shedding season

We purchased special dog shampoo for Honey because she always has itchy skin and thought it would help her. She doesn't scratch so much now but still loves that rubbin's.

She loses hair all the time but because her hair is so short it's not as noticable as Shadow, our first dog's long black hair. With no carpets it would all move to the edges of a room and looked terrible. I don't know how she could lose that much hair all the time and never show it on her body.
 
Really interesting thread :). My dog sheds all year, and he sheds a lot. But the problem is the kind of hair he has - it's silky and long and gets everywhere. So to avoid problems with the apartment I ordered a FURminator, I haven't been able to get it yet since a friend who went to the USA brought it and I still haven't seen him since he returned. I hope it works. If it doesn't, I bet I can leave it at my parent's for Hosen, haha, another big shedder.
I bathe my dog... probably two to four times a year. He doesn't really need a lot of bathing since he cleans himself, like a cat, but it helps him look nice. I bathe him with doggie shampoo :).
 
Pawbla, if you do get a furminator, post your impressions of it, okay?
Some dogs and some breeds do shed all year.
sometimes, excessive shedding can be related to the dog's food, too. I never knew that, and now i wonder if the crappy dog food i fed my last dog contributed to his being a massive shedder.

It was top brand name, fairly expensive dog food, my vet said it was great dog food,:rolleyes:
but it was not healthy nutritious dog food............. it was full of corn, byproducts, animal digest, cellulose, wheat, soy, all the worst stuff you can think of...AND it was all coated with poisonous preservatives, too...........shiver. i just didn't know better back then, i had no idea how to read dog food labels back then... :(
 
Oh, I will :) . I will probably see him next week or the other one.

Yep, dog food largely contributes to a dog's hair. Vets receive nutrition training from dog food companies :rolleyes: we can't really blame them. My dog is still a massive shedder, even if I feed him a really good kibble... I guess my dog's shedding is mostly genetic. But I agree, feeding better food often results in prettier, shinier hair and less shedding. Like it was said, allergies can contribute to shedding, and food allergies are fairly common, especially with "middle" and low quality products.
 
Cooper has decided that, since the weather is getting warmer, he wants to get rid of his undercoat:rolleyes:
I bought a cheap version of the furminator, last year. It is exactly the same, but less fancy.
I did use it once, on Jinx, but wasn't happy with the result. It took a lot of topcoat off too and I did not want that.
But a couple of days ago I gave it another try on Cooper. And, boy, I think I can make another dog, with the fur that came off:D
Strangely it works on Cooper. He now has a lot less undercoat and that makes him happy.

But be carefull using the furminator. The comb is actually an razor, so it cuts hair away. If u use it too often, you will end up with a furless dog:eek:(a little exaggerated;))
I have read on other forums, that the furminator will not work for every coat. Sometimes it damages the fur.
If you have a half-long/long haired dog, be sure to get the furminator for longhair. If you use the shorthair version on a long coat, you will trim off too much.
Like I said, it is in fact a razor.
I might want to enter Jinx into a confirmation show, later this year, so I'm not going to use it on her. She will be brushed with a regular slickerbrush and a normal comb and brush.
I am definately not going to use the firminator, other than in sheddingseason.
 
the furminator is a razor? :eek: oh, i had no idea.

Yes, Anneke, buddy will be doing his "spring blow out" soon,:cry: too.....lasts about 3 weeks.
BUT, when i bathe him, that reeeeeally reduces my need to constantly sweep and vaccuum....giving Buddy a BATH sort of "knocks it all off" in 1 fell swoop:D i can go a long long time, before i begin seeing any on the floors or carpet, after he is bathed.

I tend to bathe Buddy about every 2 weeks during shedding season.

.........however, the tub is then filled with TONS of hair, just looks like 2 inches deep of black mud in my tub:oops: .....it's VIP to use one of those "hair catcher" drain inserts to keep your pipes free of hairballs.

i'll be glad when it is warm enough to bathe my dog outdoors again...;)
 
I bought the long hair version :). Actually I'm not sure if I saw which one I was ordering, but I just re-checked and it's the long hair version xD. Medium sized, I think it's the size I needed. I bought it through Amazon, very good price. It's listed right now as $20 but I think I paid less for it, something like $15. I'll review it when I get it xD.

