10 Week Old w/ Dandruff

[jphunt21]

Hello! I am new to BW and need some advice please! Drake Caesar, my beautiful 10 week old has dandruff! We have bathed him twice and his puppy shampoo has aloe in it , but did not help!
Only had him for 2 weeks!Is this normal for Boxers? What can I do? He itches alot but no fleas, just dandruff!

 

[HRCant]

Mine is 18 weeks, we've never had a dandruff issue, but my vet said to bathe him with Baby Shampoo, it's less drying than regular puppy shampoo and smells better. We use Johnson and Johnsons.

 

[Shefra]

Our Quincey had dandruff too because we live in such a dry climate. Our vet suggested putting one capsule of salmon oil in his food each day - you can get it at any drug store/ walmart/ wherever. It has made a world of difference. No more dandruff and his coat is so soft and shiny. Good luck

 

[bustermom]

Dandruff is usually the sign of a food allergy. My chihuahua used to flake like a snowman :eek: whenever he ate cheese - he would kill for cheese, but it just made him itch like mad.

I would suggest no more baths - they do more harm than good unless your pup is covered in mud. We bathe our furkids about twice a year and just use baby wipes or quick warm water rinses in between baths. Frequent bathing, with ANY shampoo, will dry out his skin and make the problem worse.

What are you feeding him? A change of food may be in order, as well as a fatty supplement like salmon or flaxseed oil. Take a look in the puppy feeding forum for good quality kibbles... here's a link to a recent thread about selecting a good food:

http://www.boxerworld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=40062

Oh, and welcome to BW!! :D

 

[Tulsa-Dan]

Never use people shampoos on dogs. They have different ph factors and people shampoos are not good for dogs. Including baby shampoo.

Buy lanolin/aloe/oatmeal based shampoos which are formulated for DOGS and are quite mild. Also, frequent bathing is bad, not good. Boxers have no undercoat and frequent bathing dries their skin more than other breeds.

Tell your vet who suggested baby shampoo he needs to go back to school and start looking for another vet. This vet obviously is lacking in good common sense as well as ideas to solve the dandruff problem.

I agree with Bustermom, this is an indication of a food allergy. You should check into our feeding forum for information on good quality foods which you can choose to feed your dog. Additionally, you can add Omega oils to your dog's food (available at any health food store), which will be of tremendous help in maintaining soft, supple skin on your dog.

Good luck.

 

[Draymia]

One other thing to consider is that your pup may have CHEYLETTIELLA mites that are also referred to as walking dandruff.

They are a small mite that is visible to the naked eye, although very, very small. Kind of like the size of a period. They cause intense itching and also cause problems with humans. The mites will bite humans and it is usually around the belt line, etc. They itch like a chigger bite.

I would suggest you take your pup to your vet and have him check. They are pretty rare, so many vets don't look for them first.

You can do a search on the internet for them and get lots of info.

Of course it could be diet related and just be dry skin.

 

[jphunt21]

Thanks!

Thank you for all your great replies!within a couple of hours we have gotten Drake different food(on the food list!) and salmon oil. Hope it works! Will also keep an eye out for possible mites! He is such a blessing to our home and we just want him to be comfortable!:D

 

[Tulsa-Dan]

I'm glad you found some suggestions you will try.

Good luck and I hope Drake's skin problems clear up quickly.

 

[boxer4]

Originally posted by Draymia
One other thing to consider is that your pup may have CHEYLETTIELLA mites that are also referred to as walking dandruff.

I agree, take him to the vet for a skin scraping.
Our Jake and Maggie had dandruff when we got them it looked just like dry skin. It WAS mites and boy do they make you itch, they are also very contagious to any other animals they come in contact with. Poor Caesar and Brandi ended up getting them too.
Peg, Jan
Caesar, Brandi, Jake & Mags

 

[Russell]

You may also be bathing too often I was told not bath my dogs very much because of their short hair and sensitive skin what I do is give them baths every two months and when they get smelly or dirty(like every day) I wipe them down with baby wipes or doggie wipes I also use this spray stuff called Nature's Miracle you can get it at any pet store it smells great and helps with the dandruff!! Good Luck!!

Heidi

Mommy to Zeke and Zoey:D