Bella had red, painful bottom lips. There was a foul smell and it hurt when her owner looked at it. It hadn’t gone away for a few days so Bella’s mom brought her to me, her vet, for an examination.

Bella is a dog with chronic allergies. She has had many previous episodes of both facial and foot flare ups in the past. She has had red feet, and red painful ears enough times that it was deemed needed to keep her on daily allergy medications.
Lip fold pyodermas occur when a fold of skin (in this case the lower lip fold) collects moisture collects and allows the normal resident bacteria to proliferate and cause the skin to react by getting red and painful. I tell my clients it is sort of like diaper rash in babies.. The skins job is to keep the bacteria at bay (they are normal but only in manageable numbers). But when the skin is kept consistently moist or wet the bacteria over populates and infection sets in. When any kind of excessive skin allows a fold (like in brachycepahlic dogs on their face, or tail. Skin folds aren’t good for the skin. Dogs with abnormal skin due to allergies have an even tougher time managing over ambitious bacteria.

Bella was already on an allergy medication. This medication is Apoquel. We refilled her medication, added an oral antibiotic called cephalexin, and also gave here a medicated wipes to keep the area clean and dry.

Atopy has many possible causes and just as many possible secondary complications. Pyodermas, or infection secondary to moisture, bacteria, and persistance