Bear looks like he lost 10 pounds...
- Thread starter Sharon
- Start date
RoseRed said:
His eyes are open
- he's just not looking at the camera or he'd have "glow eyes". He's so black he usually doesn't take very good pics and the light was bad...or maybe it's me. :shrug: He looks better on film. Tomorrow he should have his sheen back, he's still kinda fluffy tonight right now.
cattitude
My Sweetest Boy
crabcake said:What's a "double-coated" dog?
A lot of dogs have double coats but Huskies and Shepherds have a really thick undercoat. It's shorter hair and it protects from the cold and the heat. In the spring, they "blow" their undercoat and you have to rake it out. Retrievers do the same thing but their undercoat isn't as dense. Even the little Lhasas, etc. have a small undercoat..but most people just trim that type of dog and that's not so bad. It's just when you shave them that makes it bad for the dog.
K
Katie
Guest
I had a collie cross for a week, and I am still picking up dog hair with the vacuum that he lost. I brushed him EVERY day!
cattitude said:
I wasn't going to pipe in... but... since you brought it up.. even in the hottest of temperatures, it can really disrupt a double coated dog's immunity when you shave or otherwise interfere with their natural process of shedding and such. Their built-in "mechanisms" for cooling, heating, hunting, burrowing, denning and such are deep within their genetic make-up. The hair does "clump" and "blow" on its own, causing many owners to become frustrated and tend to shave them, thinking that they are solving a two part problem - their hair disaster and the dog's heat/cooling situation.
As a Husky/Malamute owner, I am not trying to belittle, I am just looking out for the breed I've had for so long. I have had to do a lot of submissive training to get them to adapt to brushing and bathing (no, they still don't like it), invest in a lot of vacuums and get used to fur in EVERYTHING.
But, I love them. They really do have a hard time adjusting to being shaved. Maybe not right now... maybe when the hair grows in... maybe when fall comes when they should be blowing again... maybe in winter when they should be filling in.... maybe throughout the year... maybe not this dog at all, but another dog whose owner thought it was a great idea. It messes with their immunity. Not worth it, IMO.
cattitude said:VV, that's what I was trying to say.
Lots of people get pets for what they look like and they don't educate themselves as to the needs of the pet.
What she said! 
Bear is so soft and silky today and he's still shedding. I keep brushing him and within a minute the hair needs to be cleand out. You should see all the fluff balls on my back hill (where I throw the brush cleanings) it looks like he went out for a walk and fell apart.
One thing that's really funny is...since he's lost so much of his undercoat after the bath, he's actually ticklish in places he wasn't before.
I know he feels better because he's actually smiling.
One thing that's really funny is...since he's lost so much of his undercoat after the bath, he's actually ticklish in places he wasn't before.
I know he feels better because he's actually smiling.
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cattitude
My Sweetest Boy
That's a great portrait, Sharon.
Boomer used to get huge clumps when his coat was blowing. If I wasn't diligent about "helping" them come out, he would pick at them and sometimes get hot spots. I had to brush him constantly and he always felt so much better. My shepherds were a constant battle of brushing and combing to keep them looking good.
Boomer used to get huge clumps when his coat was blowing. If I wasn't diligent about "helping" them come out, he would pick at them and sometimes get hot spots. I had to brush him constantly and he always felt so much better. My shepherds were a constant battle of brushing and combing to keep them looking good.
appyday said:
Might depend on what the breed has been crossed mixed with... what the owners do/don't do as far as upkeep... Mixed breeds have an undetermined genetic make up... If a dog is not properly brushed and cooled, who knows... I know I am not an expert. I only know what I feel I can do for my kids, based on what I've read, been told by vets and breeders and learned from others who have the breeds.