Overview: Hotspots on dogs can become a nightmare for the dog and the owner and it is a problem that must be taken care of as soon as possible. Hotspots are immune-triggered disorders of the skin. They are characterized by reddish colour, moisty, and irritated appearance, sometimes oozing skin lesions, and they can appear anywhere on the skin of your dog.

Hotspots can cause serious discomfort when they appear on the skin of dogs but certain home remedies have been found to be helpful in alleviating or even curing the disorder. Hotspots can be triggered by insect bites, allergic reactions from food, exposure to pollens, grass and other environmental allergies, and flea allergy dermatitis caused by fleas on the skin.

Common symptoms of hotspots include; loss of hair on the affected skin area, the appearance of skin patches that are painful to touch, gnawing and licking of affected spots continually, foul odour emanating from affected part, superficial cuts and aggressiveness of the dog.

Home treatment recommendations

There is a wide range of home remedies recommended as a treatment for hotspots, but you need to ensure that the option you choose does not aggravate the problem.

1. Apple cider is one of the most effective home remedies for hot spots, but it must not be applied to open wounds on the dog. Apple cider vinegar is anti-microbial and antifungal. A few drops of Apple cider vinegar solution will kill the bacteria on the hotspot affected part of the skin and provides soothing relief, hence the dog will stop licking the affected part. Apple cider vinegar promotes faster healing of hot spot wounds. You should apply a diluted version of apple cider vinegar topically if your dog can’t tolerate the pure vinegar solution. 
2. Coconut oil is an ideal medicine for hot spots and it can be applied topically over the wound. Coconut oil is anti-fungal in nature and it is most applicable to hot spots caused by fleas. You can apply coconut oil orally by giving your dog 1 teaspoon per 10 pounds of body weight.
3. Black tea is another natural home remedy that can treat black spots. It contains tannic acid that can draw out bacteria from deep into the skin and also soothe the affected part. To prepare a black tea solution for treating your dog, you need to dip a tea bag into a small cup of hot water for about 10 minutes, then remove the tea bag from the teacup and place it on the hot spots area and let it sit there for about 5 minutes. You need to repeat this treatment several times a day for 1 week on the dog.
4. Aloe Vera is another home remedy that can be used to treat hot spots in dogs. It is anti-inflammatory, anti-disinfectant and anti-bacterial. It speeds up the healing of the hot spot wounds and provides soothing relief. You can fetch the Aloe Vera leaf and cut it open, to extract the gel. Alternatively, you may also want to get a pure Aloe gel from a store. Put on a pair of thin glove and then apply a thin layer of the Aloe Vera gel on the hot spots, once in a day, for a week.

Conclusion

While home remedies for the treatment hot spots are effective for dealing with the problem it is important to prevent hot spots on dogs. Make sure the dog stays clean and dry always, and try to reduce boredom in dogs to prevent habitual scratching especially in the yard, or garden. You need to ensure that all woody and grassy areas around your home are kept low and sprayed with pesticides once in a while.