Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 1/5/2007

Question
I have a 1 year old Siberian Husky.  He shed all during the summer, as normal, and he seemed fine until we moved about a month ago to another house in the same area.  I gave him a bath when we moved in with the same shampoo i always have used with no problems.  Since then, he has been losing, not just a few strands, but clumps of fur.  You can look at him and there are little clumps of white fur sticking through whats left of the black fur.  He doesn't seem to be itchy, anymore than normal, but when we brush him to get out the stray clumps, its like we have a whole new dog with all the fur in the brush.  His coat is getting lighter, it seems to be because of the black fur he is losing, and looks thinner than it used to be.  He doesn't seem to act different either, still as playful as ever.  Please advise on some causes.  I see allergies is one cause, but he doesn't seem to be around anything or eating anything different.  Thanks!!

Answer
In a 1 year old hushy, he may just be getting rid of his puppy coat and replacing it with the adult, thick coat. There are some diseases like rngworm and food allergies that can also cause this.  You might consider putting him on some Omega3 fatty acids to help the skin and coat stay healthy.  This goes in the food daily.