Ask the Veterinarian/Dog Hair Loss

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Expert: - 9/20/2011


Question
Hello,

I have a four year old border collie/flat coat retriever female. After the last bath I gave her, she has started losing large chunks of hair on her butt just about her tail. Not enough to see skin through her black fur, but it concerns me that there are large chunks of hair coming out when I grab at her fur on her bottom.

I am wondering if this could be due to weather change ( I live in Chicago and it just recently got much cooler, which seems the opposite weather change I'd expect hair loss from) or perhaps a side effect of the shampoo I used on her? It was an organic moisturizing shampoo.

If you have any opinion on this I would be so grateful.  Thanks so much

Answer
The bath probably loosened up her summer undercoat and now she is shedding that out. She needs a good combing with a deep toothed comb made for this kind of shedding.

Another thing is check her for fleas, because that area is where the fleas congregate and the dog will chew there, loosen up the hair which then mats, and then comes out in chunks. Flea shampoos don't work.

If she isn't on a flea control program with an IGR then she probably has fleas.

So get a good comb, or even a Furmanator, and give her a good combing. Cool weather also signals the coat to shed, so it a change in weather that can cause this. Indoor dogs shed year round as their bodies are never quite sure what season it really is.

And make sure that you do NOT use any human shampoo on her. Organic or not, it is not made with the correct PH for a dog's skin and is quite irritating.  

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

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I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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