ear - so no wonder he has shook his head (I thought it was ear-infection).

She was worried about him being vomiting for three days and they made an x-ray on his belly.... there is a quite large stone that he has swallowed - so tomorrow we will go there again for a new x-ray, just to see if it is on its way out... I DO hope that it will come out - otherwise the vet suspects that this is the cause of Ambrosius throwing up.

Ambrosius was god-like and just kissed everybody and layed down when told. They asked us if he could be a blood donor. They have started this blood bank for dogs and need dogs with nice temperament and that can lay still for about 5 - 7 minutes. I said that we should think about it and talk to Master and see what he says about it.

If we become a blood donor Ambrosius will get two free examinations per year - so maybe we should do that.... we'll see.

SUMMARY OF THE TREATMENT...
I realized that I can not write daily since this treatment takes a long, long time. Today it is 9th October 2000 and Ambrosius has been eaten antibiotics for 40 days (2 treatments) and Cortisone for 30 days and is still on cortisone since there is a tiny bacterial infection still in his right cheek.

This Hot-spot-infection has cost us quite a bit of money and four visits to the vet... but now finally I dare to hope that this is the end of it.

The veterinarian told me that it usually takes long time to treat such a bacterial infection, but now he doesn't have to eat more antibiotics - for now.