Shedding - grooming tips? Plz Help!

IslandMutts · 10-01-2007, 11:46 AM

My dog Nico sheds all the time. All you have to do is touch him ever so lightly and hair flies off him. I spent the whole day Saturday cleaning the house and already there's dog hair all over! I'm sick of vacuuming all the time

I bathe him about once a month and enough fur to build a puppy comes off him. I bought a slicker brush but he hates it! I've been brushing him with a human hair brush (it's a natural boar bristle brush - something like that) and he really enjoys it but the hair never stops coming off!

He's a mutt, I dunno what kind of mix, guessing some lab and shepherd, but who knows (his face is in my avatar). His fur is much longer down the ridge of his back and around his neck, and it's shorter on the sides. It's really more like hair imo. Nico's hair/fur is straight and fine and his coat is a bit on the oily side. Here are some pictures...

Oh and this is our first winter (he's about 3 yrs old). Can I expect the shedding to slow down once it starts getting colder?

I'd really appreciate some grooming tips like what kind of brush to use and anything I can do to control the shedding. Thanks in advance.

IslandMutts · 10-01-2007, 09:26 PM

*bump* anyone?

FilleBelle · 10-01-2007, 09:34 PM

I know there will be many a person who will disagree with me on this, but I think the Furminator is a godsend. You can get them on eBay for significantly less than you can buy them in the store.

A shedding rake would be an excellent purchase, too, if you are an anti-Furminator person.

IslandMutts · 10-01-2007, 09:51 PM

Thanks, FilleBelle. I was just on the Furminator's website and I couldn't find any info about this... Is it just a comb or is it some kind of electronic device? I watched the demo videos but all of them had no sounds except for one, where they compared different tools - this video had a buzzing noise in the background the whole time so I don't know if it's the furminator causing that or what??

My dog is scared by electronic buzzing things. He releases his anal glands if you try to use clippers on him and One time we were at the dog park and someone was flying a model plane nearby - he was so scared we had to leave.

I had a shedding rake leftover from my Bernese Mountain Dog but it wasn't effective at all on Nico. The slicker brush works the best so far but he HATES the way it feels... sometimes he yelps a bit, and when I'm done brushing him he goes nuts and rolls all over the floor, trying to get rid of the sensation. He loves regular brushes though.

I'll give the furminator a try, as long as it doesn't make noise.

EDIT: Nevermind I was just looking at prices on petsmart's site and they have a large picture of the furminator and I don't see anywhere that you can put batteries, so I'm assuming it's not electric.

Why do some people not like the furminator?

aks · 10-01-2007, 10:18 PM

I used to groom dogs and I now do my own dogs, I have a lab with the same type of coat your dog has and I shave him, you can just bring him to the grommers and they can do it for you. Its looks a little different but not bad, and you will notice a HUGE difference with the shedding, he will barley shed at all. But it has to be done like every 6 weeks, I would suggest if your are going to go with this option and bring him to the grommers do not get him washed every time, make sure you tell the grommers when you want him just shaved or washed and shaved.
When I worked as a grommer we got this question ALOT..And truthfully there is no stopping it, you can brush your dog out every single day, with his type of coat it just wont stop it from shedding, the only solution I can give you is shave him, it really works
good luck

IslandMutts · 10-01-2007, 10:30 PM

Hmmm. While it sounds like the perfect solve, I have two concerns with shaving him:

1. as i mention he will 'poop his pants' over the electric shaver. he's done it at the vet's

2. he's never been in weather colder than 75 F before, so i think he might appreciate his fur as fall approaches.

But for summer, I will definitely keep this in mind if i can desensitize him to the sound. Thanks

Jak · 10-02-2007, 12:49 AM

I would also recommend the Furminator. I have the same shedding issue with my Husky. I think most of the stuff that ends up on your floors in the undercoat, and the Furminator reaches down there. So I'd say its definitely worth the price.

Dieselsmama · 10-02-2007, 06:00 AM

Please keep in mind, If you do shave your dog he'll be MORE susceptible to the heat and cold as his longer guard hair whick reflects sun and heat and insulates from the cold will now be missing. Also it may never grow back correctly again. I've seen many dogs coats ruined for life this way. Unfortunately you have a combination of two of the biggest shedders out there, shep. and lab. I use a shedding blade( gently this can hurt if too much force is applied) and a zoom groom on my personal labs and also use both when grooming for clients. It sounds like he might have more sensitive skin, keep in mind you can scratch them with the slicker brush if you're not using it gently. One of the best ways to get rid of excess hair is with the power dryer at the groomers literally blowing it right out of the coat, but it sounds like he'll have a tough time with the noise. Although I personally won't use the furminator because it can and does break some of the guard hair, It's certainely preferrable to shaving him, this also needs to be used fairly gently, I've seen dogs with cuts all over their skin b'cause over zealous owners got carried away.

RonE · 10-02-2007, 06:10 AM

I used an undercoat rake on my double-coated lab and it helps tremendously. They make long- and short-tooth versions. It looks like your dog would need the short-tooth undercoat rake.

