Bacteria and yeast on the surface and within non-inflamed hair follicles of skin biopsies from dogs with non-neoplastic dermatoses.

Coccoid bacteria and/or yeasts were found in the surface keratin or exudate and/or in the pilar canal of non-inflamed hair follicles upon light microscopic examination of skin biopsies from 191 of 3,387 dogs (5.6%) with non-neoplastic skin disorders. The presence of surface cocci and/or yeast did not appear to suggest a specific dermatosis, nor the existence of a clinically relevant infection in the majority of cases. However, follicular cocci and/or yeast almost always indicated the presence of a clinically relevant infection.