Dry Coat, Hair Loose. Possibly Food? Advice Needed!

[wolf82]

My boy is on Royal Canin, he is 7months old, gets 2 full cups in the morning, and 1.5 cups in the evening.

I have noticed lately that he is shedding heaps, and his coat is really dry. I was told by so many people that moving from Supercoat to RC i would see a huge difference, but i really dont.

His coat is still dry, and if im wearing dark clothes and he cuddles me, im covered in short white hair. I can just pinch a tiny bit of fur and pull and 10-15 strands will just come out.

I have started giving him a raw egg, shell included, a few times a week hoping that it will bring his coat up a bit better. He gets bathed probably once a fortnight too. Warm water and natural doggy shampoo.

Any ideas? When this RC bag runs out i might try and get DVP or Eaglepack. Any suggestions to what Eagle Pack i should get for a 7 month old AMStaff who is growing like a weed? He needs his protien and calcium!

Thanks!

Steve

[kaywoman68]

I've had no trouble with Royal Canin.

It *may* be the food. Just because RC is considered a premium dog food doesn't necessarily mean it's good for your dog too.

You can try giving him fish oil tablets. Also, maybe it's best to give him boiled eggs. A few people have suggested raw egg white is not good for dogs....I dont know if it's true tho....I do find it's a lot LESS messier when it's boiled and I can feed them the egg inside.

Why do you wash him once a fortnight? because he's dirty? I dont wash mine until they are really smelly because washing them too frequently will strip all the natural oils from their coats.

Maybe you can try a BARF diet? I'm sure a lot of DOLers can give you suggestions.

I feed cooked chicken mince, raw chicken wings, pasta, rice, vegetables and RC.

[wolf82]

He normally gets washed because we have alot of dirt in our back yard, and when it rains, he likes to run around in the mud, so white becomes black.

Maize is the first ingrediant in RC, which i only just realised. That sucks.

I may try fish oil caps, can he take human ones?

[peibe]

Try Advance Puppy Growth formula, I have had alot of luck with dogs with dry skin

Also Megaderm, Omega 3 and 6 added to his food 3 times a week

I would also recommend maybe some raw chicken mince in his food for the essential fats

When you wash him do you use a soap free shampoo? A soap free shampoo is gentler on the skin

[morgan]

If the first ingredient is Maize, you must have him on the Medium Adult - which is totally unsuitable for pups. I only use it for older dogs with a weight problem, and even then I mix it with Medium Energy, which has a higher fat and protein content. The Adult range is basically a budget range, which is reflected by the ingredients.

RC recommends their "Junior" range until 18 mths. I have not had this here for a while, so can't be 100% sure of ingredients, but am fairly certain that maize isn't the main one.

All my dogs are fed on the Energy, Junior or Sensible ranges, which work well, together with chicken necks and turkey tails.

[DARCETTA]

My Golden Retreiver had the same problems. I tried different foods, washes etc. It ended up being an underactive thyroid. He's now on medication, his coat is growing back and he looks a million bucks. He also has a lot more energy too.

Renee

[wolf82]

He is on RC Maxi Junior.

The first ingrediant is Maize. I will change to something else after this bag runs out, can anyone recommend Eagle Pack? And if i get Eagle Pack, which type do i get for a pupper?

Steve

[Hazz]

Not every product/diet will suit every dog unfortunately it may take some time to find something that suits your boy.

I'd also reccomend an addition to egg or a can of sardines to his current diet.

edit: to = of

Edited May 16, 2006 by Hazz

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

I would seek a vet's advice but I would not totally feed any dog on 1 kind of diet. Even my IG, who has Inflammatory Bowel Disease and can only eat Hills Science Ultra Z/d or die, gets veggies, cottage cheese, rice and the odd other addition to his food. He has been relatively healthy over the last 5 years.

Try a little flaxseed oil until you can reassess.

[TURBOTERROR]

i must add , it is normal for a young of any breed to go through a change of coat around this age, as they are loosing puppy coat and the adult coat is coming through . The old coat is usually dull and dry , this is usually normal .

When my girl was going the change of coat at that age , i actually thought her coat was bleached until her breeder told me otherwise . as this gives the dull , dry look . , And there is nice coat coming up underneath.

