Let the fur fly!!!

[anna_66]

Well, Roxey finally started "blowing coat"! Oh my! I knew she was going to shed ALOT, so that was no biggie, but one of our friends let me come over and we "blowed" her coat with a high powered blower, and WOW is all I can say! I've never seen it snow in June before It was everywhere, what an experience, for me & her. We still only got about half of it out, but my what a difference. She don't feel or look like the same dog! Believe it or not, it's kinda hard to get used to the new look and feel of her My baby is growing up, guess I knew it would happen sooner or later, just later would have been nice! Anyway, she slept like a rock all evening long!
We were told on Monday to wash her down good with Ivory (anyone else heard that this helps loosen the old hair?). Then blow her again while she is wet and it should get pretty much all the rest of her undercoat. If she looks so different now, how will she look after that? Well, guess it has to be done, so it don't really matter does it?! As long as she's cooler, that's all that counts

[Rachel]

Anna, it is so cute how you got the pictures of her lying in the same way in the same spot. Yes, I think I can see the difference. I wish the blow technique would work with Tucker, my cocker, but alas that under coat on him needs to be worked loose with a comb. I think we have finished the long grooming sessions needed to get the majority of it out.

[Dixieland Dancer]

Anna,
My baby is losing his undercoat too! With the weather getting hotter he started to blow coat about two weeks ago and it is hair everywhere. Like you, I am having a hard time getting use to the new skinny version. I give him lukewarm to cold baths to loosen the old hair. It is the fastest way to get it overwith. I use a very mild puppy tearless formula shampoo.

When you say Ivory, do you mean people Ivory soap? Using people shampoos and soap product is not good for dogs skin since their PH levels are different than ours. This can cause excessive drying of the skin and dullness in the coat.

[Stenograsaurus]

LOL, Anna!! My husky is blowing his coat now too. It's amazing the difference. Last year I was thinking that Dakota needs to go on a diet because he looked so thick. Then after he blew his coat, he looked pretty good. All the extra weight was his fur. Snowing in June is the best way to describe it. The snow covers my yard and the neighbors and I have two acres. But the birds are having a field day adding this stuff to their nests. They have soft homes now.

[ramanth]

Woohoo!!! I miss 'blowing the coat' season. When our neighbors two Malamutes were alive, we'd help them with the seasonal blowing of the coats.

Roxey looks great!

(btw- Michigan has June snowfalls... it's called Cottonwood trees. LOL! )

[Ann]

LOL, what a good idea!! Good thing Roxey isn't so cowardly like Tina is, she'd be frightened half to death if we ever tried something like that on her

[Logan]

I wish I could "blow" off a few pounds like that! Your baby does look thinner!!

[AdoreMyDogs]

It's hard to tell from the picture but I know what you mean. Graham does not have any under coat, even the winter but when I adopted Kersey, her coat was so thikck that I couldn't see her skin, even when I seperated the hair! I think she has alot of GSD in her (they are big time shedders) and she does have a couple of black spots on her tongue so I think she may have some chow in her.

When she began blowing her coat I was amazed at how much hair can come out of a short-haired dog! Now that she's pretty much done (I had been brushing her daily to speed along the process), her coat is a bit less soft and it's not quite as showy as it was before she blew it. It took some getting used to but she's comfortable now and that's all that matters This was probablly her first coat blow since she's only about 11 months old.

I think if I would dare try that , hell would break loose !!!!
Of course , Sydney is not a dog , but a cat .
He is scared to death about dryers and fans and everything that blows ; he trusts the vacuum-cleaner , as long as it is not coming to close .......... !!
Brave doggies you have there !!!!

[CountryWolf07]

LOL, how cute.. Anna is blowing her coat also.. but not as crazy, yet. Rosie's shedding as crazy though! LOL, snowing in June.. yeah, that's cottonwood.. we get them here, A LOT! While I was driving around with my instructor, I said to him "Oh look, it's snowing!" - Rachel

[anna_66]

Dixieland~she suggested ivory flakes, but I can't seem to find it any more. I don't know if they don't sell it or what. But she said, like you a mild dog shampoo if I couldn't find the flakes, definately not the dish detergent!

Logan~Oh, wouldn't that be wonderful if we could blow off the pounds!

AdoreMyDogs~Ya, I know what you mean by not as soft, and she does look soooo small, too skinny!