# Dry skin and hardly any hair on my chi's back!?



## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

My Chihuahua Cami has very dry skin and hardly any hair directly down her spin. I thought that this was something that she inherited or she was just born with....so I started putting NuHemp Omega Sauce in her food each day, the ingredients are: canola oil, cold presses hemp seed oil, natural flavor, and rosemary extract. This NuHemp kind of helps the dryness but doesn’t help a whole lot. 

She doesn’t itch at her back, and the hair there is very coarse and not soft like the rest of her body.

I was thinking her food might be causing this?
She eats Natural Balance chicken formula, she doesn’t really like it that much but I thought it was a higher quality food so that’s why I continue to feed it to her....

Will switching brands help her skin issues? And if so what is a better brand to feed?

Here are some pictures


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## michele (Jan 12, 2009)

I think a vet visit,could be so many things,allergy,mites,fleas,food


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

That is so funny! Well, only funny because Matilda has the same "stripe" of darker/coarser hair down her back while the rest of her is silky smooth.  When I started her on red meat formula of EVO (we'd previously fed the poultry formula) her coat got VERY VERY soft. We've since switched to raw & even the coarser hair is getting smoother & the silky smooth fur is growing in under the darker/coarser stuff. So for us, it seems to be diet related. Does the Natural Balance have a red meat formula?? If so, I'd try adding a bit of that into her diet. I'd be very curious to see if it would help her since the red meat seemed to help Matildas identical problem.


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

It could also be her color. Blues carry a gene for alopecia (baldness). Diet and supplements may help though, as Mchi's pointed out.

You might want to try a 100% salmon oil instead of the plant oils. Some dogs do better with an animal based oil for skin/coat. Grizzly or Plato makes a good one.


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

I have made a vet appt. for tomorrow morning just incase it is something like mites. And I didnt know that blues carried that gene so that might actually be what is it because she doesnt itch at it or anything. 

If it is diet related I will have to try a red meat food.


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

I wondered about alopecia with Matilda but she doesn't have any baldness other than a bit on her head which is typical of Chi's anyway. The darker/coarser fur always made me wonder though.  

And I just snapped this so you could see Matilda's back...it almost looks like the ligher colored fur is "baldness" but it's not. The light color fur she has is SUPER soft & velvety (even gets darker if you rub it up like velvet does!) and the darker - while it's gotten softer is still much coarser than the lighter hair. Anyway, I just thought it would be neat to compare "stripes". LOL


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

hello! ur not the only one with this. a couple of our members chis suffer from this including my dexter. when he was a pup he was all fur and nothing was missing but then couple months passed by and hes itched and had dry skin. i checked wit the vet and they did a skin scraping and it wasnt mange so thank god for that. then i cheked it was food allergy but couodnt afford the allergy test so i doubted on it. then i thought it was laundry detergent but nope. then finally i dcided to change my shampoo and conditioner to jonh paul and his fur was softer! also tried salmon oil but didnt help what made his fur shine more was the halo oil.  hope its nothing serious


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

Heather thats exactly what Cami's stripe looks like! 

I will update everyone on what the vet says tomorrow after the appt.


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

Good luck - I'm curious to hear what the vet says!


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## smallbeats_m_all (Nov 22, 2009)

Brodysmom said:


> It could also be her color. Blues carry a gene for alopecia (baldness). Diet and supplements may help though, as Mchi's pointed out.
> 
> You might want to try a 100% salmon oil instead of the plant oils. Some dogs do better with an animal based oil for skin/coat. Grizzly or Plato makes a good one.


Yes, Yes, and yes! I just hoped on the site and I had the exact same prob with my bungee, she better now....after researching about it.
Is called CDA (color dilution alopicia) is harmless really, all of your dogs hair strands air weaker than normal and very sparse. skin is dry and flakey and sensitive.
one thing that i do with bungee is every week or so i slather her body, especialy the dry, naked spots with aloe vera gel. She trys to rub dry, which is hilarious to watch but once it soaks in her skin is wonderful!
and other than lotions and creams the gel does not leave a residue on the skin for a tongue to find . Good luck at the vet and ask lots of question but make sure you research yourself. Vet don`t always have all the answers


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## BellaLina's Mom (Mar 16, 2007)

Your Cami's thin fur looks like my Bella's fur when we first adopted her. Bella is a chocolate blue smooth coat chi. 

When we first brought puppy Bella home, she had bald spots, thin hair, and dry itchy skin. We found out that Bella has allergies and a sensitive stomach. Eggs, diary, and grains were the main food culprits. Through trial and error, we found that Wellness Core (high protein, _grainless _dog food) worked for her. We add 1000 mg. fish oil, dog vitamin supplements, and natural food enzymes once a day into her dog food. We also shampoo Bella with a herbal, no detergent dog shampoo. Bella's fur grew back very soft and shiny and she no longer has dry skin.


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## LDMomma (Mar 28, 2009)

Our one pup struggled with dry skin/itching. We made a series of changes. What works for her is Wellness Core food (although probably any grain-free would do), SOAP-free shampoo and conditioner for baths, a skin/coat supplement, and a daily multivitamin. This cleared up her dry skin.


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

The vet has confirmed what I thought she had CDA or color dilution alopicia...there is nothing really to worry about, he said she is otherwise in perfect health. He said that he isnt sure if changing her diet would help or not, but I think it will. I picked up some samples of EVO, Innova, and Solid Gold but I am not sure which one would be the best for hair growth.


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

Hmm, I wonder if that's what Matilda has...just a milder version?? I'll have to ask the vets next time we're in. 