It depends a lot on the dog, I have heard mixed reviews of it, but because it doesn't work quite well with some dogs and it does work fine with others. I read that, on huskies, it trimmed a lot of the guard hairs and some owners were quite unhappy about it. But yes, it's supposed to be a razor, like the one used for deshedding by professionals (only, adapted to be used by inexpert hands).

Also, yeah, the tub usually gets the worse off our dogs! Hahaha, my mom has forbid me to bathe the dogs inside. So I have to take them to a groomer in winter. But, since it's expensive, usually they get baths on spring/summer. After all they live mostly inside, so they don't get dirty. They don't go swimming in dirt in the park either. And at my home, I don't have a tub, only a shower, so I can't really bathe my dog inside in my own house :ROFLMAO:.
 
My furminator is the best thing I ever spent money on. Levi sheds like crazy and it makes a huge difference.

For dogs with skin allergies, my mom introduced me to a product called stop itch on the drs foster and smith website. She has a poodle and a schnoodle that both get skin allergies. She uses the stop itch shampoo and conditioner and it makes a big difference for them. She puts on the shampoo and rubs it in good and lets it soak for a little while and does the same thing with the conditioner. It's a little time consuming but really relieves their misery. Her schnoodle used to pull her fur out from scratching and chewing on her skin. Now she doesn't.
 
I'm loving this thread, taking notes, planning to try one of these more elaborate brushes, still can't decide, :ROFLMAO: and i can only buy one. so if i mess up:rolleyes: , and get wrong one, guess i'm stuck with it.


btw, LeviTheOutlaw, sometimes when dogs itch a lot or have skin problems, or shed excessively, it's cuz they are being fed something they are allergic to. When dogs eat something they are allergic to, they don't get runny eyes or noses like we do, and they usually don't get diarrhea, etc, either, (that's an "intolerance" not an allergy usually)

instead, when dogs are eating something they are allergic to, they itch,
and get skin problems, and shed more. some dogs even get funky looking fur, too, like not very shiney.

of course, it could be something else, like some topical agent she is allergic to, maybe some product on your carpet or yard, but, lotta times, it's something in their dog food, or in their treats, or even from bits of human food that we share.

worth thinking about, i could be wrong.
 
Levi, when you use a furminator, does your dog's fur seem shorter???

someone said some surfaces of the 'blades' part are razors....what do you think??
 
//If you have a half-long/long haired dog, be sure to get the furminator for longhair. If you use the shorthair version on a long coat, you will trim off too much.
Like I said, it is in fact a razor.//

that is such great advice, Anneke, so good to know that. i would have bought wrong size, i bet.
 
has anyone tried a "ShedMonster"?? If link does not work, it is sold at Petsmart, is under "shedding blades" section:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11532065&lmdn=Product Type

Anyone know if that one also "cuts" the hair ?? Anneke says Furminator is actually a razor. I sort of want a razor for Buddy's skirt. I ruined his 'skirt' one year, clipping it all short one year, and it never ever grew back the way it used to look,
the undercoat outgrows the topcoat on his haunches now, which is darn shame, as his top coat on his haunches was shiney, and used to actually curl, symetrically, but now, he has a bunch of fuzzy undercoat sticking all out there everywhere...:rolleyes:

so now, i do want to razor that undercoat down a bit, trying hard each year, to get that top coat on his haunces to grow long again..........every spring, i hold his topcoat out of the way-----sometimes i even use hair clips to hold top coat out of the way:ROFLMAO: ,------- and just only trim the undercoat...............but, the topcoat on his haunches never ever quite grows long enough to cover his undrcoat on his haunches now. (from behind the dog, i mean, his fuzzy looking undercoat sticks out of his topcoat ever since i cut that area short, years ago.)


I'd love to also just thin the undercoat out, too, besides cutting it shorter.
 
Doing a little research on this Shedmonster and saw some video's of it. The shape of the blades look a little like a de-matter(to cut mats out of the fur, don't know what it is called) I have, but it seems to work like the furminator. From what I read it is more gentle on the skin than the furminator. And a lot cheaper;)
But I also find comments that it does not work, just cuts the undercoat...

I use a combe and slicker on Cooper's skirt, to get it untangled and then pull the furminator through. That thins out the fluffy hair and leaves the shiny hairs behind.
 
