The owner is usually the first to notice the skin problems of her animals e.g. itch, redness, dandruff, constant scratching and rubbing, warmth, loss of hair and hardening of the skin. These are all typical symptoms for various skin diseases. The culprit can be a parasite, allergy, external irritating agent, trauma or infection. Infections can be broken down to be caused by various different microbes such as mold, fungus, bacteria or virus. A general scientific term for all these conditions is dermatitis.

Veterinarian is the best person to analyse the comprehensive clinical situation and define the right treatment.

The regulating body for animal welfare and protection legislate that it is the owners obligation and responsibility to care for the animals in his/her care. If diseases are not able to be treated sufficiently, sometimes the most merciful decision is euthanizing the animal.

It is worth noting that the disease mechanisms underlying these typical skin problems in cats, dogs, horses and people is alike, as is their skin structure. Hence the rational of the treatment for these skin diseases is nearly identical. Good rule of thumb is that, do not apply on the skin of these animals anything you would not be willing to put on your own skin.