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Beagles/balding beagle

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Question
i have a very clever 4.5 yr male beagle named Moe.
he has been slowly balding for the past 3 years.
our vet ran a blood panel and didn't find anything peculiar with his vitals, and suggested it just might be something inherent in his breed/genes.  his sides are completely bald and it seems to creep...he has one strip of fur down his back, underbody & head...i feel so bad for him!  he doesn't scratch or itch...he's just going bald and is starting to resemble a pot belly pig!  My poor lil' guy...
any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.
thanks...
mary from downers grove, IL

Answer
Hi Mary and thanks for writing to me. Poor Moe.......

It is definately not in his breed to go bald and I would seriously question if it was his genes. Typically loss of hair is due to skin disease, for example mange. I would find another vet and even better take him to a canine dermatologist. This is not normal!

Please let me know how things turn out.

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Have4Paws

Expertise

I am happy to answer BEAGLE BREED SPECIFIC behavioral questions. Please DO NOT ask CRATE TRAINING OR MEDICAL questions! I am not a vet nor an expert in the use of crates.

Experience

I currently have one beagle, a male age 5, an 12 month old Pit Bull, and a 8 year old min. poodle. I have had to let go of three of my dogs, 2 beagles and 1 whippet/rat terrier mix in the past 5 years, most recently my whippet mix. The two beagles lived to 15 and the whippet mix to 13.5, it has been hard to say goodbye to them. I have done rescue work on and off for years as well as fund-raising for the local animal shelter. I worked for a dog magazine in the past (Southern California Dog Magazine). Being a psychotherapist has encouraged me to do in depth studying of animal behavior as well. I have worked with many people to help curb undesirable behaviors in their dogs (or them!) or to form good behaviors. My life is devoted to and surrounded by my dogs........The picture you see here is Zeppelin but we also call him the "miracle dog". He was hit by a car April 2010 while out with the dog walker and had very serious injuries... 4 surgeries and $17,000 later my boy is whole again and back to loving life. He is so special to me and he weathered a lot of pain and trauma yet is still the sweet boy he always was! I also work to stop Breed Specific Legislation and help to get pit bulls adopted.

Organizations
HSUS, PETA, SPCA DONT SHOP...ADOPT!!

Publications
Dog Fancy

Education/Credentials
I am a Marriage and Family Therapist licensed in the state of CA and am also credentialed as a Certified Addiction Treatment Specialist

Awards and Honors
Honored by the Agoura Animal Shelter for my volunteer work.

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