I'm doing everything "right", but the shedding is out of control! Help?!?

[kdmama33]

My dog is what we believe to be a black lab/Irish setter mix. We've had him for about nine months. He's on a raw diet, which includes omega supplements. I use a furminator on him three times a week, with scads and scads of hair coming off every time.

The amount of dog hair in my house is unbelievable. I vacuum at least twice a day, entire house, upstairs and down. I also sweep the hard floors at least another time on top of the vacuuming. I fill up the canister on my vacuum with dog hair every time I vacuum. Still, after all that, there is hair everywhere. And I do mean EVERYWHERE.

This dog sheds in clumps. Huge, enormous clumps. He also sheds in bits and pieces, but the clumps you'd have to see to believe. When he's nervous or excited, the shedding quadruples. Honestly, I don't know how the dog isn't bald already.

The vet says there's nothing to do for the shedding, that some dogs just shed more than others, and that labs are particularly bad, which I knew. But I've had labs before, I've had lots of huge double coated dogs, I've lived in the South where it's hot with huge double coated dogs, and I've never seen hair like this. Even the groomer is amazed at the amounts of hair.

There is hair in the dishwasher, hair in the fridge!, hair in the dryer, hair in the carpet, hair in my mouth, hair everywhere. I am so frustrated with the hair. I feel like my life would be so much easier to handle without this one issue -- I'm a single mom, I work two jobs, I go to school, I homeschool my kids, and keeping up with the dog hair is taking over a life that doesn't have a whole hell of a lot of room in it to take over!

Help!! Is there anything I can do that I'm not already doing? It would break my kids' hearts, and it would make me feel like a really horrible person, but I am considering rehoming this dog because of this. It is the straw that is breaking the camel's back.

[greenmagick]

Has it recently gotten worse? Dog do loose their puppy coats I believe around 9 monhts to a year, so it should get better if that is it. Hugs mama! You could shave him too. Its not always the best but it does definitely help cut down on the amount of hair.

[kdmama33]

I should probably have mentioned how old he is, huh? He was a rescue (a carefully planned, waited for months to find a good fit kinda rescue ... see what I mean about doing everything "right"?!?) and we believe him to be about four years old. So it's not that he's losing his puppy coat.

It is worse lately, because summer has finally come to the PNW and we've had several 85+ days. But what I'm talking about is all the time, not just seasonal shedding.

I have thought about shaving him. But then I think that he'll not only look absolutely ridiculous, but he'll probably continue to shed, it will just be short hair instead of long hair. So what would be the point, really?

[greenmagick]

Is he a fairly anxious dog? I know stress triggers shedding. Hmmmm....if he is maybe try some of the comfort zone pheremones to help? you are right in that usually abnormal shedding is diet related, is he itchy at all, any skin conditions?

[kdmama33]

He's not an anxious dog, no. When we first got him, he had an injury on one foot and was wary and anxious about people getting anywhere near his feet as a result, but we spent a lot of time (still do) working with him and he lets us near his feet with no issue for months now. He detests the car, and sheds like MAD when he has to ride somewhere, but other than that, he's very laid back. In fact, I wasn't looking for a lab because I know they have a somewhat puppyish temperament for the entirety of their lives, but he won me over with his mellow, chill demeanor.

Someone is home with him nearly all the time. I work as a massage therapist from home, and my housemate is here quite a bit, so it's not like he's spending much time by himself or out of the pack, either. Maybe ten hours a week or so of time without us?

No, he's not itchy. No skin conditions. Other than the hair thing, he's a really easy dog. Which makes me feel even worse about the idea of rehoming him for this one thing. I just can't overstate how bad this one thing is, or how much it really is the straw breaking my back.

[Ola_]

I think a lot of it has to do with the breed. I have an elkhound mix and she sheds all the time, literally. But when the weather heats up the amount of hair is just unbelievable. Like you we feed a raw diet, add fish oils, and overall she's very healthy, she just sheds a lot. I'm honestly not sure that there's anything you can do about it if the dog is genetically predisposed to shedding.

You might try to vary the proteins you're using in his food to see if it makes a difference. Eliminate any carbs (veg/grains) if you're feeding them. Also maybe increasing the omega-3's? The typical dosage is 1000 mg per 30 lbs of weight, but you can go up to 1000 mg per 10 lbs.

On a side note I'm amazed at how much you vacuum! Wow!

[greenmagick]

If you are truly at the point of rehoming him, I would try shaving him down. He may look ridiculous, but you may get used to it. Yes, he will still shed, but not near the volume he does now.

Or, can you confine him to a couple rooms of the house where you spend most of your time....that will help keep the hair down in other areas.

