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Tis the season for dandruff!


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I have a cat that suffers from dandruff and now a border collie. Her skin and coat have been just fine until the recent weather mood swings in Texas. It's her first winter and her skin appears to have been effected already. I read on blogs online a few remedies for dog dandruff.

 

Right now I'm using olive oil diluted in water to massage in her hair and skin. It seems to have worked really well except for the fact she smells like my frying pan before I'm about to cook. Also it leaves her hair very oily and dirty looking. :(

 

Does anyone on here have any suggestions or remedies they prefer?

Thanks!

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Having you tried adding some fat to her diet? One of my dogs needs much more fat in his diet for his skin and coat to stay healthy. I feed raw, so it's easy to tweak, but perhaps some salmon or fish oil added to both your dog's and cat's diets might be helpful.

 

I guess some people give their pets coconut oil, too, but I've never understood the impulse to use oils from vegetable sources. I'd think animal sources oils would be more bioavailable as they're more species appropriate.

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No I have't hmm I'll have to try that. I'll try the fish oil out like you said! That's interesting they use that...maybe it is because coconut oil has mainly saturated fats (somewhat similar to animal fats)? Coconut oil is pretty expensive I'd imagine fish oil is the best route to go anyway. Especially since my Effie goes after the cat's food at times.

 

With the fish oil you just break open the capsule over their food correct? Or is there a fish oil for pets at a pet store?

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I have 3 dogs, two of whom need larger than average amounts of oil, so I buy the 64 oz. pump bottle of Grizzly salmon oil on Amazon. http://smile.amazon.com/Grizzly-All-Natural-Supplement-Pump-Bottle-Dispenser/dp/B0023R8CDA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1416197973&sr=8-1&keywords=grizzly+salmon+64+oz&pebp=1416197966029

 

I keep it in the fridge and it lasts a long time. I'd never try to keep it that long at room temperature, though. And it's also available in smaller bottles if you think you won't use it fast enough.

 

I used to use human fish oil capsules. I just handed them to my dogs like treats and they'd break them open themselves. If you puncture them and squirt them on their food, I'd still give the dog the capsule (or take it yourself!). There's always some remaining in the capsule and it's too pricey to waste, imo. I buy mine at Sam's Club. I know you have to be careful to get a brand that's had the mercury purified out and their brand was one that is. I've seen websites that list safe brands, but don't know offhand which are the better ones.

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Thank you. Awesome I'll buy a 16 oz bottle of what you use and see if it works for the kitty and Effie!

Seems like a really good deal since the human capsules would be a bit pricey. :)

 

I'll have to research that if I ever decide to take the capsules myself. As of right now I think I'm fine I have a lot of raw fish in my diet.

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I will second the salmon oil. I give it to my dogs and cats, but I notice a big difference in their skin and fur if I start skipping days. I buy the liquid at the pet stores and squirt the reccomended amount into their food. Plus they all love it!

 

Going to try the fish oil this week and see if it helps. I just ordered in on amazon prime so it should be here Tuesday! How much do you give them btw?

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I only give salmon oil to my GSD. Thankfully, at this point Nattie does not need it. I purchase capsules at Costco and just drop them on top of his food. My GSD loves his fish pills. Whenever I open a new bottle he always comes to investigate. :)

 

One thing that I found out with salmon oil is that I really did not see a difference in my dog's coat until he had been on the capsules for about six weeks so be patient.

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Good I hope Effie has a taste for fish oil...she's always a picky eater when other dogs aren't around. Aww haha that's too cute! He loves his supplements! :)

 

Oh yes I don't expect it immediately. I didn't see a huge coat change with raw eggs until 2 months or so! For now I'll rub olive oil water on her back once a week until her skin is less dependent!

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I use herring and anchovy oil because it is less comtaminated that salmon oil.

 

Coconut oil is a medium chain triglyceride and has a few helpful properties other than just adding fat to the diet. Among other things, it is much less likely to trigger pancreatitis for susceptible individuals due to how it is digested. It also has some antifungal properties for dogs suffering from yeast overgrowth. Coconut oil is better for the outside of the dog than olive oil too.

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Going to try the fish oil this week and see if it helps. I just ordered in on amazon prime so it should be here Tuesday! How much do you give them btw?

 

If you're getting the bulk (i.e liquid, not in capsules) it'll tell you on the bottle. The pump bottle says how many pumps to use, the smaller sizes may use teaspoons.

