Normal? Not normal, help!

[SHADOW_THE_STAFF]

Hi, as most of you probably know I have a 14 week old staff puppy called shadow. She has black/brindle fur and I have noticed she has dandruff. I dont know if the only reason I've noticed it is beacause she has black fur. Its not flaky, just little white dots, u know like the size of a grain of sand. Is this normal? Can I only see them because she's got black fur?

She's only been bathed once, that was yesterday, beacuse when we went out for a walk she jumped in a bog! I try and brush her at least every other day, Im trying to do it every day now so she gets used to it, cos she keeps trying to bite the brush.

She is on naturediet puppy wet food ( Chicken, Lamb, Tripe, Carrots, Brown Rice, Egg, Natural ground bone, Seaweed, Minerals, Vit A 1250iu/kg, Vit D3 150 iu/kg, Vit E 20 mg/kg) and Wafcol hypersensative Salmon and potato dry food (SALMON (32%) POTATO (16%), POTATO STARCH, LUPIN, LINSEED, RAPSEED OIL, SEAWEED MEAL, VITAMINS AND MINERALS. PROTEIN 29% OIL 8% ASH 8% CRUDE FIBRE 8% VIT A 15.000IU/KG VIT D3 1.200IUK/KG VIT E 150MG). I bought the wafcol hypersensative, not because she has sensative skin, but because it was the best dry food available.

She used to get sardines once a week, which I was told by the breeder were good for her coat. But one week it was a particularly hot day, she threw them up, and she hasn't touched sardines since, really doesnt like any type of fish, apart from salmon, but i figure she's prob getting enough of that in her dry food?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks :)

[showpug]

A small amount of dandruff is not uncommon in puppies, especially terriers. The type of coat your staffy has makes it more visible because the hair is very short, smooth and dark. A lot of time dandruff can show up after a bath. I would make sure your dog is on the best food that you can afford and I would add salmon oil (made for dogs) to her diet every day. This really helps keep the coat in perfect condition, dandruff free and it also helps prevent the inflammation that allergies can bring on. I give it to my dogs everyday and sware by it. :) Side note: Give the salmon oil about 6-8 weeks to take effect before you will notice results. I also wanted to comment on the fact that your puppy is just getting wet food. Wet food is actually lacking in protein compared to dry food and their coat can suffer if they don't get enough protein/amino acids. I would add dry kibble to your dogs diet and mix in wet food for added flavor instead of feeding wet only. ;)

[Fran27]

I suggest fish oil too. You can go with grizzled salmon oil (Mordy said you can find it in pet stores, I haven't got any luck, but you can try), or order some at www.seapets.com. I got my bottle after 5 days.

[BagelDog]

Yeah, you notice it especially well in your pup cause he's black. My black and tan dachshund has terrible dandruff, and its flares up after she gets a bath, which can dry out the skin. Dog conditioners can help, and kitten shampoo with conditioning beads that help prevent hairballs (I froget the brand) worked wonders on Pepper!

[SHADOW_THE_STAFF]

Can you use fish oil for human consumption or is it just fish oil especially made for dogs? Showpug, she is on dry and wet food, its in my original post she has Wafcol salmon and potato dry food. Wont the addition of fish oil be too much? As she has salmon everyday (in the dry kibble). This is the best UK food I can find, the indgredients are good and were listed in my original post.

[Athe]

Has she had the flakey skin for a long time? or just since the bath? if just since the bath I would say some shampoo was left in the pup's coat. The diet you have your pup on sounds wonderful. Instead of adding kibble I would try a few raw meals throughout the week. Fresh meats have all the essential enzymes etc. once you cook the foods then you lose the benefits of the foods.
Read this article it sounds very helpful.
http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/coat_problems_and_repair.htm

[juliefurry]

my pit mix had really bad dandruff when he first came home as well. I switched him to a better diet and used a shampoo made especially for flaky dandruffy skin and it is much better now. I think the food had the most to do with it though. Yeah if your dog is black it's going to show up a lot more though.

[Pitty]

You can change the shanpoo u used or use some fish oil..
It happened my dog too.. But don`t bath her so soon..

[CharlieDog]

Old thread alert!