As your puppy grows and changes, grooming is one of the most important things you can do to ensure that they grow up healthy. Dog coats shed naturally to get rid of old, damaged hair.
However, if your dog’s coat sheds too much, that may be a sign of a few ailments, depending on how old your dog is. It may be something having to do with your dog’s health, or it may have something to do with you not taking proper care of your pet.
Either way, if you’re unable to diagnose the issue at hand, be sure to take it to a vet so they can check your pet out. First, you can try to rule out grooming issues. If your dog is still a puppy, and they’re shedding excessively, that can just mean that their adult coat is coming in, and you need to continue brushing them thoroughly every night so that their puppy coat will eventually be replaced.
In fact, once some dogs begin to mature, their owners get their old coat trimmed to expedite the process. Another grooming issue could be that you’re using chemical-based shampoo.
Chemical-based shampoo can lead to faster hair loss in older dogs and irritation in younger dogs. If it’s not a grooming issue, it can be a number of ailments causing unnatural hair loss.
First, check to see if there are any parasites on the dog. Parasites such as lice, mites, and fleas can cause excessive shedding very easily, and they’re fairly common. It may also be from a bacterial skin infection, such as mange.
Some medicine can also cause hair loss as a side effect. It could also be something more serious, such as disease or skin cancer. If your dog’s fur is coming off in dry clumps, take them to the vet immediately so they can be diagnosed and treated.
To prevent excessive shedding in your dog, there are a few things you can try. First, be sure to bathe them regularly. Baths help wash away any old, dirty fur so it doesn’t end up around your house or on your clothes.
You should also brush your dog regularly, more frequently for longer-haired breeds, so you get all of their shedding out at once. Go over their fur once with a wire brush to get out tangles and mats, and then with a softer brush made from bristles. There are even some silicon mitts on the market that are great for grooming shorter-haired dogs.