my almost year old yellow lab has developed a bald patch the size of a 20pence peice on her side.it appeared the week before she came into her first season a month ago.there are now a few skimpy hairs in the patch.she is not aware of it,no scratching or anything else.there's no redness or insect bite marks,the skin is not flaky or dry and it's a puzzle.any ideas would be welcome.x

I would have the vet look at her.  It is hard to say without seeing it but hair loss on the side of the flanks can be associated with thyroid dysfunction. 

my oldest GSD had a bald patch on his head, at the beginning he wasnt itching or anything but after a few weeks it hadnt got any bigger but he then started to itch & nibble.  He had sarcoptic mange and with the usual treatments it cleared up, after that the hair started to grow back and was back to normal appearance soon after.

thanks ever so much both of you for your input.think i'd better make an appointment with the vet.x

Possibly could be seasonal flank alopecia....my girls suffer with this every year

Diane

hoxw long does it last diane?is it a hormone surge that will be cured when she's spayed around june?

Its not seasonal and in "season" its due to shortened daylight hours, hence "seasonal"  from Oct to March, therefore the symptoms appear from march onwards. Only dogs in the Northern Hemispehere suffer with it. Its cosmetic although it can look very unslightly and can happen every year or as a one off. Being spayed wont make a jot of difference, I have a spayed bitch thats suffers with it and entire bitches that dont. I have come to accept it and pray the patches occur AFTER Crufts each year!

Diane

that's interesting.there's a lot to learn isn't there.you'll have to get little toupees just in case for crufts!x