 

Start with the recommended dose for a few days to make sure there won't be any ill effects (loose stools), and then you may want to try to increase it until you get to what's a good dose for them (skin and fur better). Then you can try backing down yet again till you find out what each animal's optimum amount is. I think a "therapeutic" dose for specific reasons (anti-inflammatory, etc.) is 3X the usual dose, so you can go up to that.

 

Remember that Omega 3 interferes with Vitamin E absorption, so you may want to squirt a little Vit. E (puncture capsule and squirt) every few days to compensate. I give my dogs (36-44 lbs.) one 400 IU capsule every other day. They just eat it like a treat.

 

Hope this works for you. I think you'll notice a difference.

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I use herring and anchovy oil because it is less comtaminated that salmon oil.

 

The brand I recommended, Grizzly, is from wild Alaska salmon. AFAIK, contamination is not an issue with this type of salmon.

 

If you know differently, could you please elaborate?

 

Farm raised salmon is definitely problematic for a number of reasons, including the environmental impact of the farming methods.

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Sara hates fish oil. I have to give it to her on a spoon and literally put it in her mouth, if I put it on top of her food she won't eat. Quirky dog...

 

That's too funny haha. Effie is sorta the same way with eggs. She won't eat microwaved eggs but she will eat them raw. One of my cats despise fish.

 

My fish oil has a pump and it is three pumps per day and lasts me about 5 months. For dogs. One pump for the cats.

 

Sounds good. Just hoping the oil won't make the litter box smell bad. I heard fish oils can make the feces stink.

 

We have the Grizzly brand and our pup loves it. It smells REALLY fishy, so I imagine that's part of the appeal. Her coat looks gorgeous and silky, and no more dandruff after a bath with Bobbi Panter Baby Bebe Itchy Dog shampoo and the oil on her food.

 

I'm curious does the oil give them fish breath sometimes? I'll have to try that shampoo out!

 

I use herring and anchovy oil because it is less comtaminated that salmon oil.

 

Coconut oil is a medium chain triglyceride and has a few helpful properties other than just adding fat to the diet. Among other things, it is much less likely to trigger pancreatitis for susceptible individuals due to how it is digested. It also has some antifungal properties for dogs suffering from yeast overgrowth. Coconut oil is better for the outside of the dog than olive oil too.

 

I need to get some coconut oil for my own hair and Effie's. Its just so expensive. I bet it makes a dog smell really good! :P

 

If you're getting the bulk (i.e liquid, not in capsules) it'll tell you on the bottle. The pump bottle says how many pumps to use, the smaller sizes may use teaspoons.

 

Start with the recommended dose for a few days to make sure there won't be any ill effects (loose stools), and then you may want to try to increase it until you get to what's a good dose for them (skin and fur better). Then you can try backing down yet again till you find out what each animal's optimum amount is. I think a "therapeutic" dose for specific reasons (anti-inflammatory, etc.) is 3X the usual dose, so you can go up to that.

 

Remember that Omega 3 interferes with Vitamin E absorption, so you may want to squirt a little Vit. E (puncture capsule and squirt) every few days to compensate. I give my dogs (36-44 lbs.) one 400 IU capsule every other day. They just eat it like a treat.

 

Hope this works for you. I think you'll notice a difference.

 

I ordered the 16 oz bottle just to see how fast we go through it...so it will probably be the teaspoon measurement like you said. I'll have to get some vitamin E capsules. Maybe I can find a big thing of them at Costco (they are still building Sams club here).

 

Thank you so much for your help and recommendations! I'm sure we will notice a huge difference in her coat and skin!

:)

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The brand I recommended, Grizzly, is from wild Alaska salmon. AFAIK, contamination is not an issue with this type of salmon.

 

If you know differently, could you please elaborate?

 

Farm raised salmon is definitely problematic for a number of reasons, including the environmental impact of the farming methods.

Grizzly is the best salmon oil I know of. The only contamination issue there would be the length of life of the fish and what it picked up from the environment. I really don't know how much of an issue it is, but apparently, now we are going to have to worry about radiation from Japan circling the Pacific as well as whatever waste is dumped into the ocean, still nothing like what you would get from tuna or some other long lived fish. Or as you say(shudder) farmed fish.

