# Any idea what causes collie to sweat on back, legs, and head?



## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

Dogs have 2 types of sweat glands. One kind is called the apocrine (or epitrichial) gland. It is present in the hair-covered areas.

My friend has a 9 year old male collie who has been to her regular vet and to a veterinary dermatologist. He has environmental allergies -- basically, he is allergic to practically every plant around here. He has been being treated for it by both vets, working together, and he still rips out his hair.

In the past 6 months or so, he has started sweating pretty much all over -- back, sides, and head. He wakes her up when this happens if it is in the middle of the night. These episodes are not dependent upon the season of the year. She said that it is as though her collie has hot flashes and his hair is quite damp to the touch. When he sweats like that, he has a terrible odor.

My friend has taken her dog to the vet very frequently. He says that dogs cannot sweat like that; it is impossible.

Yet, this is happening to her dog. 

I suggested she have his hormone levels checked, since that hasn't been done since these hot flash episodes began.

Have any of you ever heard of something like this happening? If so, will you tell me what you know, so my friend can tell her vets?

Thank you,
RC


----------



## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

What makes her think it is sweat?


----------



## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

It is wet and comes from his skin. The woman who owns him says it reminds her of hot flashes, which are when an older woman suddenly becomes very hot and starts sweating profusely out of the blue; often she has to change her shirt or nightgown because it gets so wet. The cause is hormonal changes during menopause. It is similar to what is happening to her dog, only his hair is damp to wet, and of course, he can't change clothes.

The other important factor is that the dog smells terrible when this happens.

I talked to a mutual friend who has been at the owner's house when this happened to the dog, and she described it the same way.

Yet the vets say that it is impossible, and they are focusing on trying to get the dog's allergies under control. Unfortunately, it hasn't happened while the dog is at one of his many vet visits, and it is intermittant.

I am concerned that it may be hormonal, and posted this just in case it has happened to another dog. The owner is way behind on paying her bills because she's spent so much money at the vets' offices ... so she is hoping that someone here has heard of this, so she can tell the vet that it has happened before and encourage him to research it. She cannot afford to take her dog to another vet -- this one is letting her make payments.

Both of these woman, the owner and the mutual friend, have a lifetime of experience with dogs (each have always owned several; the women are in their 70s). They have never seen this before.

So I researched sweat glands and discovered dogs have two types. The wetness has to be coming from his skin and I can't figure out (not being a vet or a scientist) where else it would have come from, since it covers so much of his body.


----------



## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

How does she know it's coming from the skin?


----------



## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

The wetness starts on the hairs at the skin. It is more wet there than at the top of the hairs. It is definitely not something wet that has fallen on the dog. He wakes her up at night when it happens. When the owner is awake during the day and evening, it happens, and she is right there with him. He paces around, then starts "sweating".

She and her friends are not technologically proficient at all. They don't have phones that will take video, and wouldn't know how to use one without lots of instruction. I don't have a phone or camera like that either, so I can't teach her how to use it and leave it with her.

I wonder if she clipped a hank of wet hair, if it would leave a residue that the vet could look at under a microscope to determine what it is.

I think she should have his hormone levels checked, especially the adrenal and thyroid glands. But I'm just whistling in the dark ... an uneducated guess ... grasping at straws.


----------



## gingerkid (Jul 11, 2012)

Dogs have far fewer sweat glands than people, and most of them are in the foot pads. If it is sweat, looking at it under a microscope won't help. You'll just see wet fur.

Both of these sound similar to what you've described.

http://www.justanswer.com/veterinary/5m46q-dog-sweating-profusely-last-couple-hours-enough.html

http://www.prodoggroomingsupplies.com/dog-forums/showthread.php?t=25802

http://www.dogster.com/answers/ques...imeand_its_not_urine_what_could_this_be-46285

If he has allergies that are uncontrolled, it could lead to an autoimmune reaction leading the body to attack the kidneys? I don't know. I watch too much House.

Hope you get it sorted.


----------



## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

Honestly it really has to be something getting on the dog. Dogs simply don't have sweat glands on their body the way we do. I'd be thinking about dilute urine, saliva, clear vomit - something. The dog should have a full panel of blood work. 

If she's really convinced it's sweat coming from the skin itself, then the vet or dermatologist can do some punch biopsies of the skin to either confirm or refute the presence of sweat glands... but if the dog has them he will be a medical miracle.


----------



## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

"In addition, paw pads in dogs are one of the few locations that contain eccrine sweat glands. *In dogs, apocrine glands are the major type of sweat gland, and the distribution of eccrine sweat glands is limited to the footpads and nose.14* "

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3103292/

Gingerkid, I read the links you posted. I told the owner ask the vet about various tests for her dog -- diabetes, kidneys, thyroid, endocrine system. Thanks.

If this poor dog's health ever gets sorted out, I will let you all know happened by posting on this thread. I appreciate the comments of all of you. The owner called me this evening to see if anyone had ever heard of symptoms like this. She is getting pretty desperate to find answers. The vet will be back in the office on Wednesday, and she is going to call him.


----------



## gingerkid (Jul 11, 2012)

I hope they figure out what's causing it and that it is nothing too serious. I find medical (or veterinary?) mysteries fascinating.


----------



## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

RoughCollie said:


> "In addition, paw pads in dogs are one of the few locations that contain eccrine sweat glands. *In dogs, apocrine glands are the major type of sweat gland, and the distribution of eccrine sweat glands is limited to the footpads and nose.14* "
> 
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3103292/


I'm not really sure how this is relevant? The dogs had hyperhidrosis on their footpads. Apocrine glands and eccrine glands are different, the part you bolded is essentially saying that dogs only sweat the way we do on their feet.


----------



## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

I know I posted this a year ago, but I found out what the "sweat" is.

I forced the owner to take the dog to my vet, and I paid for it. The dog had both bacterial and yeast infections all over his skin.

The vet said the dog's skin had released extra oil because the skin was so irritated.

The dog is on antibiotics, Prednisone, and has to be bathed twice weekly in a shampoo I bought at the vet's that is supposed to help with the yeast infection.


----------



## fabiosmom (Jun 9, 2021)

RoughCollie said:


> Dogs have 2 types of sweat glands. One kind is called the apocrine (or epitrichial) gland. It is present in the hair-covered areas.
> 
> My friend has a 9 year old male collie who has been to her regular vet and to a veterinary dermatologist. He has environmental allergies -- basically, he is allergic to practically every plant around here. He has been being treated for it by both vets, working together, and he still rips out his hair.
> 
> ...


I have an Afghan hound that sweats profusely from his saddle area in hot weather.


----------



## DaySleepers (Apr 9, 2011)

This is a nearly nine year old thread and none of the members participating are currently active, so I'm closing it to further replies. Feel free to join in any of our currently active threads or start one of your own!


----------

