Four Simple Steps to Reducing Your Shedding Problem
A common sense guide to reclaiming your floors and furniture.
The poet said that “sweet April showers doth spring May Flowers.” What he forgot to mention is that June springs dog hair. Summer’s first weeks can bring some of the most intense shedding of the year in our dogs. The need to shed the thick winter undercoat in preparation for growing the thinner summer version can create mountains of fluff that stick to every surface the dog contacts. Even short-haired breeds get in on the act by shedding thick guard hairs that burrow into clothing and carpets so deeply they can only be removed by a vacuum that costs eight hundred dollars and uses an ominous word like “cyclone,” “hurricane,” or “tornado” in its name.
Reactions to this problem vary widely among owners. Some begin vacuuming obsessively in a vain attempt to stem the tide of dog hair that will engulf their home and precious possessions like a mudslide if constant vigil is not kept. Others simply give up and convince themselves that the key to sanity is meticulous color coordination among carpet, furniture, and dogs. Still others will commit to brushing Fido in frustrated marathon sessions only to find they are making so little difference in the overall volume of hair that Sysiphean boulder-rolling looks productive by comparison.
There is hope, however, for the hopelessly hair-covered. Much like cars, computers, and children, dogs require regular maintenance. Most of us are aware that dogs fail to flourish when not walked regularly or fed. What we don’t necessarily realize is that there are some basic maintenance items that can have a profound impact on the amount of hair your dog sheds. Before you lose hope and find yourself in a Pottery Barn asking what color and grade of Greenwich Loveseat best compliments Golden Retriever, there are four simple steps to drastically reduce your shedding problem that you should probably try first.
The Hair Growth Cycle
In order to understand the causes of the shedding problem, it is necessary to understand, on a basic level, how hair growth cycling in dogs works. The growth cycle has four phases. The anagen phase is the growth phase. During anagen, the hair shaft grows for a genetically predetermined length of time. The length of this growth period determines the ultimate length of the hair. Upon completion of anagen the hair enters the catagen phase where the hair bulb detaches from its anchor and shrinks within the follicle. This process allows the hair shaft factory in the follicle to die away and make room for a new follicle to form. During the third phase, telogen, the hair enters a “resting” phase which culminates in exogen. Exogen includes the actual release of the hair shaft and produces the “shedding” that so vexes our carpets and clothing.
Though the hair growth cycle is continuous, at certain times of year the amount of hair in exogen increases dramatically. The increase in shed hair is prompted in healthy dogs by light exposure and climatic changes. A dog that lives outdoors will usually shed its undercoat at a significantly increased rate twice per year, once in the spring as the days get longer and once in the fall as the days get shorter. Because indoor dogs have less exposure to these light and climate conditions they may shed all year round.
Coat Types
Coat type will also affect the amount of hair a dog sheds. A dog with a “double coat” will have a soft, down-like undercoat that is protected by a longer and more weatherproof outer coat or guard hair. Dogs without an undercoat will tend to shed less than their double-coated cousins, but there can still be a great deal of shedding from the outer coat. Some so-called “non-shedding” breeds such as poodles, bichons, and poodle mixes have a single coat made up of longer, softer guard hairs and no undercoat. While it is true that these breeds shed significantly less than their double coated cousins, they will still shed hair regularly.
Health Problems
It should be noted that all of the advice in this article assumes that the dog in question is healthy and free of any medical conditions that might cause a higher-than-normal amount of hair loss. Pregnancy, and the accompanying hormonal changes, can cause a bitch to shed excessively shortly after giving birth. Medical conditions such as mange, hypothyroid, and immune disorders, among others, can also cause rapid and sudden hair loss. These conditions all require the supervision of a veterinarian, and the advice contained in this article assumes that they are not present.
Expectations
Before discussing the four simple steps to reducing your shedding problem, it is important to set reasonable expectations. No matter how effective your arsenal of deshedding products, no matter how diligent your regimen of brushing, there will always be dog hair on your floors, furniture, and clothing if you own a breed or mix that sheds profusely. The realistic goal is to drastically reduce, rather than eliminate, loose hair.
In any deshedding program consistency is critical. A furious effort at the beginning followed by a sporadic regimen in the future will be less successful in the long run than a consistent routine executed faithfully over time. To that end, be realistic about the time and effort that you are willing and able to devote to maintaining your deshedding program.
Now that you’ve set realistic goals and made peace with the idea that into every dog lover’s life a little hair must fall, there are four simple steps that will dramatically reduce the amount of dog hair your dog sheds.
Step One: Regular Brushing
The first step is the most obvious. You must brush your dog. If you have a double-coated or long-haired dog, they will need thorough brushing on a daily basis. There are no magic shortcuts for this step. No tool, no matter how effective, will make up for the lack of consistent, daily brushing. Most dogs with medium to long hair can be maintained with the use of a slicker brush and an undercoat rake. Dogs with shorter hair require slightly less frequent brushing (one to two times per week) with an appropriate tool such as a shedding blade or rubber brush. If you have questions about these tools, please feel free to come by the store and we’ll be happy to show you how to use them properly.
