My dog is shedding copious amounts of hair!!!!!! What can I do to

Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:21 AM
Original message

My dog is shedding copious amounts of hair!!!!!! What can I do to

make our coexistence more tolerable without having to vacuum my house every three hours?

My god, I could make an extra dog per day with the hair output of this beast.

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curse10

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:23 AM
Response to Original message

1. vacuum the dog

Edited on Sat Oct-23-04 09:24 AM by curse10

seriously. When I was a kid we had a husky. They shed like mad, especially in the summer. We'd vacuum him. He loved it.

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:31 AM
Response to Reply #1

3. Tried it. She's scared to death of the noise.

She hates the brush as well. I spend evenings on the back porch pulling hair from her coat.

She's worth the trouble but damn, I hate this at least twice a year.

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IdaBriggs

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:25 AM
Response to Original message

2. Is it the normal "blowing" of the coat? Or is it food related?

Some breeds "blow" their coats twice a year, and there is nothing you can do about it except vacuum. Another issue is food quality. If you aren't feeding your dog a high quality food (Science Diet, IAMS, etc.) then you may be causing your own problems. Science Diet (my favorite) has less filler so your dog eats less and poops smaller; as a side benefit, it makes for a GREAT coat with not-so-much shedding. You may also wish to try regular brushing. :)

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:36 AM
Response to Reply #2

6. I'm thinking it's the normal "blowing" of the coat...

I'm feeding one of the better quality Purina chows right now. For some reason she prefers the cheaper foods (lucky me). And she hates the brush. I have to use my fingers, sensitive skin, I guess.

She's a big baby and yelps when I use a slicker brush and I don't have the heart to torture her with the damn thing.

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China_cat

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Sat Oct-23-04 11:18 AM
Response to Reply #6

20. Have her thyroid checked

Looks like she's down to skin on parts of her chest. This is one of the symptoms of thyroid problems. Very dry harsh coat is another as is sensitive skin.

The test will be semi-expensive but if she needs thyroid meds, they'll cost you about $5/mo.

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NMDemDist2

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Sat Oct-23-04 11:46 AM
Response to Reply #6

22. get a under coat rake, it's less sharp than the brush and works very well

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havocmom

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Sat Oct-23-04 12:21 PM
Response to Reply #22

23. Or get a shedding blade

which isn't really a comb. Looks like a peice of steele with small teeth and a handle at each end.

You can close it into a loop for dogs, open for horses. Our Golden loves it as does my sister's bear dog (shorter, very dense coat) and her ridgeback (short, thin coat) Seems to pull loose hair out without annoying the dog. Also found it works very well to get fine dog hair out of our wool area rugs :thumbsup:

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TrustingDog

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Sat Oct-23-04 01:11 PM
Response to Reply #6

25. did you try one of the brushing 'gloves' ?

It's a mitt thingy with nubbies on it - so your dog thinks your just petting him but you're really brushing him.

My dog is also a hairy beast but thankfully he doesn't mind the brush - although I've found that you can brush him 2 times a days and he still provides a pillowcase full every time. ok, slight exaggeration, but not too far off.

His hair gets into Everything around the house - and transports itself with our socks and clothes. I've pulled out old video tapes that I had before Milo came to live with us, and there's dog hairs stuck in there.

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madrchsod

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:32 AM
Response to Original message

4. love the eyes...

ya change the diet also there is some vitamin supplement that prevents shedding. i know what you mean, i can`t figure out how she has any fur left cause it`s everywhere

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:40 AM
Response to Reply #4

7. Thanks. One Blue and one brown... I'm hesitant to change the feed

because I just purchased 50# of her favorite. I think I'll try adding some Linotone (sp?) to see how it affects the shedding.

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Philostopher

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:44 AM
Response to Reply #7

8. You might look around on Fosters & Smith

www.drsfostersmith.com

They do have a couple of food additives that claim to cut down on shedding, though I don't know if this applies to the seasonal 'coat blow' or not. Max has finally finished blowing his coat and is on to putting on his 'heavy-duty fruff' for winter, so brushing him isn't as spectacular an event as it was a couple of weeks ago.

