BrittClarke Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 Hey everyone, My current pup is my first border collie and is now 9 months old, so this is really the first time I'm seeing what kind of seasonal shedding I can expect from him and his breed. He's been shedding a lot lately, which I assume is normal for the season, but his coat has definitely changed in appearance. I've attached some pictures. Am I going crazy? Does it look to those of you more experienced with the breed that there is some thinning going on around the sides? Maybe some dullness? Or does this look pretty normal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcv-border Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 Pics are not clear (to me), but just some suggestions: Adult coat coming in Seasonal shedding (as you suggested) Nutritional Thyroid issue BTW, my red tri has never had a luxurious shiny smooth coat except for a short time when he was a teenager despite fish oil supplement. And I have also tried coconut oil. And I feed him high quality grain-free food (and some raw every so often) so I am hoping he gets complete nutrition. His mother was described as 'grizzled', which, from pics of her, I am interpreting as wavy, grayish-tinged, fluffy coat. Thus, another option may be genetics - what type of coats did his parents have? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrittClarke Posted September 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 His parents were both black and whites. I recall the father had a very thick, fluffy coat. It's hard to say how shiny it was because when we met him he was dusty from being around on the farm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teresaserrano Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 When they change coats, there's a phase when most of the coat is already shedded on the sides but the top still has the long hairs. I was surprised of how much thiner Tess looked after her first shed, and it didn't happen all at once, sides went first. It could be that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrittClarke Posted September 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 When they change coats, there's a phase when most of the coat is already shedded on the sides but the top still has the long hairs. I was surprised of how much thiner Tess looked after her first shed, and it didn't happen all at once, sides went first. It could be that. That's exactly what this sounds like. We're in the middle of testing for other things, but it's comforting to know that it's not necessarily a symptom of something larger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingfisher7151 Posted September 9, 2015 Report Share Posted September 9, 2015 I think an adolescent coat is probably a good part of it. That said, I've also had the same observation as gcv-border. I have yet to see a red dog that has the same glossy coat as a black one, particularly the lighter red dogs. The "chocolate" looking dogs come closer. It's not a sign of poor nutrition, it's just different properties to the hair. The same way a grey horse usually doesn't shine like a bay one. The coats are still beautiful and healthy, but a different look than the tight, sleek coat of most black-based dogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gideon's girl Posted September 10, 2015 Report Share Posted September 10, 2015 My red and white has food hypersensitivity issues and his coat quality is an early indicator for how he is doing on a particular food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted September 10, 2015 Report Share Posted September 10, 2015 I have yet to see a red dog that has the same glossy coat as a black one, particularly the lighter red dogs. The "chocolate" looking dogs come closer. Interesting. I have a dark red (liver), my first, and I've been fretting about how I can never seem to get his coat really shiny. As it is it takes a good bit of salmon (almost twice the recommended amount for his weight) plus coconut oil to keep him from getting really dull and flaky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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