For Those Of You With Dogs With Thyroid Issues

[Guest SillyIzzysMom]

The boy we're fostering is on thyroid meds and his coat is very rough. It feels totally different than our other grey's--more like the coat of a labrador.

 

I'm not sure how long he's been on the medicine--a couple of months, I'm guessing.

 

He's also had a fair amount of hair loss along his back and the skin looks scaly but I was told that that was because of a flea reactivity and now that he's on flea meds they said that will clear up. . .

 

If the rough coat is related to the thyroid problem--how long before it should soften back up?

 

Thanks

Melissa

[Guest tricolorhounds]

I have 2 boys that are on thyroid meds... I don't remember their coats being really harsh, now they aren't any different than my boy who is not on meds.

 

I've tried different oils to add to thier food, the one I like the best is plain old EVOO... extra virgin olive oil

[CaliforniaGreys]

Misty's thyroid was way off, so much that she was losing all her nails. Her coat is a bit rough. She's only been on the meds for I think close to 3 months and no difference in her coat. Although I've been told it'll take awhile to see any difference

[greysmom]

You don't say how long you've had him, but it can take several months for a new non-racing coat to come in for any grey newly off the track. Some are in beautiful condition, but some are also horrible. The flea allergy is probably what's causing most of the trouble, and when that is under control his coat and skin will come back better than ever.

 

Regular grooming and brushing can also help by getting rid of the old coat and stimulating the skin to turn over. My favorite tool is a rubber Zoom Groom - long rubber comb-like things that are really bendy and get the undercoat out slick as a whistle. My dogs also LOVE it as it feels really good to them I guess. All three come running and jockey for who gets first brushies when they see me get it out!

 

You can try adding in EVOO just not too much or he'll get the runs. A raw egg mixed with his food can help, and also supplements with omega-3's.

[Guest TheDoggfather]

Peanut oil in the food. We use it in our feed and you shold see the gleeeeeeeeeam our racers have in their coats. Shoot, our black racers look like they've been dunked in a vat of oil their coats are so shiney

[krissn333]

I would suggest a good bath with an oatmeal shampoo (I like the TropiClean Oatmeal and Tea Tree shampoo), and then maybe start adding either flaxseed oil or Omega-3 fish oil caplets to his diet. If he'll take pills, give them to him that way, otherwise you can add the liquid to his food...the pills are less smelly, but if he doesn't like to take pills, the other route will be easier on you and less stressful for him.

 

My Ace has a very mild thyroid issue and for a while her coat was coarse, but I'm not sure if it had anything to do with her thyroid or not. I've seen a HUGE improvement in her coat since switching her to Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream kibble. It's grain free and it's a salmon based food, so they get lots of those good fish oils

[Guest SusanP]

Has he had his thyroid levels checked recently to be sure the med dose is working for him?

[Guest SillyIzzysMom]

I have been adding that Grizzly Salmon oil to his kibble once/day--I bought that because my Stella has a bald hiney and I read that it was good for coats. Hopefully it will help with Kirk's as well.

 

I checked the bottle of meds they gave me and it looks like it was prescribed August 15--and I'm betting that he hasn't had his levels done since then but I could be wrong. I don't have all his vet paperwork or anything. . .we're fostering with intent and don't live in the same town as the adoption agency, so it's not an easy thing to get him to a vet where they have his chart etc...

 

I could, certainly, take him to my vet for a check, but I will probably wait for a bit--we've got him for another week and a half and then I suspect that I need to take him back up to the regular foster parents in Dallas if we're not keeping him so he can get back into their regular twice weekly meet and greet rotation.

 

I'm very torn--he is a very nice boy. We've had some marking issues, but I really think he's getting better with that and that won't be a long-term problem. He has bursitis in his right hip and can get very limpy--this worries me since he keeps wanting to go out and rowdy with Stella but always come in three-legged for awhile after he does. I'm giving him rimadyl for that but. . .he might honestly do better in a home who just gave him several controlled leash-walks per day rather than a yard to goof around in?

 

Also, we had a couple of thunderstorms roll in last night and he was pretty freaked. My golden, Ruby, is a little thunder-phobic but not crazy, just likes to hide in my bathroom and pant when it storms. But the two of them together got themselves pretty riled up (Stella, our grey, was just watching all the panting and pacing and whining like they were nuts!) I would say that my old Golden's storm-experience was definately worse with this other dog so terrified--being around a calm dog (like Stella) seems to really help Ruby, but Kirk and Ruby had gotten themselves into a bit of a state. Sigh.

 

So, we'll see. So far it's just "like" not "love" so I don't know if we'll be keeping him or not. I figure even if we don't keep him at my house he's had some more housetraining, some stair practice, lots of sugars etc. . .that will help when he goes to another home. And another dog at the kennel has had a couple of weeks in a foster-home that he/she wouldn't have had. But at the same time, I worry: he's 7 years old, limps, has a rough coat (might get better might just be his coat??), takes daily meds etc. . .with all the lovely 3 year old dogs available, how long would he have to wait to find a forever home.