renewrecycleresurrx
New member
Hi everyone. I'm going to be as detailed as possible because I truly do not know what to do, and if there is any advice anyone can offer I would be over the moon with gratitude. I have a pretty unusual issue with my 5-year-old husky, Jojen. I got him from a show breeder when he was a little over a year old; he had cryptorchidism and couldn't be shown so she sold him to me as a pet. In the four years that I've had him, he has not blown his coat. This is not my first rodeo; I grew up with huskies and we have another male (Casper, 4) who sheds and blows coat like no tomorrow. I know what blowing a coat looks and feels like and did my fair share of twice daily vacuuming. It's driving me mad because Jojen's coat looks and feels terrible to me (no matter how many compliments he gets on walks), and I believe it's the underlying cause for him getting hot spots.
I was instructed by my breeder to use a pin comb, undercoat rake (not a Furminator-type rake), and a slicker brush, and to bathe him when he gets dirty. He's not an outside dog and comes and goes in/out when he pleases. He is never left outside except for in the winter and only for a few hours at a time or if he wants to sleep outside at night. Before I understood the damage it could cause, I let him sunbathe on our back patio and I think it damaged the fur significantly. Think of when black dogs or horses spend too much time out in the sun and their coat turns rusty. It was about three years before I found out that was a thing that could happen. His dad was red so I just thought it was his coat changing color. I know better now though. I was told that sun damage can hinder the natural shedding process. I purchased a purple shampoo that was advertised to help with the reddening and added a coat conditioner. They make the coat feel softer but this is just putting a band aid on the bigger issue. As he's gotten older he's gotten significantly lighter in color. I'm not sure if it's from the sun or if he has shed some guard hairs over the years and they just haven't grown back or if they're trapped underneath the (maybe impacted?) undercoat or what.
Currently his coat feels like straw, the tips of his guard hairs are red from sun damage, and he has split ends. I spoke with his vet about these issues and he is now on a fish oil supplement and he takes 6 mg of melatonin per day (she did some research and found that it's been helpful for dogs who have alopecia so she thought it might help). I have also had his thyroid checked - no issues. He's been taking the supplements for a few months now and I haven't noticed a difference in the amount of fur I'm able to brush off him or his coat texture/appearance.
He has never been shaved except for when it was medically necessary. I've gotten him bathed/deshedded twice but did not notice much of a difference. He's had two hot spots in the past few months, and I'm thinking it's because of all the dead undercoat he's not been able to let go of. I broke down and purchased a Furminator type rake and it's helped a little but not significantly.
If there is anything that I can do or give him to help him naturally start blowing his coat, I'm all ears. I've spent hours digging through articles and online forums and haven't found anything that I haven't already tried. This is a huge deal to me and I just want to help my dog feel better. Thank you in advance.
EDIT: Someone asked for pictures, so I'm including a few from when I first got him at 1 year, 2 months when he was out of coat, and now, after 4 years of not blowing coat. Sorry for any strange edits or filters, these were the best I could find that showed off the coat.
One year, out of coat
One year, out of coat
One year, out of coat
One year, winter coat coming in
Straw-like fur around legs, no those are not mats
To me this almost looks like what I've seen describe as impacted fur?
Split ends
I was instructed by my breeder to use a pin comb, undercoat rake (not a Furminator-type rake), and a slicker brush, and to bathe him when he gets dirty. He's not an outside dog and comes and goes in/out when he pleases. He is never left outside except for in the winter and only for a few hours at a time or if he wants to sleep outside at night. Before I understood the damage it could cause, I let him sunbathe on our back patio and I think it damaged the fur significantly. Think of when black dogs or horses spend too much time out in the sun and their coat turns rusty. It was about three years before I found out that was a thing that could happen. His dad was red so I just thought it was his coat changing color. I know better now though. I was told that sun damage can hinder the natural shedding process. I purchased a purple shampoo that was advertised to help with the reddening and added a coat conditioner. They make the coat feel softer but this is just putting a band aid on the bigger issue. As he's gotten older he's gotten significantly lighter in color. I'm not sure if it's from the sun or if he has shed some guard hairs over the years and they just haven't grown back or if they're trapped underneath the (maybe impacted?) undercoat or what.
Currently his coat feels like straw, the tips of his guard hairs are red from sun damage, and he has split ends. I spoke with his vet about these issues and he is now on a fish oil supplement and he takes 6 mg of melatonin per day (she did some research and found that it's been helpful for dogs who have alopecia so she thought it might help). I have also had his thyroid checked - no issues. He's been taking the supplements for a few months now and I haven't noticed a difference in the amount of fur I'm able to brush off him or his coat texture/appearance.
He has never been shaved except for when it was medically necessary. I've gotten him bathed/deshedded twice but did not notice much of a difference. He's had two hot spots in the past few months, and I'm thinking it's because of all the dead undercoat he's not been able to let go of. I broke down and purchased a Furminator type rake and it's helped a little but not significantly.
If there is anything that I can do or give him to help him naturally start blowing his coat, I'm all ears. I've spent hours digging through articles and online forums and haven't found anything that I haven't already tried. This is a huge deal to me and I just want to help my dog feel better. Thank you in advance.
EDIT: Someone asked for pictures, so I'm including a few from when I first got him at 1 year, 2 months when he was out of coat, and now, after 4 years of not blowing coat. Sorry for any strange edits or filters, these were the best I could find that showed off the coat.
One year, out of coat
One year, out of coat
One year, out of coat
One year, winter coat coming in
Straw-like fur around legs, no those are not mats
To me this almost looks like what I've seen describe as impacted fur?
Split ends