If you’ve ever noticed your dog suddenly licking, chewing, or scratching one spot like it’s their full-time job, you may be dealing with a hot spot. They can pop up seemingly overnight, and in Richmond’s warm, humid summers, they’re one of the most common skin issues our professional dog groomers see.

The good news is that hot spots are very manageable once you know what causes them and how to prevent them. Here’s what our grooming team wants every pet parent to know!

What Are Hot Spots in Dogs? Causes, Symptoms, and Risk Factors

“Hot spot” is really just the everyday name for what vets call acute moist dermatitis. In simple terms, it’s a localized skin infection that gets irritated and inflamed, which makes your dog want to lick, chew, or scratch it constantly, and that constant irritation only makes the spot worse.

Hot spots can be triggered by a lot of different things, including:

  • Allergies
  • Trapped moisture
  • Fleas or other parasites
  • Matted hair
  • Ear infections
  • Pain
  • Boredom

Because there are so many possible causes, hot spots can catch pet parents off guard. One day your dog seems totally fine, and the next there’s a raw, irritated patch that appeared out of nowhere.

Most hot spots start small, but they don’t stay that way for long. What begins as a little redness or a small area of missing fur can turn into a larger, oozing, angry-looking patch within a day or two, sometimes even faster. That’s because the itch-scratch cycle feeds itself: the more irritated the skin becomes, the more your dog wants to lick or chew at it, and the more they lick or chew, the worse the irritation gets. Catching a hot spot early, before that cycle really takes hold, makes a huge difference in how quickly it heals.

Why Are Hot Spots More Common During the Summer?

Every spring and summer, our grooming team at Impawsible Pups, sees a noticeable jump in hot spots, and it usually comes down to two things.

First, seasonal allergies to pollen and grass ramp up, and itchy, irritated skin is often the result. Second, dogs love to swim! If your pup doesn’t get fully dried off after a swim session, that trapped moisture can quickly turn into a hot spot. We see this most often right under the collar, since that area tends to stay damp long after the rest of your dog has dried.

Virginia’s humidity doesn’t help either. Humid air means it takes longer for your dog’s coat to dry out completely, which gives moisture more time to sit against the skin and cause problems.

Add in warmer temperatures, more time spent outdoors, and higher pollen counts, and it’s easy to see why summer creates the perfect storm for hot spots. Dogs are simply more active and more exposed to the elements this time of year, which means more opportunities for irritation to take hold.

What to Do If Your Dog Develops a Hot Spot

If you see a hot spot, your first call should always be to your veterinarian. They may prescribe an ointment or oral antibiotics, and they’ll likely clip the hair around the area so it can fully dry out and stay clean.

From there, hot spots need consistent care until they’re fully healed. That typically means:

  • Daily cleaning
  • Topical treatment as directed by your vet
  • Keeping your dog from licking or scratching the area (a cone or recovery collar may be necessary)

If hot spots keep showing up year-round rather than just seasonally, it’s worth talking to your vet about whether a diet change or allergy treatment could help address the root cause.

How to Prevent Hot Spots

The single best way to prevent hot spots this summer is to make sure your dog is completely dry at the end of the day, especially after swimming. That means drying all the way down to the skin, not just the top layer of fur. This matters most for thick or double-coated breeds like golden retrievers and German shepherds, since their coats naturally hold onto moisture longer.

If your dog goes swimming, take their collar off afterward so moisture doesn’t get trapped underneath it. Honestly, we recommend taking the collar off every night, swim or no swim, just to let your dog’s skin breathe.

A few other habits go a long way too. At-home grooming like brushing your dog regularly helps prevent the mats and tangles that trap moisture and dirt against the skin, and it gives you a chance to spot irritation early, before it turns into a full-blown hot spot. If your dog is prone to seasonal allergies, talk to your vet about a proactive plan for allergy season rather than waiting until symptoms show up. And if fleas or other parasites are a concern in your area, staying current on preventatives removes one more potential trigger from the equation.

When to Seek Professional Care for a Hot Spot

We’ll always encourage you to start with your veterinarian, but here are some key signs that professional care is especially important:

  • The spot is growing larger or isn’t healing with home treatment
  • Your dog seems uncomfortable or in pain
  • The spot keeps coming back, even if it’s small each time
  • There’s a strong odor, oozing, or pus
  • The spot is larger than a quarter

Don’t hesitate to bring your dog in for even a small hot spot. Building a relationship with your vet through regular care is so much better than letting your pup suffer through something that’s usually very treatable.

How Professional Grooming Helps Prevent Hot Spots

Here’s something a lot of pet parents don’t realize: grooming plays a big role in hot spot prevention. Severe matting actually pulls on the skin and can cause hot spots directly. Even early-stage matting traps dirt and moisture against the skin, creating the exact conditions hot spots love.

But grooming is about more than just detangling fur. At Impawsible Pups, our groomers are trained to catch the early warning signs before they turn into something bigger: dirty ears, developing ear infections, signs of allergies, or excessive licking and scratching. If we notice anything concerning during your dog’s grooming appointment, we’ll let you know so you can loop in your vet early, before a minor issue becomes a major one.

Regular grooming is one of the easiest ways to catch skin issues before they become painful, and that’s exactly what we’re here for. Whether your dog needs a summer bath, a full groom, or you simply want another set of trained eyes checking their skin and coat, book a grooming appointment with our Richmond grooming team. We’re happy to help keep them healthy and comfortable all season long.