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@Brookitar - Callie's breath doesn't smell any worse than usual, and she doesn't really have stinky breath to begin with. Her bully sticks make her and whole room stink though...I think the fishy smell from the oil goes away when she's done eating because it usually soaks into the kibble and she gobbles it all up.

 

I just wash the dish more often so any residual smell in the bowl doesn't linger.

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@Brookitar - Callie's breath doesn't smell any worse than usual, and she doesn't really have stinky breath to begin with. Her bully sticks make her and whole room stink though...I think the fishy smell from the oil goes away when she's done eating because it usually soaks into the kibble and she gobbles it all up.

 

I just wash the dish more often so any residual smell in the bowl doesn't linger.

 

Poor Effie has naturally stinky fish breath already at 5 months lol. We took her to the vet to get it checked out and anal glands stimulated but nothing worked. They sold me on these "special treats" at the vet office that smell rancid but claim to make their breath smell better.

 

Yeah, oil works better in the dog than on it. :P

 

I used the Grizzly Salmon oil when my old dog started going dandruff-y and it did help. Someone also told me that coconut oil from Trader Joe's was good, but I've no idea of the cost.

 

~ Gloria

 

When I told my fiance I got fish oil for Effie he thought it was seriously going to rub it on her body! :P I had to refrain from face palming myself.

But I was rubbing olive oil on her skin diluted in water (recommended on another forum) and put a small amount in her food.

 

We just got a Trader Joe's in Austin!! Pretty excited about that so I'll have to see about the coconut oil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soooo Effie got to try the fish oil yesterday for the first time. Not sure if its allergies or the change in her diet from the oil but she had diarrhea all over our carpet this morning and 3 more times outside. And man did it smell HORRIBLE!!! I always tell myself beauty is painful lol.

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^^^Sorry, I hope you have a carpet shampooer!

 

One thing I remembered about dry skin and my GSD. I don't know if you give Effie baths but if you do make sure you rinse her really well. Any shampoo residue will make my dog's skin worse. I rinse and rinse and when I think I have all the shampoo out I rinse a few more times.

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Rievaulx has had some really bad dandruff, he gets fish oil regularly but I found that it was not doing enough, so I added extra virgin coconut oil, he liked the taste and did seem to make a marked improvement in his skin and coat. The cheapest source I found for it was Amazon, but I had access to a prime account so was not paying for shipping.

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^^^Sorry, I hope you have a carpet shampooer!

 

One thing I remembered about dry skin and my GSD. I don't know if you give Effie baths but if you do make sure you rinse her really well. Any shampoo residue will make my dog's skin worse. I rinse and rinse and when I think I have all the shampoo out I rinse a few more times.

 

Lol its okay unfortanetely we have a lot of those pee spots from when she was a puppy somehow still reappearing on our carpet. We are renting a steam cleaner once we get all these animals under control (cats were pooping and peeing outside the litter box a week before when they were sick). Sometimes I think my animals are more time consuming than kids!!! Lets just say i'm pretty confident we aren't getting our pet deposit back.

 

Yeah I make sure to rinse her really well. I have to turn on the shower for Effie since she doesn't like the sound of the faucet. I get a giant cup of water on top of that to really get her soaked. I'm also thinking now it could be allergy related because she is having a hard time with all this weather change. She can't stop sneezing today and her eyes look horrible. Someone recommended Claritin but I'm going to ask her vet if its okay.

 

Rievaulx has had some really bad dandruff, he gets fish oil regularly but I found that it was not doing enough, so I added extra virgin coconut oil, he liked the taste and did seem to make a marked improvement in his skin and coat. The cheapest source I found for it was Amazon, but I had access to a prime account so was not paying for shipping.

 

Yeah we will have to look into the coconut oil. We have amazon prime...I'm addicted to it! I hardly do any shopping at stores unless I absolutely have to.

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Any of Hemp, Salmon/Fish or Coconut oils, ingested, will work.

 

They all deliver a lot to a dog, aside from less dry skin and nicer hair/fur. They help maintain and lubricate joints and ligaments, keep the animal "regular", all the awesome Omega stuff they bring on board. All my dogs get all three, I mix it in with the kibble base they all get in weekly quantities and am done with it.

 

If I had to pick one, I would pick Hemp as it will more or less do the all the things the other two do plus it has potential benefits in terms of general health (cancer-restricting) and blood circulation, particularly in the brain, that the other two do not offer.

 

They all cost about the same, IME.

 

The dogs seem to have no preference - they like all of them.

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