**thread hijacking**

btw, LeviTheOutlaw, sometimes when dogs itch a lot or have skin problems, or shed excessively, it's cuz they are being fed something they are allergic to. When dogs eat something they are allergic to, they don't get runny eyes or noses like we do, and they usually don't get diarrhea, etc, either, (that's an "intolerance" not an allergy usually)

instead, when dogs are eating something they are allergic to, they itch,
and get skin problems, and shed more. some dogs even get funky looking fur, too, like not very shiney.
Click to expand...

Hmm, maybe that's Evie's problem. I spoke to the vet about her itching after we were 100% sure that her flea control stuff was working and he basically said steriods could help however he wouldnt suggest giving them to a puppy as it'd do more harm than good. She does really well on her current dry food and we often get comments on how nice her coat is and that we must brush her heaps to have her look like that (Evie has never seen a brush in her life :$)

Perhaps I should look into finding her a hypo-allergenic dog food to see if it helps with her itching.
 
Evie, please do not give a dog steriods,
unless there is no other choice at all, unless you have tried every other way to solve a problem,
cuz steriods do so much damage to a dog, especially if used long term. OH wow, do they ever.....sterioids lead to a whole other list of problems.

What do feed Evie? Like specific brand and type of dog food?
You might not need to go for "hypoallergenic", (many of these are low meat, not all, but many hypoallergenic dog foods are low protein, as well as expensive)
maybe you could get by with just upgrading her dog food. And not all upgrades are costly.
 
Lol it's all good Tigerlily, Evie won't be taking steroids unless there's something seriously wrong with her (not just because she's got an itch).

As to why I don't brush her? She's short coated and doesn't need it, and hasn't yet shed a single hair. So I've had no need to brush her. If she was going to be a 'normal' border collie with a big long fluffy coat I would have been brushing her regardless just to get her used to it, butttttttttt as she doesn't seem to need it. I don't. :)

As for what I feed her, she's been on "Advance" dog food since day 1. The breeder was feeding this to the puppies so I continued.

http://www.advancepet.com.au/produc...puppy-plus-growth-all-breed,-chicken-3kg.aspx <--- it's an Australian food which makes it hard when searching reviews of the 'top' dog foods as most of those reviews are American and therefore don't take this one into account.... As for whether it's good for her or not - I have no idea. My previous vet said it was her 'favourite' food for dogs (yes they did sell this one BUT they also sold another dog food which was considerably more expensive). So any input would be greatly appreciated :)

I've been thinking of trying the "Orjien" dry dog food but it's difficult to get - think I'd have to order it online. But i've heard lots of really good things about that one.
 
Eeek, that is NOT a good dog food.:confused: Ingredients in red are bad for dogs:

Chicken, Corn Gluten, Chicken Tallow, Rice, Corn, Sorghum, Chicken Digest (YUK!!!!), Tuna, Beet Pulp, Sunflower Oil, Iodised Salt, Potassium Chloride, Inulin, Choline Chloride, Turkey, Taurine, Plant Extracts (Tomato Powder (source of Lycopene), Marigold Meal (source of Lutein), Vitamin E, Dicalcium Phosphate, Zinc Sulphate, Vitamin C, Citric Acid, Colostrum, Antioxidants, Beta-Carotene, Iron Sulphate, Copper Sulphate, Vitamin B5, Vitamin A, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B12, Potassium Iodide, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B3, Selenium, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B9.

Chicken tallow is a kind of fat (gross:sick:), Chicken Digest is....

A cooked-down broth made from specified or unspecified parts of animals (depending on the type of digest used). If the source is unspecified (e.g. "Animal" or "Poultry", the animals used can be obtained from any source, so there is no control over quality or contamination. Any kind of animal can be included: "4-D animals" (dead, diseased, disabled, or dying prior to slaughter), goats, pigs, horses, rats, miscellaneous roadkill, animals euthanized at shelters, restaurant and supermarket refuse and so on (wikipedia)

http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/dog_food_ingredients.htm

Animal Digest - material which results from chemical and/or enzymatic hydrolysis of clean and un-decomposed animal tissue. The animal tissues used shall be exclusive of hair, horns, teeth, hooves and feathers, except in such trace amounts as might occur unavoidably in good factory practice and shall be suitable for animal feed.
 
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