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Coyote_Bandit

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:34 AM
Response to Original message

5. Same problem Here

Get a shedding comb and use it daily. Suggest you do this in the garage or outdoors as it will remove large amounts of hair. My doggie loves the shedding comb but won't come near the vacume. And it really does help reduce the doggie hair that falls around the house.

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pansypoo53219

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:49 AM
Response to Reply #5

9. yes

i suggest a brush change. use a human one that is very soft. probably have to find and old one. they all seem pretty hard these days.

of course i hae cats and they LOVE being brushed.

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trof

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Sat Oct-23-04 09:58 AM
Response to Original message

10. learn to knit

Makes swell sweaters and mittens.

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:00 AM
Response to Reply #10

11. Damn. I'm goona have to buy a spinner now to turn this stuff to yarn

Edited on Sat Oct-23-04 10:00 AM by Billy_Pilgrim

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ElsewheresDaughter

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:04 AM
Response to Original message

12. oooooh he is soooo cute!

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:05 AM
Response to Reply #12

13. SHE! I can call her awful names, but she will bite anyone who calls her

a boy dog!

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ElsewheresDaughter

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:07 AM
Response to Reply #13

14. yikes...oooh she is sooo cute!

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:12 AM
Response to Reply #14

15. Blue says....

Grumph....grgl... mmmmmph....

I think she likes you now.

:toast:

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ElsewheresDaughter

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:30 AM
Response to Reply #15

17. scratch and massage her back right above her tail for 2 minutes for me

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Tom Yossarian Joad

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:34 AM
Response to Reply #17

18. LOL.... Done!

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barb162

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Sat Oct-23-04 10:22 AM
Response to Original message

16. I can't tell the breed (s) of your lovely baby but does the breed by

nature shed a lot. If not, have you talked to the vet about it. I wonder if your dog is shedding more than normal for the breed(s). (I have four cats who will stop shedding around January and I watch that super fine hair floating around the house. I have to vacuum every day from around April through January).

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Maiden England

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Sat Oct-23-04 11:08 AM
Response to Original message

19. shedding mit, or shedding rake

if she hates brushes, the mit is probably the best, its a mit you wear with little bumps on the palmar surface, which sort of brush/massage the dog. Its more like stroking and less like brushing.

We have two long haired border collies, and this time of year, they shed a dog a day it seems. We brush them every day, eventually they got used to it and don't mind. Bathe them every 2 weeks, and use the shedding rake on them about twice a week. Oh and vacuum an awful lot (beige - hides nothing). Hope this helps.

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skygazer

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Sat Oct-23-04 11:45 AM
Response to Original message

21. Is that a set of Zane Grey on your shelf?

I have the same set - how funny. You have some good suggestions here - the only think I would add is to perhaps try some oil in her diet. Perhaps corn oil - helps the coat and the skin.

She's very beautiful.

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Skittles

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Sat Oct-23-04 12:58 PM
Response to Original message

24. lord, what a cute dog

I bet she has you wrapped

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Modem Butterfly

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Sat Oct-23-04 01:23 PM
Response to Original message

26. I have a chow

They shed like the dickens twice a year, but there's always loose hair around. All you can do is brush them often and vacuum more often, then change your wardrobe to match your dog's coat. Either that, or get dressed at work.

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sbj405

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Sat Oct-23-04 01:26 PM
Response to Reply #26

27. Me, too.

Though as hard as it is to believe my mutt sheds more.

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Modem Butterfly

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Sat Oct-23-04 01:31 PM
Response to Reply #27

28. Oh, look at the little love bug!

What a happy Chow! What's his/her name?

I need to scan up some photos of my furkids.

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sbj405

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Sat Oct-23-04 02:17 PM
Response to Reply #28

29. Alex, Take the opposite of the stereotypical chow and that's him

Very friendly, outgoing, great with dogs and people of all shapes and sizes. Rescued him when he's was 3(he's 7 now). They said he'd been abused, but he doesn't seem to have suffered any longlasting effects.

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