If your dog or cat is losing hair or coat thickness, it’s natural to be worried about the health of your pet. This condition, known as alopecia, is typically symptomatic of an underlying illness or medical disorder. The hair loss may involve the entire coat or only occur in patches on certain parts of your pet’s skin. At Animerge Veterinary Clinic in Raritan, our veterinary dermatology team can diagnose and treat your pet’s condition.

Raritan Animal Hospital Provides Specialized Vet Dermatology Services

Skin diseases, infections, allergies, nutrition deficiencies, hormones and parasites may all cause hair loss. Behavioral problems, such as separation anxiety, can also lead to hair loss. Because alopecia may be caused by a number of different problems, it is critical that you have your pet evaluated by a trained veterinary dermatologist at an animal hospital.

Hair loss that is caused by skin parasites, such as fleas, mites and lice, is typically limited to one portion of the body. The more your pet bites or chews at the infected area, the more hair loss may occur, leaving the skin moist and ripe for bacterial infections.

Foods, inhaled allergens or contact allergens can also cause hair loss. While humans react to allergies with watery eyes and runny noses, pets suffering from an allergy experience itchy skin. In response, pets scratch and chew at the hair. Cats may also groom or “over barber” themselves to the point that hairs appear broken or chewed off.

A hormone or organ imbalance may manifest itself through hair loss. For example, high levels of cortisol cause the hair to thin and leave a tuft of hair at the tip of the tail while low cortisol levels lead to hair loss all over the body. If your pet’s organs are not working properly, such as with kidney or liver disease, nutrients needed for hair growth are not properly regulated. Pets with kidney failure have a bedraggled coat while pets with cancer may have dull, thinning coats.

At our emergency vet clinic, our veterinary dermatologist, Dr. Ian B. Spiegel, has experience with the diagnosis and treatment of skin diseases, ear diseases and allergies. Dr. Spiegel can evaluate your cat or dog and determine the underlying cause for your pet’s hair loss. While our emergency veterinary clinic is open 24 hours a day, 365 days per year, Dr. Speigel receives patients by appointment only on Tuesdays from 8:30a.m. to 4:00p.m., Thursdays from 8:30a.m. to 7:30p.m. and one Saturday each month.

Is your pet losing hair or coat thickness? Do you suspect your pet may be chewing off his or her hair due to an allergy or parasite?