Kelly

[morgan]

Oops - hadn't realised Maxi Junior had that much maize in it - I only got one bag for my last litter, as I had to reduce the amount of protein (33% was too high for them)

My pups all started losing their puppy coats at 7 - 8 months, but didn't lose the shine - had them on a mixture of medium and maxi energy, with some maxi sensible for variety. Mind you, the turkey tails have a lot of fat in them!

[ShesaLikeableBiBear]

I feed Nutro and here is a comparison chart with some other superior quality dried foods. Maize is the same as corn.

This is their base diet but they also get sardines in oil once a week on top of it, chicken wings, carrots, etc.

Through my business I carry quite a large range of shampoos. One which many dont think about using which is good is vetadine, an iodine based shampoo for non specific skin conditions, which you can leave in the coat and which has a conditioner in it. It leaves a nice shiny coat. Avail on line through vetproductsdirect or from a saddlery shop.

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Edited May 16, 2006 by Hesapandabear

[KitKat]

Just so you know...the main reason maize is the first ingredient...is because RC weighs the meat after it's been dehydrated...rather then some other companies that weigh the meat before it's dehydrated so that they can put it at the top of the ingredient list...

[Clyde]

Too right! I think RC are one of few companies who specify ingredients as a whole, rather than break it down to make it look like less cereals etc (such as IAMS/Euk etc do). Very sneaky how some companies list their ingredients in the apparent order. Along with RC, I believe Eagle Pack also list the "honest" way.

[KitKat]

In regards to 'washing' your dog due to them getting muddie you are better off hosing them off and towel drying them before they come inside etc. Or let it dry and brush out what hadn't already fallen out. I do that with my longstock coat GSD's and it works nicely - too much washing can be damaging to a dogs coat...

[larry]

you might want to think about boosting the omega 3 oil level in the dog's diet, as this is needed to keep the skin and coat in a good condition.

I prefer to use a omega 3 supplement for dogs, like megaderm or omegamagic plus (omega magic is cheaper than megaderm) that has a balanced omega 3:6 ratio, and added zinc, vitaminA, vit b, Vit E

[Jacquel83]

My boy is on Royal Canin, he is 7months old, gets 2 full cups in the morning, and 1.5 cups in the evening.

I have noticed lately that he is shedding heaps, and his coat is really dry. I was told by so many people that moving from Supercoat to RC i would see a huge difference, but i really dont.

His coat is still dry, and if im wearing dark clothes and he cuddles me, im covered in short white hair. I can just pinch a tiny bit of fur and pull and 10-15 strands will just come out.

I have started giving him a raw egg, shell included, a few times a week hoping that it will bring his coat up a bit better. He gets bathed probably once a fortnight too. Warm water and natural doggy shampoo.

Any ideas? When this RC bag runs out i might try and get DVP or Eaglepack. Any suggestions to what Eagle Pack i should get for a 7 month old AMStaff who is growing like a weed? He needs his protien and calcium!

Thanks!

Steve

Hi Steve.

I believe all dog foods works differently for dogs... i have tried several premium brands(and are still on the lookfor better ones..a bit disturbing to see my dog trying on diff brands as well as i would really like tostick to one).. Have tried Advance..Hills Science...Proplan..EP...RC etc..and out of all i would choose between EaglesPack or ROyal Canin as they're super premium brands which the quality shld be better. However...my puppy doesnt like EP AT ALL..so i would have to make the switch to RC and hopefully there would be improvements.

Not trying to lead u to any brands but really(i normally feel better myself if the food i buy is more exp but i understand that doesnt applies logically)...any types of food is gd as long as ur dog does gd on it.

also..i do not advice feeding RAW egg..as i have heard from many breeders raw egg WHITE is a NONO!!! try half boil egg instead?

Gd luck!

Edited May 21, 2006 by Jacquel83

[Pointers Rule]

Might hve missed this as it has been a big afternoon, but what breed is he?

[KitKat]

Raw egg is fine...as long as you include the whole egg not just the white etc.

There have been threads on such if you feel like doing a search.

[springdog]

Hi,

I feed Eagle Pack to my Springers and find it to be fantastic.

They do a Small and Medium Breed Puppy Formula, 28% protein/17% fat.

There is also Holistic Select Anchovy, Sardine and Salmon Meal Formula with Oatmeal, 22% protein/12%fat, this is great for the coat and my 4year old male springer who have very sensitive skin and a sensitive stomach is on this and looks great, coat is gleaming and tummy is terrific, he has only been on this for 2 weeks and i am very impressed with the Eagle Pack range.

Hope this helps.