There are a number of commercially available deshedding products that purport to either reduce the amount of shed hair or to make the process of removal dramatically easier. The effectiveness of such products varies widely, and the claims of a product’s manufacturer should be thoroughly investigated before spending a great deal of money. As a general rule, the cheaper shed control devices advertised on television are less effective. There may be exceptions, but they are usually cheaply made and less effective than slightly more expensive products. As nice as it would be to end the problems associated with shedding for $9.99, you generally get what you pay for.
A quality deshedding tool, for example the Furminator, is an extremely effective method for removing loose undercoat when used properly. The narrow gap between the tines of the tool allows it to gather loose hairs in larger quantities than a standard undercoat rake. Deshedding a dog with such a tool will still require time and effort. Their effectiveness lies in efficiency. The same amount of time spent brushing may yield four or five times as much loose hair as you would eliminate with a standard undercoat rake. Improper use of a deshedding tool can lead to skin irritation. Before using the Furminator, or any other deshedding tool, it is important to understand the proper technique. The product’s website has an informative video demonstration, and if you can stop in at the shop we are always happy to show you how to effectively deshed with the Furminator or any other deshedding blade.
Step Two: Regular Bathing
In addition to removing dirt and other foreign substances from the coat, the scrubbing action of a bath will knock out a large amount of the loose hair. When you add in the use of a high-speed dryer, the result can be staggering. Bathing on a monthly basis with a properly formulated dog shampoo will help keep skin healthy and will not remove natural oils or dry out the skin.
There are also several brands of deshedding shampoos and solutions available. Most of them combine essential fatty acids with vitamins and proteins in order to improve the health of the skin and the hair follicle. While these ingredients may reduce the premature shedding of hair due to nutrient deficiency, healthy hairs will continue to fall out regularly.
Step Three: Better Nutrition
The third step is more complicated, but also has the potential for more dramatic results. Nutrient deficiencies are a common cause of excessive shedding in dogs. The lack of proper nutrients supplied to the follicle can result in the premature termination of the growth phase and an excessive percentage of hair follicles in exogen. It therefore stands to reason that correcting potential deficiencies and improving your dog’s overall nutrition will reduce the volume of shed hair. Nutrition requirements can vary widely for individual dogs and many factors have to be considered when choosing a nutrition program. Age, breed, size, activity level, and health will all factor into the requirements for a dog’s ideal diet. The specifics of how these factors fit in to the available choices is well beyond the scope of this article, and may require input from a veterinarian regarding any health problems that must be taken into account. The basic idea is to find a food, or group of foods, that have proper levels of protein, fat, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids for your dog’s needs.
Despite the fact that needs may vary widely, there are some general principles that hold true across the spectrum. Foods that contain high-quality, human-grade ingredients, use natural preservatives (most commonly mixed tocopherols), and provide the majority of their protein value from animal sources (rather than grain by-products or soy) will improve the overall health of your dog and, as a result, can dramatically reduce excessive shedding. If you have more specific questions about finding the right food to reduce excessive shedding in your dog, please feel free to stop by our store and let us help you find the right match.
Step Four: Supplementation
Skin and coat nutritional supplements that purport to reduce shedding in dogs will vary widely in their effectiveness. Most supplements employ a combination of essential fatty acids, biotin, and assorted vitamins and minerals. These supplements can be more effective, especially over the long term, than shampoos or topical solutions. Healthy skin, hair follicles, and hair shafts will maintain a healthy growth cycle and avoid premature shedding. This helps dog owners keep the shedding problem in check with regular brushing.
The purpose of supplementation in this case is to introduce nutrients that are designed to specifically advance skin and coat health and which may not be present in sufficient quantities in your dog’s regular diet. Most quality supplements will contain a blend of Omega-3 (commonly linolenic acid), Omega-6 (linoleic acid), and Omega-9(Oleic acid) in the proper ratio to be effective. Opinions vary on precisely what ratios and amounts are ideal, but for dogs with excessive shedding issues, a ratio between 2:1 and 4:1 Omega-6 to Omega-3 should yield significant results.
Conclusion
We have seen that the problems associated with shedding in our dogs can be greatly reduced through a consistent program of basic grooming, regular bathing, proper nutrition, and targeted supplementation. They can also be reduced through mange, but we strongly recommend against that method. The critical factor for success is consistency. Following any one of the suggestions outlined in this article consistently will make a substantial difference, and following all four could give you back months of your life that you would otherwise spend vacuuming.
Most experienced dog owners develop an ability to ignore small amounts of hair on floors, furniture, or clothing. We tend to chalk it up to one of the small idiosyncrasies of life with dogs that makes every day a little bit of an adventure. The only thing worse than looking around your house or car and seeing dog hair everywhere is looking around and not seeing any at all. Our dogs make our days better, and a little hair in the floor mats is a small price to pay for that, but with a little work and the right tools we can keep those little reminders of our four-legged friends’ presence to a minimum.
