# Loosing topcoat post neuter



## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Anyone ever dealt with this
8 year old male neutered about 12 weeks ago.
His coat has thinned considerably and is loosing topcoat.

I did switch foods about 4 weeks ago from TOTW to Fromm but similar protein and fats and I think the Fromm is a better product. No itching. No dandruff. No skin irriation or ears or paws. Breath fine.

Coat is somewhat dull and I have upped his fish oil from 3, 1000mg pills to 6 1000mg pills. Looking at using Grizzly Salmon Oil instead. The other dogs look GREAT on similar diet. Thick coats, glossy, etc. The Fromm does have duck which is the primary difference but he has never had dog food issues of any kind.

I am wondering about hormone changes, stress, etc and where to go with it. The activity level has been low due to the broken toe but he seems to be feeling just fine and eating will and full of energy and the toe seems pretty much healed. etc.

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I do plan to take him back to TOTW to remove another variable as his bloodwork was good in it before the neuter.
His bloodwork was good too......


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## Tammy St. Louis (Feb 17, 2010)

probably from the anethetic, thats what i have seen , dogs do a BIG shed after they have been under,,,


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

But almost three months later? He has been under before and never had this happen of course he is also older.

There is stress with the new puppy in the house. Not that I keep them together but the new puppy is an intact male so I am sure Grim has some confusion there. I had mentioned before that he is not covering the pup's urine with his which is unusual for him.


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## Timothy Stacy (Jan 29, 2009)

You cut the balls off your new Malinois?


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Timothy Stacy said:


> You cut the balls off your new Malinois?


No new Malinois here. I cut the balls off of an 8 year old GSD because of a very enlarged prostate gland interfering with his ability to defecate.


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## Maren Bell Jones (Jun 7, 2006)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> Anyone ever dealt with this
> 8 year old male neutered about 12 weeks ago.
> His coat has thinned considerably and is loosing topcoat.
> 
> ...


If he did fine on the TOTW previously, I would switch back and see how that goes. There's a condition in some sled dog/spitz types called alopecia X where an intact dog has a poor haircoat and neutering actually helps. 

http://www.malamutehealth.org/articles/cf_understanding.htm

Do you have a close up picture of his coat?


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

I will upload one tonight. ....it does not look that bad but it looks that bad for HIM.


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## Jackie Lockard (Oct 20, 2009)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> I will upload one tonight. ....it does not look that bad but it looks that bad for HIM.


Not all "great" foods work "great" for all dogs. I'd just switch him back see if that helps, then if you want to switch his food try a different one. Some dogs do great on any food, some do great on mediocre foods. I had a Dutchie who I struggled with for a long time, trying dozens and dozens of foods until I found Purina One worked well for him. Wasn't my first choice, but he did well on it.


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## christina chapman (Oct 9, 2011)

I've heard that a dog will rarely blow its coat immediately after something happens (anesthesia, being _really _stressed out, getting fixed, etc), but it will happen 1-3 months later... 

Maren, is that information correct? (I figure I read it on the internet, so it must be true!)


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## Maren Bell Jones (Jun 7, 2006)

Christina, I'm not a dermatologist, but stress induced hair loss how you describe is called telogen defluxion and the timing of when it would appear would probably depend on what stage of growth the hairs were in at the time. Looks like it takes between 1-3 months to appear. I have not personally found it to be very common.

http://www.vetstream.com/equis/Content/Disease/dis01389

I have had foster dogs with poor hair coats do the opposite and shed out their formerly poor quality coat and have a nicer one grow back in between 3-6 weeks later once they get on better nutrition.


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## leslie cassian (Jun 3, 2007)

Throwing this out...

Has he spent a lot more time indoors than he usually does? Just wondering if, like my experience with horses, that without the usual seasonal cues - light and temperature and whatever else - he's shedding out and not growing in a winter coat?


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## Thomas Barriano (Mar 27, 2006)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> No new Malinois here. I cut the balls off of an 8 year old GSD because of a very enlarged prostate gland interfering with his ability to defecate.


NO shit? ;-)


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Thomas Barriano said:


> NO shit? ;-)


Hard painful shit. But his peeing was just fine. Go figure.


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

leslie cassian said:


> Throwing this out...
> 
> Has he spent a lot more time indoors than he usually does? Just wondering if, like my experience with horses, that without the usual seasonal cues - light and temperature and whatever else - he's shedding out and not growing in a winter coat?


Probably about 2 hours a day difference I wonder if that is enough........


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## Jennifer Coulter (Sep 18, 2007)

Some dogs grow MORE undercoat after being neutered. Could the undercoat be getting longer (fuzzy) and outgrowing the hard outer coat in places?


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Ok this is a comparison shot.

Normal coat









Current coat along flank and leg - more like his summer coat 









I guess the main thing is just seeing the guard hairs falling out. Normally when he blows coat it is the undercoat.

He has never had a lot of guard hairs on the front of his back leg...but he has lost more but mainly along the flanks so that I can see a thicker stripe of black hair along his back. There is some missing from being shaved for an ultrasound but that is mainly not seen in the photo. Regrowth has been very slow.


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## Jennifer Coulter (Sep 18, 2007)

yah, that doesn't look like what I was talking about.


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Jennifer Coulter said:


> Some dogs grow MORE undercoat after being neutered. Could the undercoat be getting longer (fuzzy) and outgrowing the hard outer coat in places?


No I rub my hand across him and dry brittle guard hairs just come off. If I pinch him and pluck, I only get guard hairs. That is what is unusual. I am used to undercoat shedding.


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## Tammy St. Louis (Feb 17, 2010)

i would say yes 3 months later you can get anestethic shed, has he been cleared of cancer? if he had prostate issues, maybe its something to do with that ?


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## susan tuck (Mar 28, 2006)

When they did the blood work did they check his thyroid?


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Not sure. Going in on the 5th for something else so I am going to ask about that, too. I was thinking that could be an issue......


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## Christina Kennedy (Aug 25, 2010)

thyroid was my first thought as well. reactions to food often takes 1-4 months to show.


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## vicki dickey (Jul 5, 2011)

I have had this happen with an aussie I rescued. He lost his entire coat -looked like a short haired dog with some long straggled hairs here and there that I shaved off. After the major shed his coat came in beautifully. I contirbuted it to the many things that occured to him all at once-stress, new although tons better food, and neutering(loss of hormones). He lost it over a period of 2-3 months. The hair just kept shedding -mainly the top coat-even his feathers down his legs. He ended up looking like a plunked chicken. BUT like the ugly duckling he turned into a beautiful swan. It was almost worth losing although I didnt take him anywhere for months.


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## Leslie Patterson (Mar 6, 2008)

Interesting. Endocrine problem? and/or allergies, stress, you can find info on the web. Have you talked to your vet?
http://www.2ndchance.info/alopeciax.htm
http://www.mirage-samoyeds.com/skin.htm


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Going in on the 5th for his already overdue rabies shot. So I will be armed with things to ask.


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## Jennifer Coulter (Sep 18, 2007)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> Going in on the 5th for his already overdue rabies shot. So I will be armed with things to ask.


If thyroid or autoimmune issues are suspected, I would try to delay the rabies shot at least until dog is doing well again. I am not an expert in this area, but you might want to discuss this with your vet too.


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Jennifer Coulter said:


> If thyroid or autoimmune issues are suspected, I would try to delay the rabies shot at least until dog is doing well again. I am not an expert in this area, but you might want to discuss this with your vet too.



Yes, I already delayed it due to the enlarged spleen. (And I am enrolling him in the hemangiosarcoma study). No signs of issues there that was another big thread.......and it seems to have shrunk.


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