Canine Blackened Skin Disease
Canine blackened skin disease is a cosmetic condition which does not pose a health risk to an infected dog but does cause the dog to look strange and is sometimes accompanied by a foul odor. Owners of dogs affected by this condition are often frustrated by the lack of answers available. The cause of the disease is unknown, so testing and treatment of the disease are primitive.
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Symptoms
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Canine blackened skin disease is a progressive disease marked by hair loss and discoloration of the skin. An affected dog will usually show the first signs of the disease within the first three years of its life, but occasionally a case will appear in later life. The first sign of the disease is hair loss, which occurs in stages. The dog will generally first lose more coarse hairs, leaving behind a fluffy, almost puppy-like coat. This puppy coat will then fall out. Once the dog is bald, the skin will begin to discolor, and become black. Eventually, it will form a scaly texture. Most of the time this disease only affects the hair and skin of the dog's back and hind legs.
Diagnosis
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Diagnosis of canine blackened skin disease by a veterinarian can be tricky for two reasons. The first reason is that the cause of the disease is unknown. This means that no real test has been developed to detect the disease specifically and the veterinarian has to rely on symptoms alone. The second reason is that the symptoms of the disease appear much like those of two other diseases--Cushing's disease and hypothyroidism. Veterinarians normally test for these two diseases first and then diagnose canine blackened skin disease, by process of elimination.
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Treatment
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Treatment of canine blackened skin disease is also a trial-and-error process and is largely experimental. Some studies have shown that there may be a hormonal link to blackened skin disease, so many veterinarians begin treatment by spaying or neutering the dog. A large percentage of dogs will grow their hair back after this procedure, but it is not always permanent. Other common treatments include melatonin supplements and special shampoos.
Alternate Names
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When discussing canine blackened skin disease, it is important to realize that the disease does not have an official name and is referred to by several other names.
Many of these names have branded the disease as a type of alopecia, the medical term for hair loss. This list of names includes alopecia x, growth hormone responsive alopecia, castration responsive alopecia, post-clipping alopecia and adrenal sex gland alopecia. Other names commonly used include coat funk, the cold funk and follicular dysplasia.
Affected Breeds
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Regardless of which name you prefer, this disease affects certain breeds at a much higher rate than others. Pomeranians are the most noted breed affected by this disease, but it also effects large numbers of poodles as well as other breeds known as spitz and Nordic dogs. Alaskan malamutes, Siberian huskies, elkhounds and chow chows are all among these groups.
Research
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Funds are funneled toward research for this disease every year. The current goal is to find the cause of this disease in hopes that the cause will lead to proper diagnosis and more effective treatment. Many of the current research projects focus of mapping the canine genome because it is believed that the disease is genetic.
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