Perhaps I'm overreacting, but our dog Nikki seems to be shedding a lot. She's, I believe, a Samoyed, so she's long-haired, and there's white fur all over the house from her. When I walk her and she sits down to scratch her shoulders or what-not, I see furballs flying off her. Our front yard is littered with these furballs.
I doubt there's any problem here, but I'm just being cautious.
..........
LinZ - sees the occasional furball from her cat Rolly around as well
Is this just some major shedding?
-
LinZ
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Sat May 22, 2004 12:50 am
- Location: Behind that deformed sprinkle on your ice cream cone
- Contact:
Is this just some major shedding?
"There's three ways to a man's heart - through his stomach, through his crotch, and through his rib cage." - Squeak
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
LOL...We had a Samoyed mix...My ole Bear. I'd take him on the back porch with the brush and a brown paper bag to fill with hair. I know we provided every bird in GA with makings for a nest! And the backyard still looked like it had snowed! I think you are seeing the undercoat shedding (very normal). Happy brushing!
-
Guest
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
Do you want to come and groom some of my Collies??? Lots of hair. I spin the stuff and knit hats and mitts.
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
I too, would take our dogs to the back with a brown paper bag and rubber brush!! Birds love the soft fluffy fur for nests...I would put it into a mesh onion or potato bag or whatever and hang it in a tree for them to pull out what they need.
Your dog should be sat and brushed thoroughly at least once a week, if not more.
Your dog should be sat and brushed thoroughly at least once a week, if not more.
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
Agree with Tambrey and others...my Border Collie sheds her undercoat this time of year...I brush her a lot, but still have little hunks of hair on carpet...this too shall pass when colder wheather comes.
I also lv doggie hair outside and the birds love it!
I also lv doggie hair outside and the birds love it!
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
Just to add a note about flying furballs...
We have 8 cats indoors, 2 are longhairs, and we have hardwood floors...every time i go up the stairs, I gather furballs that have congregated in the corners...sweeping daily helps a bit, but I still manage to find fur everywhere!!!...I have given up and learned to live with it...
We have 8 cats indoors, 2 are longhairs, and we have hardwood floors...every time i go up the stairs, I gather furballs that have congregated in the corners...sweeping daily helps a bit, but I still manage to find fur everywhere!!!...I have given up and learned to live with it...
-
LinZ
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Sat May 22, 2004 12:50 am
- Location: Behind that deformed sprinkle on your ice cream cone
- Contact:
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
We have 3 cats, all short-haired, but there is not a single thing in our house that doesn't have fur on it. Our carpet is filled with it, and our clothes are blessed by it. And the dog shedding adds to it.Tambrey wrote:We have 8 cats indoors, 2 are longhairs, and we have hardwood floors...every time i go up the stairs, I gather furballs that have congregated in the corners...sweeping daily helps a bit, but I still manage to find fur everywhere!!!...I have given up and learned to live with it...
But oh well...I too have learned to live amongst a forest of fur ^-^
..........
LinZ - wishes she could transfer all the hair to her own head[/quote]
"There's three ways to a man's heart - through his stomach, through his crotch, and through his rib cage." - Squeak
I have 2 chow chows (who have the same double coat as a yours). With 2 dogs, forget a brown paper grocery bag, I need to bring a couple department store shopping bags to fill up. What you are seeing is normal.
All summer long, if I miss a weekly brushing, the black one, who does not like to be brushed, starts to look like those buffalos in the discovery channel documentaries with chunks of coat hanging on half-attached. It looks horrible but from July to early September the under coat has finally completely released and this is what you get sometimes.
All summer long, if I miss a weekly brushing, the black one, who does not like to be brushed, starts to look like those buffalos in the discovery channel documentaries with chunks of coat hanging on half-attached. It looks horrible but from July to early September the under coat has finally completely released and this is what you get sometimes.
All three of my shelties are shedding right now - it's a mess. Foxy alone can fill 2 grocery bags in one brushing.
LinZ - if the fur you see coming out is very soft and 'cottony', it is just normal shedding of the undercoat. They need to shed the old in order to bring in the new. The development of the undercoat is mostly controlled by the hours of sunlight. As Autumn approaches, dogs (horses too) will grow a winter undercoat whether they need it or not. I live in Florida, and my dogs dislike being outside, but they still develop a heavy undercoat. Humans interfere with the normal cycle of things by placing these dogs in environments different from what they were bred for, plus we put them in airconditioning in the summer and heated homes in the winter. (a Samoyed is an Arctic breed, as is the Sheltie - the Shetland Islands are north of the Arctic Circle). Most indoor dogs with undercoats shed all year long, but will shed heavily in the Spring and Fall.
On the other hand, if the hair you see coming out is the coarser, straight fur, this could be a sign of illness, or could be a condition called "blowing the coat". Most double-coated breeds blow their coat at least a couple of times during their lifetime. It's often associated with extreme stress, or can be hormonal (after spaying or neutering,or some other surgery - including teeth cleaning, after giving birth and weaning the pups, etc.). The dog often looks pathetic after the 'blow' occurs, but they recover within a year or less.
If you are concerned that this isn't normal shedding, see your vet to be sure. Hypothyroidism and other diseases can be an underlying cause of abnormal hair loss.
PS - when you look down the hall and think you've found a new dog, it's time to clean the house!
LinZ - if the fur you see coming out is very soft and 'cottony', it is just normal shedding of the undercoat. They need to shed the old in order to bring in the new. The development of the undercoat is mostly controlled by the hours of sunlight. As Autumn approaches, dogs (horses too) will grow a winter undercoat whether they need it or not. I live in Florida, and my dogs dislike being outside, but they still develop a heavy undercoat. Humans interfere with the normal cycle of things by placing these dogs in environments different from what they were bred for, plus we put them in airconditioning in the summer and heated homes in the winter. (a Samoyed is an Arctic breed, as is the Sheltie - the Shetland Islands are north of the Arctic Circle). Most indoor dogs with undercoats shed all year long, but will shed heavily in the Spring and Fall.
On the other hand, if the hair you see coming out is the coarser, straight fur, this could be a sign of illness, or could be a condition called "blowing the coat". Most double-coated breeds blow their coat at least a couple of times during their lifetime. It's often associated with extreme stress, or can be hormonal (after spaying or neutering,or some other surgery - including teeth cleaning, after giving birth and weaning the pups, etc.). The dog often looks pathetic after the 'blow' occurs, but they recover within a year or less.
If you are concerned that this isn't normal shedding, see your vet to be sure. Hypothyroidism and other diseases can be an underlying cause of abnormal hair loss.
PS - when you look down the hall and think you've found a new dog, it's time to clean the house!
"A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself." ~ Josh Billings.
Re: Is this just some major shedding?
agree with K9 about the possibility of seeing a vet...the shedding is quite norma, ie the coat is prepping for the oncoming winter but the scratching might be a sympton of an allergic problem...but see how the pup is after the combinhg....