[Rox]

Hello All,
I am new to the boards and I am in need of some answers.. I have had many dobbies and short fur dogs but now I have an 11 month old Shep mix.. (They think she might be mixed with Husky) we are in what we call "Shed hell" I brought her to my groomer who is wonderful but she tells me "Tis the season".. Our puppy is shedding ALL OVER THE PLACE in clumps! I brush her twice a day and brush so much hair out of her we could make another puppy =) I clean her cage everytime she comes out and I vaccum the house every day.. We have no idea what to do! I know you can not shave her because of hte two coats but does ANYONE has any suggestions for me?
We use a comb and a rake one her fur

Thanks in advance on any great advise =)

 

[Binkalette]

I believe a warm bath and a dry with a high velocity dryer helps a lot to get the hair out.. I'm sure one of the groomers will pipe up in a minute or two with some better suggestions though.

 

[Rox]

Yeah my groomer just told me the best thing to do is ride it out, but if I ride it out any longer I will be able to start knitting my own sweaters!!!

 

[Kathyy]

You can hope it is worse this year because of the stress in her new home and maybe being a puppy. Good food, plenty of fat and Omega 3 from fish or fish oil can help. For next year. For now, brush. Brush. Wash and brush when wet to dry and remove fur. Brush. Vacuum. Repeat.

Sassy's very best shedding seaon EVER lasted 50 weeks. TWO blissful weeks with no hair. Once she shed out in 3 weeks and nothing until the following year.

I made a bit of felt from the dog's fur. Yuck, don't know why people like to use dog hair. Unless you can only get the undercoat hairs it is going to be prickly.

I like the rake when shedding chunks. Since using the furminator weekly Sassy hasn't needed to be raked. Maybe down the line think about getting one. If possible try it out before investing, it is a miracle for some dogs and a waste of money for others.

 

[eastcoastwesty]

I would say to use a "Furminator". This dramatically cuts down on the shedding. Also, add fish/salmon oil to food.

 

[Graco22]

You have a dog who is a high shedder. Shepherds (and huskies) shed year round, every day. How much she sheds every day depends on what you are feeding her, and how/with what, you are brushing and combing her. The more you have her professionally groomed, the less hair you are going to see at home also. Make sure they are using a high velocity dryer at the groomers on her. That is going to help loosen and remove the bulk of the coat. At home, you can use a slicker brush, and comb. A rake is fine, but the comb is going to have finer teeth, so it will pull more loose coat out. You MUST make sure you are combing ALL the way down to the skin, everywhere. You can follow up with the Furminator if you like as well, (only after a thorough brush and combout) but use that no more than once a week.

 

[LazyGRanch713]

Hello All,
I am new to the boards and I am in need of some answers.. I have had many dobbies and short fur dogs but now I have an 11 month old Shep mix.. (They think she might be mixed with Husky) we are in what we call "Shed hell" I brought her to my groomer who is wonderful but she tells me "Tis the season".. Our puppy is shedding ALL OVER THE PLACE in clumps! I brush her twice a day and brush so much hair out of her we could make another puppy =) I clean her cage everytime she comes out and I vaccum the house every day.. We have no idea what to do! I know you can not shave her because of hte two coats but does ANYONE has any suggestions for me?
We use a comb and a rake one her fur

Thanks in advance on any great advise =)

How long have you had your new pup? Someone else mentioned that it might be minor stress due to a period of adjustment if she hasn't been with you long. How is her general overall health, and how are her stools? What are you feeding?
I'm asking that because I have a 4 y/o GSD who shed 2 years ago so badly he actually was 100% without undercoat, and was shedding topcoat like most dogs loose those clumps. He was pretty much bald on his topline.
He was getting sick from a digestive problem, and was having diarrhea along with the shedding. I'm hoping this isn't so in your case, but otherwise, huskies shed--a lot--so do german shedders
I "backbrush" my GSD with a pin brush (like most humans use on their own hair, you can get one at walmart for a few bucks) between rakings and combings. It fluffs them up, shines them up (it brings all the oils back into the coat), and gets some of that fine undercoat out. I have found, for my dogs, flaxseed oil has worked better than fish oil (plus I'm allergic to fish oil and not flaxseed, so this is a bonus for me, lol).
If you take her back to a groomer, you could ask them if they have a D-shed solution, or if not, bring your own (sometimes a small amount of conditioner in your palm, rubbed all over the dog vigorously, and then rinsed works well if you don't have a D-shed solution).
Also, tractor supply stores around here carry a horse product called "Show Sheen", made for show horses. I've found using that after a bath and rubbing your hands all over the dog can help pull a lot of coat out painlessly (and most dogs love a good rubdown!)
Hope this helps..

 

[TeddyMom]

Sorry to repeat your groomer, but it is the season.

I had a German Shepherd before my little non-shedders. She was a complete sweet heart and an 120 lb lap dog, I miss her terribly, but I don't miss the two molting seasons, once between spring/summer and once again before winter when she was stacking on her winter coat. My baby has been gone for over a year now and as I move furniture and stuff to vacuum, I still find her black fur!

I have heard wonderful things about the furminator. It came along after Gable was gone. I used the slicker on her but I also had another advantage. Gable didn't mind the vacuum! She chased it when I vacuumed from the time she was a puppy and thought it a great game. So...I used the hose with the brush attachment and during the really bad seasons, I was able to actually vacuum her. If your new puppy is afraid of the vacuum and loud noises you don't want to stress him/her out, but if she doesn't seem to mind the vacuum cleaner or is chasing after it as you snarf up all her hair from the floor, you might try to make a game out of your vacuum hose (with the brush attachment) and see what she thinks of it.

From the groomers point of view, furminator and a high velocity hair dryer are going to be the biggest recommendations. Good luck.