Winter dry skin

[alligande]

Last winter I started giving the dogs fish oil due to the young ones dry skin, well his coat is lovely and glossy but he is back to scratching now we are in the dry part of winter. When you look at his coat, if he was human you say he had very mild dandruf, this is strictly a dry winter thing as in the humid summers he does not have dry skin.

What have people found effective for dry skin, I do not want to put oil on his coat as he does come up on our bed and lean on the couches.

[Sue R]

I not only give my dogs a fish oil capsule each day, but also supplement their commercial kibble with some fat, as I find most kibble to be low in fat (I look for 3:2 protein:fat ratio).

 

I have had an itchy dog but Celt's problems *seemed* to be seasonal, and I was able to control the itchiness with Hydroxizine (from the vet, 1 capsule, twice a day). I could not pin down just what the trigger was as he might have itchy times at any season, and it was on again/off again.

 

I changed my household laundry detergent to a no dye/no color/no perfume version and, so far, no itching in Celt, either.

 

So, maybe try additional dietary fat (I use beef, bacon, pork, whatever I have) and possibly changing something in his environment (like detergent) that, in combination with dry air, might be enough to cause itchiness/flakiness.

 

If nothing else, these are easy ideas to try. Good luck!

[wildo]

I use coconut oil and find it works WAY better than fish oil ever has for my dog. I use the brand Nutiva, which you can get on Amazon for pretty cheap. I give my 69 pound female 4tbsp/day which is lower than the recommended dosage of 1tsp/10lbs body weight. I saw results in 7 days- seriously!

 

I always thought her coat looked pretty nice on fish oil, but since being diagnosed with Addison's Disease and having to be on prednisone every day I put her on coconut oil instead of fish oil. Someone had recommended it to me as a way to counteract the skin issues often found when using prednisone.

 

It can be kind of a pain to scoop out of the container and properly measure (almost certainly end up being more generous and wasting some) so I found this method of per-measureing. I recorded a video to show how I do it.

 

 

Here's a photo of my girl last summer when I thought her coat looked just fine. You can see it actually looks a little dry. And that was in bright sunlight. (This is also one month prior to the start of finding a diagnoses for her exercise intolerance. Look how tired she looks! Poor girl...)

 

And here's her coat 5 days after starting coconut oil. Note that this is in the setting sun even and her coat looks amazing. Nice and shiny, soft too. Very healthy:

 

 

I should note that coconut oil doesn't have all of the omegas that fish oil does, and for that reason it really isn't a direct replacement. I, personally, did stop feeding her fish oil since she appeared generally healthier on the coconut oil (at least by appearance). I also feed a salmon/fish based food- so she should be getting plenty of omegas through that anyway. But for you ultra health conscience- you'd probably want to use both oils.

[Sue R]

Maybe there's a typo but 4 tablespoons = 12 teaspoons which is quite a bit more per day than 1 teaspoon per 10# of body weight for a 69# dog.

 

I know a number of people who find coconut oil beneficial for digestion as well as coat.

[wildo]

Yikes. Yeah, my numbers are all over the place. Here's the silicon pan I bought: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003VPZ14Q/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i04

 

The description says there are twenty-four 15ml cavities. Google converter says that 15ml is 1.01 US Tablespoons. And there are three teaspoons in a tablespoon- so that's 3.03 teaspoons, twice daily for a total of 6.06 teaspoons (or 60 pound dosage).

 

Sorry for the confusion.

 

[EDIT]- I corrected the annotation in the video. I realized the issue. The numbers I said in the video were right in the video, I just accidentally said "tablespoons" instead of teaspoons. Each cavity is, in fact, 3 teaspoons. :)/>

[Root Beer]

If you don't mind bathing your dog, you might try this stuff . . .

 

http://www.tropiclean.net/categories/tropiclean.php

 

I've used the medicated oatmeal on Speedy and it really helped alleviate his dry skin. I tried it because he gets itchy spots on his paws and the winter dryness was making it flare up. I usually only use it on his legs (once every couple of weeks does the job), but I gave him a whole bath with it once and it left his coat very nice.

 

It's soap free, but it still lathers up really nice and doesn't leave a heavy scent on the dog.

[Gideon's girl]

I've used the coconut oil too. It works great!! And if your dog has any sores, you can just rub a small amount in. It works great topically too.

[alligande]

Thanks for the input, I will try coconut oil as well as the fish oil that should the fat Sue suggested as well. He is a dog that does not need bathing very often so I think I want to steer away from giving him a bath in the middle of winter... Never a fun activity.

 

Sue we already use color/perfume free almost everything mostly because I hate over perfumed anything.

