Choose the Medica format that best fits the skin or coat concern you’re managing.
Wash for broader rinse-off cleansing, Lotion for targeted leave-on care, or Salve for thick, stay-put protection.
Developed by Dr. Keelin Hurd, veterinarian, for practical, real-world animal skin care.
Product guidance is not a diagnosis, does not establish a veterinarian-client-patient relationship and is not an emergency service.
Handle every skin issue as though it may be contagious. Restrict towels, tack and brushes to the affected animal. Wear gloves, and wash your hands after providing care.
Contact a veterinarian for breathing difficulty, facial swelling, fever or lethargy, severe pain or lameness, rapidly spreading heat or swelling, eye involvement, deep or open wounds, widespread blistering, uncertainty about the condition, or a problem that is worsening.
Small scabs or crusts that may lift with tufts of hair and appear across a broad area. Other skin problems can look similar.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash when bathing and a complete rinse are practical. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion when bathing is not practical or leave-on coverage is preferred.
Crusty, scabby or irritated skin around the pasterns and lower legs, often in areas exposed to persistent moisture.
Choose Medica Healing Salve for localized, stay-put coverage and an external moisture barrier. Clean and dry the area before application as directed.
Dry, waxy or crusty buildup commonly seen along the front of the rear cannon bones.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash when a rinse-off cleanse is practical. Follow the complete Wash instructions and avoid aggressive scraping or picking.
Pink, flaky, crusty or tender-looking skin, especially on white facial markings or other lightly pigmented areas.
Choose Medica Healing Salve for localized protective coverage after the area is gently cleaned and dried. Reduce further sun exposure.
Call your veterinarian: Blistering, open skin, marked pain, eye involvement, extensive burns or repeated episodes may indicate a more serious photosensitivity problem.
Small bumps or irritated-looking skin confined to a recently clipped area. True hives and folliculitis can look similar, so use this card only when the bumps followed clipping and remain limited to the clipped skin.
Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for targeted, leave-on care on intact skin after clipping. If the area is open, painful, hot, draining or spreading, contact your veterinarian.
Persistent rubbing around the mane, tail or belly, often associated with insect exposure and hypersensitivity.
Choose Medica Healing Salve for localized rub spots that need thick, stay-put protective coverage. Pair topical care with an insect-management plan.
Rubbing, hair loss, redness or irritated-looking skin. Allergies, insects, infection and contact irritation can look similar.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash when rinsing debris or environmental irritants from a larger area is practical. Choose Medica Healing Salve for localized areas needing stay-put protection.
Localized thinning or missing hair on the face, sometimes with dry skin, flakes, crust or visible debris.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for a rinse-off cleanse, followed by Medica Recovery Lotion when leave-on coverage is appropriate. Keep every product away from eyes, nostrils and mouth.
Eye-area warning: Contact your veterinarian for eye involvement, pain, swelling or discharge.
Loose flakes or dry-looking buildup across the coat. Persistent flaking may have several possible causes.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for widespread cleansing and removal of loose surface buildup. Follow the complete contact-time and rinse instructions.
Circular or irregular areas of hair loss with flaky, crusty or reddened skin. Other conditions can look similar.
Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for targeted leave-on coverage and follow the product label directions exactly.
Contagious condition: Ringworm can affect people. Confirm the condition and use an appropriate isolation, equipment-cleaning and environmental-control plan.
Photo: Caroldermoid / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
A veterinarian-confirmed yeast problem may cause persistent itching, redness, greasy or flaky skin, odor and darkened or thickened areas, often around paws, folds, the neck, belly or armpits.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for Dogs for broader areas when bathing and a complete rinse are practical. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs for smaller areas or between baths.
Photo: Maja Dumat / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
Visible flakes, dry-looking skin or greasy scaling may be simple surface buildup or a sign of allergies, infection, parasites or another underlying problem.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for Dogs for widespread flakes and buildup. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs for smaller dry or flaky areas between baths. Contact a veterinarian if scaling is severe, painful, spreading or recurring.
Persistent scratching, licking, rubbing, redness or hair loss. Food, environmental, contact, parasite and infectious causes can look similar.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for Dogs when bathing and a complete rinse are practical. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs when targeted leave-on coverage is preferred between baths.
A localized red, moist, hairless, raw or crusty area, often made worse by licking and chewing. Several underlying problems can look similar.
Choose Medica Healing Salve for Dogs for localized, stay-put protective coverage after the area has been gently cleaned and dried.
Redness, licking, chewing, staining or irritation between the toes can have allergic, microbial, parasitic, traumatic or foreign-body causes.
Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs for smaller dry or irritated areas when appropriate for the location. Choose Medica Healing Salve for Dogs only for localized raw, moist or crusty areas. Painful swelling, nodules, drainage or limping needs veterinary care.
Patchy hair loss can follow rubbing or licking and may also be associated with allergies, infection, parasites, hormonal disease or other causes.
Choose Medica Treatment Wash for Dogs when hair loss occurs with widespread flakes, grease or buildup. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs for a smaller area when appropriate. Sudden, spreading or unexplained hair loss should be evaluated.
Veterinarian-confirmed ringworm may cause circular or irregular patches of hair loss, scaling and broken hairs. It can spread to people and other animals, and similar-looking conditions are common.
Contact a veterinarian for confirmation and hygiene instructions. For targeted leave-on coverage, choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs and follow the product directions exactly.
Contagious condition: Separate grooming items and bedding, wear gloves and follow an appropriate environmental-cleaning plan.
Photo: Julie Knicely / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 1.0
Mites can cause intense itching, crusting and patchy hair loss, but different mites require different testing and parasite-specific treatment.
Medica products do not treat mites. Ask Dr. Keelin or your veterinarian for help with diagnosis and appropriate parasite control.
Photo: Maja Dumat / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
Redness, irritation, flaking, odor or inflamed-looking skin may have bacterial, fungal, allergic, parasitic or other causes.
Have a veterinarian identify the cause when infection is suspected. Choose Medica Treatment Wash for Dogs when bathing is practical or Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs for targeted leave-on coverage.
Moisture and friction in facial, lip, neck, tail or body folds can lead to redness, odor, discharge and discomfort.
Gently clean and dry the folds. Choose Medica Recovery Lotion for Dogs where the product directions allow. Pain, marked odor, ulceration or discharge warrants veterinary care.
If the condition is uncertain, severe, spreading or not improving, contact your veterinarian.