[kdmama33]

I have to vacuum that much; I certainly don't want to! I have a housemate and a business I run from home, and I can't subject either my housemate or my clients to the enormous amounts of dog hair that would accumulate if I didn't vacuum that much. So I vacuum every morning and evening. I spend an average of a couple of hours every day dealing with dog hair, between the vacuuming and sweeping and brushing and raw food/supplement prep.

[greenmagick]

How are you doing the raw diet? There is really no prep work involved for me except for defrosting and plopping the meaty bones in a bowl. Sometimes I squirt some salmon oil on it or add an egg...takes really no more time than measuring kibble into a bowl

[rose angel]

What about one of those Furminator things? I have seen people like them here..

[Rhiannon Feimorgan]

Originally Posted by rose angel

What about one of those Furminator things? I have seen people like them here..

I think she said in her first post that she is already using one of those.

Could you try using the furminator more often? Every evening or every other?

How often are you bathing him? I find our dog releases extra hair when we bath her and the level of shedding is less for the next several days. She doesn't shed anywhere near as much as it sounds like yours does though.

[lovebug]

Oh lord i totally agree with you and understand 100% my dog is the same way! he would shed like mad! i had dog hair on everything, in everything, and around everything. and the clumps... ugh!!!!

we have found that if we get him groomed once a mth and get his under coat blown out it works really well!it has been a HUGE and i mean HUGE change. it cost more, but for us it has worked wonders!

hope it helps i totally know what you are going through!!! been there and we have found this works for out dog and thank god us too!!! good luck!

[Nicole915]

Is the dog actually developing areas of thin fur or baldness? I suspect your pup will look a lot better shaved than you think. Most good groomers just start the blend at the crown of the head.

You also might want to try a curry brush. They're very affordable (man those furminators are expensive!) and pretty effective for undercoat.

[Shera971]

I definitely feel your pain - I have a huskey!

I would be careful about Furminating your dog too much because it can create small cuts on the skin which can be painful.

With our dog, I find that brushing him makes him shed more. I used to brush then vacuum all the time and one day I got fed up and finally surrended to the fur. Then low and behold, the dog started to shed less. Weird but I wasn't going to complain! The only time its bad now is when he "blows" his coat twice a year (when the days get longer in the spring and shorter in the fall)

[kdmama33]

I can't use the Furminator on him any more than I already do. His skin gets tender and he won't let me near him more than the three days per week.

He is not thinning or developing baldness, either. Like I said, it amazes me that he's not bald by now with the awesome amounts of hair he drops everywhere. I think the dog has an endless supply of hair.

I bathe him about once per month. I could maybe squeeze in twice per month, or start taking him to the groomer monthly in addition to the bath he's already getting. See if that helps. I can also try the shaving, though I am skeptical.

Thanks for the suggestions. I am feeling totally at my wit's end with this situation -- I don't mean to be shooting down all suggestions, it's just that, short of shaving him, I have tried so many things already that haven't made much of a difference and I am totally discouraged.

[greenmagick]

Thats why I dont like the furminator...it gives brush burn really easily. Try a zoom groom and your could alternate between the two to help him not get sore.

Also, with shaving....if you do it have the groomer brush and blow him out really well afterwards. If they offer a shedx or something similar I would do that as well. As I said before, shaved dogs still will shed, and there can be a lot of loose hair right after they get shaved. It does however cut down the volume

[Ola_]

Originally Posted by greenmagick

How are you doing the raw diet? There is really no prep work involved for me except for defrosting and plopping the meaty bones in a bowl. Sometimes I squirt some salmon oil on it or add an egg...takes really no more time than measuring kibble into a bowl

I second that, it really should not take much time at all. I'm curious what you are feeding, perhaps we can tweak it a bit to make it easier on you and better for him at the same time?

[lovebug]

Originally Posted by kdmama33

I can't use the Furminator on him any more than I already do. His skin gets tender and he won't let me near him more than the three days per week.

He is not thinning or developing baldness, either. Like I said, it amazes me that he's not bald by now with the awesome amounts of hair he drops everywhere. I think the dog has an endless supply of hair.

I bathe him about once per month. I could maybe squeeze in twice per month, or start taking him to the groomer monthly in addition to the bath he's already getting. See if that helps. I can also try the shaving, though I am skeptical.

Thanks for the suggestions. I am feeling totally at my wit's end with this situation -- I don't mean to be shooting down all suggestions, it's just that, short of shaving him, I have tried so many things already that haven't made much of a difference and I am totally discouraged.

i would say skip the bath you are giving him and have a groomer bath and blow out his coat once a mth or every other mth. bathing a pup to much can make their skin dry out and make the skin dry and itchy and could even make them shed more because the are itching and disrupting their fur therefor putting more fur on your floor...