 

He has been under a lot of stress with our other dog being ill and fussed over, but I don't think that is the problem as he was scratchy last year as well which is when I started using fish oil

[wildo]

Just make sure to get cold pressed, hexane free coconut oil. If it doesn't say it, then it isn't. It's easier to extract the oil if they heat it, but in doing so, they destroy some of the nutritional value. Hexane is a gas that is sometimes used in extraction- but it's also poisonous. The brand I linked to above meets both requirements. Amazon is the cheapest for this brand, but you can find it local in grocery stores.

 

Costco also sells a large container of coconut oil that is very good. I've never used it, but know of plenty who have. It's something like $16.99 for 54oz which is a crazy good deal. If I ever renew my membership there, I'll likely switch.

[1sheepdoggal]

If your dog is indoors, the heater tends to dry out the coat and skin in winter. Talk with your groomer to help find a grooming regimine to restore skin and coat quality. Brushing with the proper brush, ( as some brushes tend to break and split coat)regularly also helps bring up and distribute the natural oils. As well as adding a suppliment.

[gtokitty]

hey there,

 

I have one GSD that I have to use Nizoral human shampoo on him. He has horrible dandruff all year long. The vet recommended it and it works wonderfully for him. Didn't dry out his hair either and I used it once a week (In summer)it's winter now, that they are inside more and not doing anything I try to bath them only once a month. (he is a woolly coat German Shepherd)

 

In the past I have used watered down original head and shoulders also with no ill effects. I take an empty bottle put about half an inch in the bottom of the shampoo then fill the rest with warm water. Shake it up then you shouldn't have to worry about large soap deposits on the dog.

 

Make sure if you do bath him with any of these you leave them on for 5 minutes or so and rinse them very well when your are done. Don't bath the dog to often or you can make the problem worse by drying out the coat as well. Oatmeal soaps are also beneficial. I also agree on the good quality brush :)/>/>

[alligande]

We don't go to a groomers and I had given no thought to brushing as he has a very low maintainence coat even though it is reasonably long, very little under coat, does not tamgle and his hind end feathers never get matted. Any recomendations on brushes, when I do brush him now I use a human hair brush that has thick plastic bristles and protected ends. This has always worked well with his long coat, and does not hurt him like metal "dog" brushes I have acquired over the years for dogs with thick undercoats.

 

Next time I give him a bath I might try the head and shoulders route, I bath them so infrequently that I use my shampoo on them any way, so I can use my husbands head and shoulders.

[nancy]

Both the Dixie Dog and Maggie da Cat get dry skin in the winter. I keep an old spray bottle from fake butter and fill it with canola oil. I spray their kibble with that for each of their 3 meals a day (5 squirts for the cat and 15 for the dog). It works a treat. This is the second set of beasts on which I've used this method.

 

Maggie is strictly indoors - unless we can open the doors to the screen porch, which is her idea of the great wide world. Dixie lives indoors but gets at least 4 walks a day. Man, she has enjoyed our cold spell - and cracking and eating thin ice off puddles.

 

I don't officially groom animals. I wash them only if they get into something terribly stinky or messy. I bush only when they're shedding.

[1sheepdoggal]

I would suggest a pin brush, but the type that has the round bubble like tips. Also wouldnt reccomend any human shampoo at all, as the ph is set up for humans and not for dogs which will dry the skin and coat out more. Change in dog food perhaps? A dood product for replenishing skin and coat is a remoisterizer, that you can delute and spray on, or use after bathing. Its like hand lotion for dogs. I will try to find the link to thier website and post it. Great product, and my go to in the shop for dogs with no actual skin prob other than dryness from elements.

[alligande]

I would suggest a pin brush, but the type that has the round bubble like tips. Also wouldnt reccomend any human shampoo at all, as the ph is set up for humans and not for dogs which will dry the skin and coat out more. Change in dog food perhaps? A dood product for replenishing skin and coat is a remoisterizer, that you can delute and spray on, or use after bathing. Its like hand lotion for dogs. I will try to find the link to thier website and post it. Great product, and my go to in the shop for dogs with no actual skin prob other than dryness from elements.

I have been getting away with human shampoo for years on the odd occasion I bath them, and I have honestly never seen a problem with their skin, and the coats always looked great.

I would love a recommendation on the moisturizer.

It is not his food, he is three and this has happened the last two winters... During the summer he has no problems.

[alligande]

We started on coconut oil yesterday, and I have found that my dog thinks it is delicious he is a picky eater and sometimes can not be bothered to finish his meals. I have used all sorts of bribes to get him to eat, and I have never before had him licking his bowl. So even if it does nothing for his skin he loves the taste.