Maltese

Question
I have a 5 year old female maltese who constantly licks her private area.  It is really red and swollen and actually looks like there is brown around the vulva area.  I have taken her to the vet and had multiple tests done on her and everything comes up normal.  They thought she had crystals but everything was normal.  I have put creams on her and changed her food but nothing is making it better.  Any suggestions?

Answer
The brown is only saliva stain and nothing to worry about. It sounds as if this could be a nervous habit that possibly started with some initial temporary physical circumstance  (perhaps her first heat). I would suggest however that you remove all wheat, corn, soy, dairy and beef from her diet if you haven't already and perhaps even go all raw. If her PH is off, raw food will re-balance it. If you don't have a good pre-prepared raw food available, the BARF Diet is available on-line drop shipped from the company. Also try adding a bit of apple cider vinegar to her food. This helps PH and Yeast.

If it is just a habit, try taking a bit of Vicks Vaporub on your hands and petting it lightly on the hair surrounding her vulva area, not on any skin irritation.  This tends to break habits because when the dog goes to lick or chew, they get a nose full of Vicks and generally don't want to go there.

Not knowing any more specifics, it is rather hard to tell you more. Keep me posted. I like to know the outcome of my suggestions.

Take care and Happy New Year!
Sue Griffin