Sunburn

What is sunburn? 

Sunburn, also known as solar dermatitis, happens when an animal has prolonged exposure to the sun. Any animal can be susceptible to this, but white and light-coloured coats are more prone to developing sunburn. Areas with less hair like ears, noses and the tips of tails are the places that we need to be more cautious about.  Sunburn can progress to a malignant skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. White and hairless pets are most at risk.

Symptoms

These are most often spotted on extremities such as noses and ear tips. Sunburn can however occur on any area of skin. Hairless and white pets are the most at risk.

• Redness
• Crusting
• Flaking
• Itching
• Blisters
• Pain

Treatment 

If you think your pet has developed sunburn, then you must contact your vet for further advice. Your vet may give you an ointment or cream to apply and possibly a buster collar to prevent your pet causing more damage . In very extreme cases or cases where skin cancer is suspected your pet may need an operation to remove the damaged tissue.  In all cases you will need to prevent further exposure to the sun until your pet has healed fully. It will also be important to prevent your pet from licking or scratching at affected areas.

Prevention of sunburn

Prevention is better than cure as they say. Keep your pet indoors during the warmest parts of the day. Provide lots of shaded areas outside. Pets do like to lie in warm spots so you may have to encourage them to use these shaded areas. Use a pet friendly sunscreen on the area's most susceptible to sun burn and reapply this throughout the day. This should be a pet specific sunscreen and not contain zinc oxide or para-aminobenzoic acid, as these ingredients are toxic . 

For further advice on this or any other pet health matters contact our veterinary healthcare team at any time, 24 hours a day.