I’ve got a dog that I picked up on the street about a year ago. Until about 1 month ago, she had a beautiful brown coat with some black mixed in. Lately, I’ve noticed that she is shedding a lot more than usual and her coat is starting to look sparse in the area right around the nape of her neck. My girlfriend has also noticed the change in her appearance. She does scratch there but no more than she ever has. Is this something I need to worry about or am I just being paranoid?
I don’t know. I have a Shiba Inu, and she is shedding now too. Balls and balls of hair all over the place. Reminds me of the time the gremlins jumped out of the back of the bigger gremlin…or was it Critters?
anyways…if it’s only shedding in one spot, then it may be some kind of a skin problem? Take it to the vet…
Shedding at this time of the year is normal. I shave all my dogs at this time and they don’t shed any more through out the year.
But as said before, if it is only in one place and you can see bald spots then it is probably some skin problem, so i would take it to the vet’s and get it checked out.
Sounds like a flea allergy - an allergic reaction to flea saliva.
She needs to be deflead and get to a vet. If you bathe her, keep the water cool. The vet will probably prescribe something like hydrocortisone, which reduces the redness and itching.
My dog also had a hair loss problem and that one could be a fungal infection. They need to take medication to clear it up
Thanks a lot, guys. I’m gonna get her to the vet this weekend and get it checked out. Hmmm, shave her? That sounds like it’d be pretty fun and hilarious. Anyone else do this?
I shave Sambuka every 2nd month…sometimes she comes out looking really cool…and other times they take ALL off…check her out. Doesn’t seem to bother her!
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I know this has been done to death, but my cat is shedding her body weight everyday…will the chicken wing diet alleviate this?
Mr Dog. Calling Mr Stray Dog.
Isalu has finally stopped shedding so much. I felt like I was carding a sheep when I brushed him. You can see his pink skin a little bit better than before, but he’s doing fine. And fortunately, the kitten, who grooms him all the time, hasn’t coughed any hairballs. Of course, she usually grooms the top of his head so there’s not much loose fur up there.
Jdsmith, how often do you brush your cat?
[quote=“jdsmith”]I know this has been done to death, but my cat is shedding her body weight everyday…will the chicken wing diet alleviate this?
Mr Dog. Calling Mr Stray Dog.[/quote]
The BARF diet isn’t a cure all, and, in fact, if not done peroperly, can lead to problems such as excessive shedding. My own dog Cookie has lost a lot of fur recently, and what fur she does have has become kind of harsh or brittle. It’s because I haven’t been giving her enough variety - the number one cause of problems when feeding the BARF diet. She’s now getting a much improved diet, as are the rest of our dogs (she’s very sensitive, and an excellent guage for this kind of thing.)
Having said that, a healthy coat needs a good source of protein, and you won’t find that in dry food. The protein in kibble, being as it is cooked so thoroughly, is difficult for the body to process. Studies show that while the protein in meaty bones is 95 percent available and eggs 100 percent, the protein in kibble is only 40 percent available, and it taxes the liver terribly. That means that your cat simply isn’t getting his or her required amount of protein (the kibble may contain 30 percent, but your cat is getting less than half of that).
So, feeding raw will help, as will supplementing with fish oil and vitamin E, both excellent for healthy skin and fur (also, giving vitamin E with fish oil prevents the oils from becoming rancid during digestion).
In short, I would say give it a try, but first take your cat to a vet to make sure there aren’t other reasons for the loss of fur.