Coat Questions

**goldenmom** · 03-20-2002, 08:33 PM

I have a blonde Golden Retriever who is 15 weeks old now. When I first got him at 9 weeks his coat was extremely thick and fuzzy. Tucker and his litter mates spent a great deal of time outside so I know a lot of his coat was the thick undercoat. Since I don't leave my dogs outside he began shedding the undercoat right away which I expected. His coat was very woolly almost to the point of looking like a lamb especially on his hips and legs. He has lost most of it now but I am noticing a lot of bare spots (he does have hair on these spots, it's just very thin) mostly on his hips while the rest of the coat has become much thinner. It also has NO shine to it but is getting softer. Now all that remains of this lamb like coat is the bottom of his legs.
I began giving him a supplement from Doctors Foster & Smith called "Vita Coat Plus" that you add to his food. I noticed today that his bowl movements are soft and grainey and I was wondering if this could be caused by this supplement.
He seems thin to me but I did ask the vet and she said he is lanky(and has huge paws!) but he has very good mussle tone. I'm giving him over 3 cups a day of Nutro Natural Lamb and Rice Puppy formula.
Is this coat problem normal with Golden Puppies or am I worrying to much about him? He has a vet appointment next week and I will be sure to ask the vet once again about this. He just looks awful at the moment and of course with all the rain we have gotten in the last few days, the mud just sticks to him!!
I only have Kaylee to compare him with. She has always had a beautiful silky, soft, shiney coat, nothing like his at all.
Judy

**Logan** · 03-20-2002, 10:28 PM

Oh, Judy, I have no tips for you. But I can remember my girls being "bare" at times as their puppy coat left them and the adult hair grew in. Ask the vet, and hopefully someone else will have better answers. I'm basically "bumping" you back up to the top!!

**C.C.'s Mom** · 03-21-2002, 05:05 AM

My Golden Retriever girl is now almost 9 months old now, and when she shed her wintercoat (my goodness... so much hair all over the place!) she had bald patches here and there too. The hair grow back though, a nice soft and shiny coat.

I didn't give any supplement, only added some oil to her food.

**Dixieland Dancer** · 03-21-2002, 11:00 AM

One of the things that people don't understand about the GOLDEN coat is that it has two layers. There is an undercoat and a outer coat.

All that fuzzy stuff that the little bundles of joy have when they are puppies is usually undercoat. When they shed undercoat the outer coat is usually shed too and you will have some light bare spots until the coat starts to grow in again. It is normal.

Another thing about the GOLDEN coat is that it is NOT suppose to be silky. The breed standard has the coat discription as dense and water repellent with good undercoat. Outer coat firm and resilient, neither coarse nor silky, lying close to body; may be straight or wavy.

There is a difference between silky and shiney though. You don't want a silky coat but you do want a shine in the coat. I love to see shine in a Golden coat because it shows the dog is usually fed a good quality food and getting proper nutritional value and because when they are out in the sun it glistens like real GOLD!

Most GOLDENS do not come into their full coats until they are around 18 months old. That is why when looking at a pups coat when they are 8 weeks old is not a really good indication of how the coat will be when grown. Usually a variation of the sire and dam are a good indicator of what the coat has the potential to be.

All of that being said, the most important thing in having a great coat is what you feed your dog! You are doing good with the supplements but you may want to research what food you are giving. It's kind of like computers! GARBAGE IN GARBAGE OUT!!!

**goldenmom** · 03-21-2002, 11:15 AM

Dixie,

I was under the impression that Nutro Natural Lamb and rice was one of the better foods to give a golden. Never thought of it as Garbage. For one it does not contain any corn or corn meal, wheat and the first ingredient is lamb. Also does not contain any fillers or BHA OR BHT. If I am wrong please let me know. I know Kaylee is doing wonderfuly on this food but I know each dog is different and may require a different food. I have been reading about Wellness and have been seriously thinking about making a switch at least for Tucker.
Now I just call Kaylee coat silky because her coat is very soft and shiney, but I have been told by the vet her coat is beautiful and I want it to stay that way!!
Judy

**Dixieland Dancer** · 03-21-2002, 11:58 AM

Originally posted by Dixieland Dancer
All of that being said, the most important thing in having a great coat is what you feed your dog! You are doing good with the supplements but you may want to research what food you are giving. It's kind of like computers! GARBAGE IN GARBAGE OUT!!!

OH NO! HERE I GO AGAIN PUTTING MY FOOT IN MY MOUTH! I did not mean it the way it appears! I should of proofed myself before submitting.

What I meant was.... I am not familiar with Nutro and do not know if it is a good quality food. You may want to research to find out if it is.

After YOUR research, if you determine it is not a good quality food then the results of feeding it are the same as the garbage in, garbage out saying.

Sorry for any confusion or misunderstandings.

**goldenmom** · 03-21-2002, 03:39 PM

Dixie...I didn't take offense to it!! I knew what you meant! It is very easy to take things the wrong way on these dumb computers...since you can't hear the tone of someones voice, who knows how the others are going to take a comment. Believe me I have had my own mis-interpertations taken! Nothing will replace real human contact!
I just wanted to know if I should look into a different type of dog food to help Tucker out. Maybe I am missing some key ingredient that would be better for him.
Judy