And I recently bought the Furminator. It works just fine, doesnt get the fur all over the house, is easy to clean - but, I can't imagine it's truly unique. It's a comb, albeit a very well-designed one. No buzzing to scare your dog.

If you were a little closer, I'd say, "Hey, bring your dog over and try them both."

nlkeple · 10-02-2007, 08:57 AM

In my experience which honestly is somewhat limited. I have persian cats, a pomeranian, a short hair cat, and my last dog was a Lab.

The biggest shedding problem I ever had were with my lab and with my short hair cat. It always seemed like no matter what they are losing fur. I used to frequently tell my lab that if he didn't stop he was going to go bald (although he never showed any signs of this).

Is it possible that it is the upcoming season change? Could he be shedding his summer coat and getting ready to get his winter coat in? <--- not even really sure it works that way maybe someone else could say yes or no.

I would also consider thing like have you changed his soap, food, etc? Do you put chemicals on your lawn that could be rolled in? Have you changed any of the cleaning products you use around the house (like soap for your steam cleaner, or your mopping soap)? Has he been showing any signs that he is itchy? I'm sure you probably already have those sorts of things covered, but I wanted to mention them just in case something got overlooked.

onyxdaily · 10-02-2007, 09:55 AM

I have a Saint Bernard and a Black Lab that both shed alot, the Saint much more so than the Lab. Like RonE posted, I also use an undercoat rake on them followed by a slicker brush. They don't particularly care for the slicker brush, but they tolerate it. Since I've been using those 2 brushes on them, the loose hair / fur floating around the house is considerably less.

IslandMutts · 10-02-2007, 11:47 AM

Thanks to everyone for the advice! It's much appreciated

Quote:

Originally Posted by nlkeple

Is it possible that it is the upcoming season change? Could he be shedding his summer coat and getting ready to get his winter coat in? <--- not even really sure it works that way maybe someone else could say yes or no.

I would also consider thing like have you changed his soap, food, etc?

We just moved to the US. Before we were living on an island where it was HOT year round. It's starting to cool off now and he doesn't seem bothered, but I don't know what his coat thinks is going on.

I have changed his food a couple of times... but he has always been a huge shedder. I don't think the amount of hair loss has changed. I've always used the same soap to bathe him. When I lived on the island, I wasn't bothered as much by the shedding because we didn't have carpets and stairs to vacuum, and I had a housekeeper since it was customary to keep a maid. Now I'm back in the US and doing all the cleaning myself and going nuts because of all the hair - in my food, on my clothes, the furniture.... I'm sure you all know what it's like.

Oh and you asked about cleaning products - steam cleaner? Is that something I'm supposed to do? I just vacuum and then mop my kitchen and bathrooms with Pine Sol. I pretty much suck at cleaning and absolutely hate doing it. When I do clean it probably takes me twice as long as the average person but when it eventually gets done, it's very clean. He hasn't been itching or anything any more than usual, so I just think it's the type of coat he has.

The Mack · 10-19-2007, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FilleBelle

I know there will be many a person who will disagree with me on this, but I think the Furminator is a godsend. You can get them on eBay for significantly less than you can buy them in the store.

A shedding rake would be an excellent purchase, too, if you are an anti-Furminator person.

Next time you need something last minute, or need to see if you can talk to someone about something, lemme know if ebay helps you out.

it's worth it to purchase locally.

Inga · 10-19-2007, 08:57 PM

I find that a good old horse shedding tool it the best for the shedding dog as well. Also I have heard vets recommend fish oil on the food to people who's dogs were shedding a lot. Might be something to try.

The Mack · 10-20-2007, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inga

I find that a good old horse shedding tool it the best for the shedding dog as well. Also I have heard vets recommend fish oil on the food to people who's dogs were shedding a lot. Might be something to try.

yes. fish oil is a +1 recommendation. Solid Gold also makes a supplement that helps reduce shedding as well.

Addison · 10-21-2007, 05:42 PM

I have a husky so I am very aware of how you feel about the shedding!!! But i am very against shaving. We shaved our chow mix a couple of time and his once gorgeous coat was ruined and never came back!!!! It never grow longer then when it was shaved and he developed allergies and other skin problems. We were constantly at the vet and he was always uncomfortable ... This went on for about two years, and just now the skin problems are going away! I would never recommend shaving a dog.

Back to my husky... She shedds alot so we take her to petsmart once every other month and get the $60 oatmeal bath. It takes about four hours and they moitourise her coat and she comes back really soft. her shedding decreases by more then half. We also changed her food because some foods work better at protecting and mostourising the coat, which cuts down shedding. Hope this helps

Dog friend · 10-24-2007, 05:18 PM

Hi there..i can understand the shedding problems..believe me I have two dogs and this can be a serious headache. I found this website helpful..and it sure works. www.stopdogshedding.com

Dog Friend.

barksalot · 10-27-2007, 10:12 PM

Best Shot shampoo, conditioner and vitalizing mist. It's wonderful for shedding. It works even better if you can use a high velocity dryer afterwards, but it sounds like that may be a problem, so I would suggest a really good towel dry, followed with a good brush job using the Furminator tool or a slicker brush - but be careful not to scratch the skin.