Moulting question

ShayK1

Hey,

First post here in the the Pet Issues forum. I'd appreciate any advice.

Myself and my g/f rescued a German Shepard cross in January from http://www.ashanimalrescue.com . We have him in the house almost all of the time and he's great. I'm aware that German Shepards loose a lot of hair all year round but does it get worse when the weather warms up a bit?

In January and February he left a decent bit of hair around the place. A good vacuum once a week was ok. But now he's dropping the same amount in 2 or 3 days.

Just wondering if its normal?

Can we do anything to speed up the process?
If we got his hair trimmed would he loose less of it?

andreac

He could be losing his winter coat now. Dogs usually shed twice a year. If you try brushing him once a day outside it should help to get rid of the hair and have less in your house.

But when they are shedding theres a serious amount of hair alright. I have a rottie and they are short coated and the amount that comes off him is unreal when hes shedding.

ShayK1

Thanks for the reply.

I have been brushing him but its so frustrating. I'd spend 5 minutes in one area and the hair would still be coming. I didn't realize they shed twice a year. When can I expect the 2nd shedding?

andreac

Usually around autumn time when they lose their summer coat. Dogs will moult a little bit on a regular basis anyway, so expect hairs around the house daily,
When my rottie is shedding i brush him and the hair that comes off is unreal, you keep brushing and brushing and it still comes.

ShayK1

hhmm ya learn something new everyday. I didn't know they shed their summer coat. I just presumed it grew into a winter coat.

Thanks for the info.
I guess its time for more brushing so.

HappyTails

Try brushing him with a slicker brush. Also, brushing the hair backwards (with each stroke starting towards the back and moving towards the head) will speed up the process. Try not to brush your dog in one spot for too long, you might end up damaging his skin, especially if you're brushing every day.

Sigma Force

I'm too lazy, I brush both the dogs but a few times a year both dogs (ones a collie so similar hair to a gsd) go to the groomers, they do a great job at getting the undercoat brushed out. I usually just keep brushing and removing the loose fluffy bits of coat and then when the coats nearly out let the groomer give them a really good wash and brush out. They always do a better job than me.

But you can invest in a few good brushes and do it yourself also seven seas moutone tonic (available in pet shops/vets/hardware shops) is brilliant for moulting dogs or even the seven seas conditioner tonic. Great for their skin and coat but won't prevent hairs every where.

There's also a groom mit you can get which is handy.

ShayK1

HappyTails wrote: »

Try brushing him with a slicker brush..

What do you mean by slicker?

ShayK1

@Guineapigrescue: The groomer sounds like a good plan.

Are there tell tail signs as to when he's nearly finished?

Btw, he's not a pure GSD so he doesn't have the really long hair, which I'm kinda glad about Maybe I'll post a pic...

ShayK1

This one is the one that was on ASH's website.




This is him shortly after we brought him home.



And this one probably gives the best view of his hair length.

LeahBaby

ShayK1 wrote: »

This one is the one that was on ASH's website.




This is him shortly after we brought him home.



And this one probably gives the best view of his hair length.

My GSD has that exact length coat. It is a nightmare!!I find dust puppies everywhere!!I have to hoover every second day. TBH you just have to get used to it. My fella has taken a fancy to being hoovered. It actually reduces the hair and he loves it lol!

Lauragoesmad

Our king charles that we had used to shed loads. Even when you brushed her everyday she would still loose loads of hair. From the time she was about 2, we came up with the brilliant idea to hoover her with a hand hoover on the lowest setting while brushing her. She absolutely loved it and it really kept the hair in the house down. Some dogs are scared of the noise though but she was used to it as our groomer used to blowdry her hair after a bath.

p.s. Your dog is gorgeous!!!

ShayK1

Lauragoesmad wrote: »

Our king charles that we had used to shed loads. Even when you brushed her everyday she would still loose loads of hair. From the time she was about 2, we came up with the brilliant idea to hoover her with a hand hoover on the lowest setting while brushing her. She absolutely loved it and it really kept the hair in the house down. Some dogs are scared of the noise though but she was used to it as our groomer used to blowdry her hair after a bath.

p.s. Your dog is gorgeous!!!

I had a go at hoovering him. He didn't seem to mind it but it didn't seem very effective either. I wasn't brushing him at the same time though.

Thanks for the "gorgeous" comment... we like him. We call him our handsome man :-)

Lauragoesmad

No worries.:D

tk123

OP have you tried a shedding blade? They're brialliant for getting the loose hair off - use it out doors thought because there will be LOADS of hair flying all over the place. I have one for the cat and he loves it!

ShayK1

tk123 wrote: »

OP have you tried a shedding blade? They're brialliant for getting the loose hair off - use it out doors thought because there will be LOADS of hair flying all over the place. I have one for the cat and he loves it!

I've never heard of a shedding blade. I've just been brushing him regularly. It seems to be helping. Btw, your sig is excellent. I got some of them but I'd love you to know them all. Maybe you might PM me with the movie titles ?

MsFifers

Hi - I find the Zoom Groom quite good. As its rubbery the loose hairs will stick to it. I have a semi-longhaired cat who is shedding like crazy at the moment, but I find if I give her a good run over with the Zoom Groom it pulls out loose hair and cuts down on shedding for about a week or so.


http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_grooming_care/combs_brushes/93802