sores on longhair dog

Question
My toy dog has developed a lumpy sore on his shoulder, then
one on his neck, and one on his ear. It seems to be flea related as none of our treatments for fleas seem to be working. Do you know what it might be??

Answer
This could be anything from a staph infection to histiocytomas. Your veterinarian needs to see this dog. He/she can also help you with a good flea control program. One needs to be careful of overdosing caused by combining various products.

One product that I have used successfully for fleas is Advantage; it is one of the safest products that is out there (and that is all I used; it took three months to eliminate the fleas). Remove the collar for 24 hrs. when using this type of treatment so that the body oils can carry it up onto the dog's head, and be careful about bathing or getting the product wet, even if it says it is okay to do so. Vacuum your house and car thoroughly, and put a bit of flea collar in your vacuum to insure the death of those critters when they are sucked up. Personally, I don't believe in spraying pesticides in my house as I feel that is too harmful to the people living there, but diatomaceous earth can be sprinkled around as that is harmless to people. The yard can be treated with nematodes, which kill flea larva by using them as hosts.

http://www.vetinfo.com/dencyclopedia/defleacontrol.html

Karen