sore on dog backside

Question
my dog is licking and chewing at his backside and its all raw and very sore and my dogs whinning about it! he is a rotti/sheppard i would like to know how to treat this if there is any??? please help me with this matter as i dont not want to take him to the vet if i dont have to


thank u for ur time please get back to me as soon as possible!


tracy

Answer
Sounds like a trip to the vet is needed. Two possibilities are inflammed anal glands and internal parasites both can cause the dog to scratch the area intensly which can lead to secondary bacterial infections which becomes a severe problem if not treated properly. Either way your veterinarian would have to take a fecal sample to check for parasites and would have to express the anal glands by rectal palpation. If either one of these are the case you can not really treat them without the help of your vet. Another good possibility is that your dog is infested with mites, they cause severe itching, your vet will have to do a skin scrapping of the affected areas to identify the mites and then will be able to treat the type of mite causing the problem. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. I really feel your vet should have a look. If you want to try something else first get a medicated shampoo from a pet store, or wal-mart, and wash the dog with it and see if it helps.