We've fed Solid Golds Just a Wee Bit, EVO Chicken formula & EVO red meat formula for kibble & the only time I saw a significant difference in her coat is when we put her on the EVO red meat formula. Oh & we also tried to give her Welactin (which is A high-potency fish oil containing a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids) the vet gave us for Maxie for dry ear tips before switching to the red meat formula & didn't really see a difference in Matildas coat...for what it's worth... The red meat really seemed to make the difference for her. But also...you may want to ask what Harry is fed. I can't remember their screen name?? But Harry has been "hairless" for a LONG time & after switching his diet he's starting to grow back some hair too. So you may get an idea from them too.  

Good luck - I'm glad to hear it's not anything serious!!


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

Yeah there is just so many dog foods, and recalls all the time its really sad. I almost want to start making all the Camis food myself


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

I just ran my own trial and error test lol  I lined up Cam's current food, EVO, Innova, and Solid Gold and almost everytime she chose Solid Gold and the times she didnt choose that she ate EVO.....

Turned her nose up to Innova and Natural Balance!!!


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

ilovemychiCAMI said:


> Yeah there is just so many dog foods, and recalls all the time its really sad. I almost want to start making all the Camis food myself


That's exactly what we did. We did home cooked for a little while, (complicated and lots of supplements) then pre-made raw, (Ok, but the more research I did, the more I was convinced they didn't need all the fruits and veggies included and it wasn't fun to eat) then eventually to prey model raw. Couldn't be happier. Best food switch we ever made and I would never go back to kibble again.


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

I really want to go raw, I think when I go back home for the summer I will try it then. My vet told me that I didnt need to do raw because everything a dog needs is in kibble...and I asked a family member who is a vet tech and she said the same exact thing. Its like they are taught to say that in schooling or something. I think they just want to continue making there money!


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## Brodysmom (Jan 8, 2009)

ilovemychiCAMI said:


> I really want to go raw, I think when I go back home for the summer I will try it then. My vet told me that I didnt need to do raw because everything a dog needs is in kibble...and I asked a family member who is a vet tech and she said the same exact thing. Its like they are taught to say that in schooling or something. I think they just want to continue making there money!


ah yes, the couple hours they get on dog nutrition in veterinary school is paid for by the big companies, namely Purina and Hills. Dog food is a multi billion dollar industry, of course they don't want people to think they can feed their dogs naturally. There's lots of info out there so do some research and then make up your mind as to what is best for you and your pups!


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## Tink (Oct 14, 2009)

When I rescued Tango he had a variety of health issues, and one of them was a patchy, scaly coat, very dry, coarse and thin. The ONLY thing I did for this problem was to switch him from the crappy store brand food he was being fed to an ultra premium food--Evo Innova Red Meat Small Bites. Within a month his coat showed marked improvement, and now, as an adult, he has a luxurious, thick, soft coat that's glossy and smooth, with no scaliness or irritation of any kind. It continues to amaze me what astounding improvements it can make to a dog's health and vitality to do _nothing more_ than feed them superior food.


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## roughhouse (Mar 1, 2009)

Neeci is blue and has the same exact stripe! She isn't missing any fur and she isn't dry but the fur down her spine is darker and coarser. Since she didn't have any other symptoms of a problem I just chalked it up to being the way her fur is. Maybe I will try a red meat formula and see if it makes a difference. I have been considering going raw but I am too chicken just yet.


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## MChis (Oct 13, 2009)

roughhouse said:


> Neeci is blue and has the same exact stripe! She isn't missing any fur and she isn't dry but the fur down her spine is darker and coarser. Since she didn't have any other symptoms of a problem I just chalked it up to being the way her fur is. Maybe I will try a red meat formula and see if it makes a difference. I have been considering going raw but I am too chicken just yet.


That is too neat that our blue Chi's all have these darker "stripes"! Matilda sounds exactly the same as Necci & isn't missing any hair & her skin has never been dry but yes...the beef definitely helped her fur, even the darker stuff, become softer! So good luck if you try that....and I hope you guys update if you do try it. I'll be very curious if other pups have the same result.


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

I am gonna have to try the Evo red meat blend....


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## ilovemychiCAMI (Jan 12, 2010)

Is it okay for Cam to eat EVO red meat small bites if she is only 7 months old?


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## Tink (Oct 14, 2009)

ilovemychiCAMI said:


> Is it okay for Cam to eat EVO red meat small bites if she is only 7 months old?


Absolutely. It's a food for all life stages. Tango's been on it since he was 8 months old, and Jazz since she was 4 months old. They're both doing extremely well. 

Don't forget, ancestrally pups weren't transitioned to some kind of special puppy food, after weaning. That's something that has only come into being in more recent times. Dogs have survived for thousands of years without any kind of transition from mother's milk to prey.


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## Ihave2 (Oct 18, 2009)

ilovemychiCAMI said:


> I am gonna have to try the Evo red meat blend....


Everyone seems to recommend this but I got some samples and mine didn't like it. They did eat the Evo salmon blend though. The shop owner told me that Evo came out with the salmon blend because another major company (forgot the name) couldn't get the fish they needed for their product so Evo jumped in and made the salmon one. Mine are on Innova adult but because of finances at the moment I've had to mix some Authority with it. (Only because the area I was in at the time didn't have any pet shops open late on Sunday and when I got to town it was too late in the day. And, I didn't know PetSmart sold Blue Buffalo, as I've since heard.) Not my choice but I would've mixed the hmmm....I think it's Innova's Healthwise which is a step down in price if I could've gotten it. I was told Innova came out with it when the recession hit so that those that couldn't afford the Innova could afford it.


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