# thinning hair?



## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

:rr: *ok older chi owners.....Kemo I think is thinning out. His hair is gone on is elbows, under arms and chest. His groin area which I know is normal is bald. My question is......is this normal? I am just starting to let him go more and more w/out his harness. He plays this annoying game of running all over when it's time to go out so I was keeping the harness on because he is a pain when it comes to putting it on. I always kept the belly part looser just for comfort. I am wondering if a) this has caused the hair to thin out b) it's normal or c) maybe a thyroid problem? His elbows I know have nothing to do w/the harness but he is always on them doing "play bow". It is also spring and I was wondering if this was part of shedding? I am not one to rush to the vet. The elbows were always thin but it seems to have gotten thinner. Please advise if your chi is thin in these areas also. THANKS!!*


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## Pangos_Mum (Mar 16, 2004)

Spring is in the air and I can tell you Pango is the same way. Sounds to me that Kemo will be just fine. I believe that it is normal. Pango's little elbows hairs are thin, his chest is losing alot due to shedding, and well his groin area is like my hubbys' head BALD... So I think you shouldn't worry unless it's a rapid hair loss~than I would call the vet to ask any questions that you may have. Hope this helps! :wave:


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

Pangos_Mum said:


> Spring is in the air and I can tell you Pango is the same way. Sounds to me that Kemo will be just fine. I believe that it is normal. Pango's little elbows hairs are thin, his chest is losing alot due to shedding, and well his groin area is like my hubbys' head BALD... So I think you shouldn't worry unless it's a rapid hair loss~than I would call the vet to ask any questions that you may have. Hope this helps! :wave:


 Thanks Mo.....that is what I thought but............ya never know. His skin underneath is soooo soft!!


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## absolethe (Apr 18, 2004)

My vet recently told me that Puck might have a kind of mange. She said some of the symptoms was thinning hair on the back/underside of legs, around the ears and eyes. She didn't mention the belly...and dogs do shed in anticipation of warm weather, but it is something to think about.


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

absolethe said:


> My vet recently told me that Puck might have a kind of mange. She said some of the symptoms was thinning hair on the back/underside of legs, around the ears and eyes. She didn't mention the belly...and dogs do shed in anticipation of warm weather, but it is something to think about.


Hi I was wondering if you ever found out if Puck had Mange.....Kemo is having weird fur issues. The vet at Petsmart checked for Mites (scraping)and she said there was no sign of them. She put him on an antibiotic. I thought kemo had the Mange too......he is flaking real bad too and I bathed him in Suldane today...so I am waiting to see if that helped. Let me know what happend to Puck.........THANKS


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## absolethe (Apr 18, 2004)

I'm still watching him, because he is not losing patches of fur or anything. I'm about to make an appointment, though, because on the very back of his ears, where they kinda make a little fold near his skull, I think he's getting slightly balder. There's still no obvious symptoms, which is why I've been putting it off, because it costs money to get the test, and if he doesn't have it, well, I don't want to waste money. But he seems pretty itchy...and with my allergies it would be better for both of us to have possible skin problems addressed.

As for Kemo, my (new) vet told me that they could take a sample of the skin and test it to see if there was mange and, if so, what kind.

I wonder if that's the same thing they do to test for mites...? If not, maybe you could suggest it to the vet just for poor Kemo's comfort. Also, have they addressed allergies? We had a Jack Russel with a flea allergy and he would lose hair like crazy, get rashes, and have flakey skin. He would scratch himself until he bled, too. 

(Oh yeah, another symptom she mentioned, which is the one weird thing about Puck that I have noticed, is a "waxy" feeling to the fur. After Puck has been in his cage all day, when I let him out and he leaps at me, I notice he feels almost damp, as if he's been sweating...but, of course, dogs don't sweat. He doesn't smell like pee, just kinda funny. She said that a waxy feeling and an odd smell could be syptoms too.)


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

Mites are the cause of Mange if I am not mistaken and there are several kinds, that was why he got his ear scraped.....He is not itching, it's weird. I bathed him in Sulfodene (something like that) and the flaking has calmed down. But I am doing other things as well. Puck sounds like Kemo except for the scratching. These guys I swear, we do not need to worry about our babies like this.  
The scraping was only $17, not bad for peace of mind. I gotta get on some insurance though, I think w/Kemo I will be needing it! LOL
Pleas keep me posted on the Puckster...OK?


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## absolethe (Apr 18, 2004)

Certainly. I had called right after they suggested it to me to ask how much, but we got cut off and I never called back (I'm really worried about the treatments if he does have mange).

What's the Sulfodene for? Puck seems to have sorta dry skin, and aside from any possibility of mange, I want to learn about things to keep his skin moisturized and discourage excessive shedding.


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## KB (Apr 13, 2004)

absolethe said:


> What's the Sulfodene for? Puck seems to have sorta dry skin, and aside from any possibility of mange, I want to learn about things to keep his skin moisturized and discourage excessive shedding.


 *I just went looking at the pet store to see if they had doggie "dandruff" shampoo so to speak LOL and this is what I found. It's looks and smells like dandruff shampoo. It is suppose to help w/flaking, scaling etc . I think it worked! Then I saw someone else had used this brand and it helped them which made me feel better for choosing it, because at the pet store you only have 100 types to pick from WHEW....who can decide what is good or not?
Also put him on an oil pill, I give him one of my Essential Fatty Acids everyday, I poke a hole in the top w/a pin and squirt the oil in his food, it has Flax Seed/Borage/Fish Oil. I highly recommend it. Humans need it too!*


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## ricoandlola (May 9, 2004)

hi guys! :wave: Ricio is about one and he has this same issue. I read on another post- this same issue. 

Thinning hair is very common in chis. The other people all had their dogs tested- skin graphs- and nothing was found. 

Rico started with extreem amounts of flakes and dandruff. We got a new shampoo and it has helped. His tail is almost hairless along with his belly, parts of the chest, sides of his head and almost all of his legs.

The vet said that it is very normal and there is nothing that can be done. He wished rico could have a full coat - but be happy with what he has!


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