I have a female great dane that has started shedding real bad and i dont know what to do. It started probably six months ago, and i thought it would stop, but as you can see since i am writing this it is still happening. Is this common, i didnt think that great danes shed bad. I have a 10 month old crawling baby and my wife is going crazy about the dog hair. The vet gave me some oil pills, but not sure what else to do. These dogs are our babies, help! Do you think maybe allergies? They have been on Flint River for 2 yrs, and were on Abady before that. Thanks!
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
do you bathe often? were the pills omega fatty oils? if so how long have you been giving them? do you brush?
becky
oh yeah what color? -
RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
What kind of food are you feeding them? It may be related to their diet, although not necessarily allergy-related.sigpicComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
Did it just start? If so it could be environmental. If these are young dogs, it might have started after they shed their puppy coat. If it is an intact bitch, it could be her blowing coat related to hormones. If they've had any medical procedures, anasthesia can cause blowing coat.
If they are shedding alot but they aren't balding, then it could be normal shedding. Dogs will shed because of weather, change of season and as a result of living indoors, with air conditioning/heat that tricks them into not knowing what season it is.
I generally tell people danes shed twice a year - for six months at a time.
You can give additives as you mentioned, as well as vitamin E is supposed to help.
My best case scenario for avoiding hair: dog is brushed lightly daily or every other day, house is vacuumed twice a week. The use of slip covers makes washing all dog related covers/furniture covers weekly very easy.
Sandy
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
"I generally tell people danes shed twice a year - for six months at a time."
HAHAHA! Isn't that the truth! I always make a point to tell people that Danes DO shed quite a bit. Many people are under the impression that they wouldn't just because they are short haired, but that is not true. A couple of mine shed more then others, but you can get hair off a Dane everyday of their life no matter how much you brush them. Of course if you do brush them daily and follow some of the other advice here it shouldn't be near as bad. A zoom groom or Uni groom is a great tool for pulling loose hairs.
Brother and sister! Indie and CH Carina taking the 4 point majors!
http://eastwooddanes.homestead.com/C...MajorPic1a.jpg
Feeding Raw Since January 2003
Kim EComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
Hi Sandy...the OP stated it had been going on for six months.sigpicComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
And he said that he's been feeding them Flint River for 2 yrs, so it's hard to tell the age of the dog. As it is June, it could be related to the seasons or it could be from a puppy that now has it mature coat.
Sandy
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
Sorry, I thought when you asked if it had just started that you hadn't read his statement that it had been going on for 6 months...I guess *I* missed the Flint River statement!! <Oops!>sigpicComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
Thank you everyone. Madison (fawn female) is 5 yrs old and Winston (black male) is 4. Madison is shedding worse, Winston does not really shed much. Thank you for the advice, we probably are not brushing them as much as we should since the baby came. We will continue with the Omega 3 fatty oil pills, and I made some satin balls tonight so we will add that to their diet to see if it helps any. Thank you again for the recommedations, and what is a zoom groom?
Thanks!Comment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
you never said how often you are bathing them. not bathing and not brushing can result in noticing more hair,(not that they are shedding more, you just notice it more.) or how long youve been on the oil pills, sometimes it takes about a month or longer to notice a difference.
beckyComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
My dane sheds more then my 3 cats combined (well as long as you're not petting the cats! LOL) I have to sweep daily and most of it's my danes hair!Comment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
As a matter of fact, I do notice that it helps Neo with his shedding when I bathe him. About 3-4 weeks after a good bath/scrubdown, he starts to shed more heavily than he did just after I bathed him. Frequent bathing isn't recommended though, as it dries the skin. I usually bathe Neo once per month or so, and just after a bath he sheds very little. When he starts to get a little ripe and sheds, I know it's time to hit the bathtub!!
I can't really speak on the diet issue because Neo is fed a raw diet, but when I first began feeding that way, I wasn't giving him enough salmon oil and vitamin E and he developed more severe shedding than he should have. I bumped up the doseage and his shedding diminished. So I think that, yes, oil pills may help. But as another poster said, give them a little time because the effects don't always show up right away. I've never fed Flint River, but from what I have read it is a good food and shouldn't be the cause of extreme shedding unless there are food allergies, as you asked about. I don't think that is the case for you though, because I think that the odds of both of your dogs being allergic to the same food are pretty low.
And as Sandy said, shedding season seems to last forever. Neo starts shedding in spring and sheds more heavily for at least a couple of months. This year I started to think something was wrong, but along about the beginning of June he slowed down a lot. Thank goodness. I was worried that I'd have a bald Dane. http://www.websmileys.com/sm/crazy/349.gif[/img]sigpicComment
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
Another consideration since your dogs are getting to middle age is to have them thyroid tested. Thyroid function does definitely affect coat condition. If it is Thyroid they can be put on meds that would improve it.
Sandy
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RE: Very Bad Shedding, Help!
"What is a Zoom Groom:
A Zoom Groom is a rubber grooming brush that kinda looks like a rubber cleets. Petsmart carries it, below is a link. The brush works great for any short haired dog or cat ... almost as good as a magnet.
http://shop.petsmart.com/product/253...4441779169.htmComment
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I need help!! My 7mos old Fawn Merle female is shedding real bad. She was spayed 3-4 weeks ago. This week she had a bad allergic reaction to something and got little raised bumps all along her back. You could see them by the way it mad her coat stand up, she began shedding more and now she’s showing little bald spots where these reactions were. The skin isn’t pink or irritated and she doesn’t scratch anywhere. We’ve been feeding with Nutri Source Chicken and rice leg breed puppy and 1/2 can of Evanger’s chicken and rice, or beef. Only been bathed 1x this month since she stays indoors mostly. We brush her but not daily. Help!!Comment
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