> Abstract
Dermatologic emergencies are rare in clinical practice and most commonly have an acute onset. A canine or feline skin disease can become life-threatening because of sepsis and toxemia, loss of fluids, protein, and electrolytes and the simultaneous involvement of vital internal organs. Emergency skin diseases include bacterial cellulitis in dogs, necrotizing fasciitis in dogs and cats, toxic shock syndrome in dogs, subcutaneous and systemic fungal infections in dogs and cats, angioedema in dogs and cats, autoimmune skin diseases with extensive ulceration in dogs and cats, Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis in dogs and cats, vasculitis in dogs and cats, sterile postural erythroderma (superficial suppurative necrolytic dermatitis) of miniature Schnauzers, sulfonamide hypersensitivity syndrome in dogs, and sterile neutrophilic dermatosis (subcorneal and follicular neutrophilic pustular dermatitis or Sweet’s syndrome) in dogs.