I have a dog with a problem, so when I took him to veterinary, they told me he has Malassezia. Now I am worried, because they said that is yeast infection. They told me that sometimes maintenance treatment is required to prevent frequent yeast infections. They also recommended involving weekly-medicated baths as well as antifungal drugs once or twice a week. Can you tell me more about Malassezia and should I be worried I am going to be infected as well.
Malassezia is a common yeast organism that is found on normal and abnormal canine skin and ears. On normal healthy skin, it causes no problems at all. However, when the environment of the skin is altered for any one of many reasons, Malassezia can cause severe dermatitis. It could also be cause for otitis, which refers to an inflammation of the skin or ears respectively. Some of the factors that can lead to Malassezia dermatitis include moisture, excessive waxy or scaly build-up, and allergic and bacterial skin disease. Malassezia is a secondary cause of dermatitis in any dog with one of these predisposing conditions. This may be related to an alteration in immune response to the yeast of your dog. The problem may be confined to certain regions, generally the ears, lips, muzzle, inner thighs, or feet. If your dogs has more generalized Malassezia dermatitis have reddened, itchy, crusty skin, and are often greasy, scaly and smelly. Do not be so much worried, if you treat your dog appropriate, nothing is going to happen to you.