For a short time I thought I had a handle on the dry skin/hair loss with my dog Nickie (11 months old now).

Two weeks ago I started him on the Grizzly Salmon Oil (3 pumps each morning) along with a 400 IU of Vit. E. He also gets 2 spoons of plain yogurt each morning, and one raw egg every other morning. Also about 2 weeks ago I started him on Hydroxyzine (2 times a day) for the itchiness. He is on Canidae kibble.

Immediately I noticed a difference - the hair was growing back on his face (around his eyes and muzzle), and his coat was super shiny.

Now just in the last two days, he has a TON of dandruff showing up. When I brush him with a "furminator" which a friend loaned me, I only got a tiny amount of hair off of him.

Should I be using a certain type of brush on him to try and get rid of the dandruff? Is the dandruff just old skin flaking off from before he was on the salmon oil?

Just need some opinions here since his beautiful coat doesn't look so great all of a sudden! We bathed him about 2 months ago (first and only bath that he has had).

 Quote: diane joslin

For a short time I thought I had a handle on the dry skin/hair loss with my dog Nickie (11 months old now).

Two weeks ago I started him on the Grizzly Salmon Oil (3 pumps each morning) along with a 400 IU of Vit. E. He also gets 2 spoons of plain yogurt each morning, and one raw egg every other morning. Also about 2 weeks ago I started him on Hydroxyzine (2 times a day) for the itchiness. He is on Canidae kibble.

Immediately I noticed a difference - the hair was growing back on his face (around his eyes and muzzle), and his coat was super shiny.

Now just in the last two days, he has a TON of dandruff showing up. When I brush him with a "furminator" which a friend loaned me, I only got a tiny amount of hair off of him.

Should I be using a certain type of brush on him to try and get rid of the dandruff? Is the dandruff just old skin flaking off from before he was on the salmon oil?

Just need some opinions here since his beautiful coat doesn't look so great all of a sudden! We bathed him about 2 months ago (first and only bath that he has had).

Is this strictly flakes, or is there redness, itching, bumps/lumps/ or any other skin symptoms?

Connie,
It seems to be just white flakes - I pushed my fingers thru his fur yesterday to see how the skin looked. Don't see anything but normal looking skin. His coat is very thick.

Connie (or anyone else),

Does anyone have any ideas about this problem? The sudden appearance of the white flakes (dandruff?) reminds me of when we had cats and the one who was mostly black would get these white flakes as soon as we took him into the vet's examining room - vet said it was stress-related and very common.

Instead of "Head & Shoulders" dandruff shampoo for humans, guess Nickie needs "Shoulders & Back" shampoo!

Nevada is awfully arid. That can't help the situation. Have you tried fish oil and vitamin E?

Yes Eric,

Please see my post from yesterday - he already gets Grizzly Salmon Oil & Vit E (has been for the past 2 weeks with excellent results the first few days). Yes, Nevada is very arid - and yes, he does drink plenty of water.

Diane, just a couple of thoughts. I'd stop using the furminator, it may be irritating his skin.

Continue with the oil and vit E.

Give him another bath with a very mild dog shampoo, a hypoallergenic one. I use "8 in 1" Perfect Coat, labeled Gentle Hypoallergenic, specially formulated for sensitive skin, no perfumes or dyes - from Petsmart. Here's another option from Leerburg: http://www.leerburg.com/1073.htm#healing, and another one that speaks to dandruff and dry skin problems: http://www.leerburg.com/1068.htm#herbal. I believe some people use an oatmeal shampoo as well.

Get a natural bristle brush for grooming. It may help stimulate the oils in his skin. Something like this (not promoting Petsmart, get one anywhere you like - some grocery stores have similar): http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441777732&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302026088&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023689&bmUID=1186758218279&itemNo=11&Ntt=brushes&In=Dog&previousText=brushes&N=2023689. These work well for short haired dogs.

I use a tablespoon of Flax seed oil once a day and it keeps the coat nice a shiny and the dandruff down.

If there is no redness or bumps, it isn't too big of a deal. Some oils and stimulating brushing, possibly a bath and he should be fine.

Just remember, you can't bathe too often or you will be removing the natural skin/coat oils and irritate his skin. I couldn't tell you how often is too often, I only give a bath a couple times a year.

Sandy,

Thanks for the great suggestions. Also, I only used the "furminator" one time (I had borrowed it from a friend) - only did a few strokes down his back and got almost zero hair off. I have some of the oatmeal shampoo which is what I bathed him in a couple of months ago. Will try that again.

Brian - thanks for your input as well - I know that too many baths are not a good thing. Wonder if it would hurt to use the flax seed oil along with the salmon oil?

Diane, from what I've read about flax seed oil here on the forum, it's a vegetable based oil and so evidently not as easily absorbed by the dog's digestive system as a salmon based oil.

That said, I don't see any reason to give both. They're both given for the omega fats, which salmon oil delivers well without help from the flax.