Almost all pet owners have been troubled by their pets' skin diseases because pets are living creatures with flesh and blood, living in the environment, and will inevitably have some skin diseases throughout their lives. Many owners, due to the high costs of veterinary hospitals, study by comparing pictures online at home or consult netizens online to see if any pets have similar symptoms, then buy medicine online or trust some folk remedies. However, there are hundreds to thousands of pet skin diseases with many similar external symptoms. Relying solely on guessing is unscientific and can easily lead to wasting money on the wrong medicine, wasting time and energy causing the disease to worsen instead of improving, and eventually having to go to the veterinary hospital for diagnosis and medication. Here, to help everyone better understand the diagnosis and treatment process of pet skin diseases and to save money, some useful knowledge for learning and care has been specially collected for pet owners.
　　In our veterinary clinical practice, some clinical examination methods help diagnose and screen diseases. Whether it is tested in our hospital laboratory or samples sent for examination, proper collection is a cornerstone for diagnostic accuracy. Therefore, non-standard sample collection cannot accurately diagnose diseases. If testing is needed, be sure to go to a regular professional hospital.

Incomplete Treatment of Hair Development Disorders

　　Skin Scraping Examination:
　　Skin scraping is one of the most commonly used methods for skin disease detection in veterinary clinics. This method is simple and fast, capable of identifying various types of parasitic infections. Although skin scraping does not always provide diagnostic evidence, its simplicity and low cost make it one of the most commonly used skin disease detection methods.
　　Some clinical workers prefer to reuse dull blades for skin scraping, but with increasing awareness of infectious diseases prevention (Bartonella, feline leukemia, feline AIDS, herpes virus, papillomavirus, etc.), this phenomenon is gradually decreasing. Therefore, when you see doctors in a veterinary hospital wearing gloves and using new blades during examination, after initial judgment, they will tell the owner the area to be sampled and the depth of skin scraping.
　　Skin scraping can be divided into superficial skin scraping and deep skin scraping.
　　Superficial skin scraping: used to observe sarcoptic mites, demodex mites, ear mites, and chigger mites.
　　Deep skin scraping: mainly used to check for burrowing mites.

Poodle (Detailed Introduction)

Scraping Examination

　　Cytology Examination:
　　Skin cytology examination is the second most commonly used technique for detecting skin diseases, mainly used to identify bacteria, fungi, infiltrating cells, tumor cells, and squamous cells.
　　For abscesses and tumors, a larger gauge needle and smaller syringe can be used to provide strong negative pressure for puncture and cell extraction, followed by smear staining and microscopic examination.

Syringe

　　Transparent Tape Method
　　Can be used for multiple skin disease detections.
　　Transparent tape observation of mites: When using a microscope to check pathogens, the tape method is a good technique for collecting samples of demodex and lice. Demodex mites are relatively large and easy to find in the field of view, so sometimes one piece of tape can collect demodex mites, and the tape helps fix the mites.
　　Tape observation of hair: Tape can fix the position of hair on a slide. Samples are observed under a low power microscope (4X-10X objective). Adding a drop of mineral oil on the slide makes observation easier.
　　Tape observation of yeast: Although not as effective as culture medium, the tape method remains one of the most effective means for diagnosing Malassezia skin disease. Quick and simple, though false negatives often occur with all yeast collection techniques.
　　Ear Swab Examination
　　A relatively long cotton swab can be used to check if the apparently normal ear canal has exudative lesions inside, helping identify if parasites, fungi, or bacterial infections exist in the external auditory canal.
　　Ear canal cytology examination is necessary to determine the type of secondary infection and to reasonably choose treatment plans. In addition, ear canal cytology is also significant for evaluating treatment outcomes, especially in cases of incomplete cure of otitis. In these cases, cytology examination of ear secretions can determine whether the quantity or type of microorganisms has increased, which is important for avoiding premature cessation or changes in treatment.
　　Through the above learning, you are also a little laboratory technician. When pet skin diseases occur, uncomplicated diseases can be diagnosed by simple laboratory tests for targeted treatment, greatly reducing the recovery time and owners’ care time, avoiding drug resistance and misuse of money on inappropriate treatments that delay recovery. Finally, it is hoped that all pet owners pay attention to the skin pH and living environment of pets, and observe the skin under the dense coat closely, so as to effectively prevent the occurrence of skin diseases.