A Visitor asked the following question on 1/6/2009
Hello,
I have a 14 yr old yellow lab that I have had since he was 8 wks old. For the past month or so he has been losing his hair in clumps from all over his body. He is not going bald in the areas which the hair is falling out at all though. He still has a solid undercoat everywhere on his entire body. He is strictly an indoor dog and there have not been any changes in his diet. I am quite used to him shedding quite a bit pretty much all year around, but I have never seen anything like this at all. I am finding tufts of hair all over the house. And, the clumps are somewhat sticking out on his body and will fall out by just running your hand over those areas. I have been brushing him on a regular basis since this started, but that has not reduced the clumps from falling out. When I do brush him, I am getting a lot more hair out of him than usual, but it does not decrease the hair falling out on its own. I gave him a bath over a week ago, but that did not change anything either. Of course with him being 14 yrs old, he is slowing down quite a bit, but aside from the hair issues, I am not seeing anything at all different in his behavior or demeanor.
Since he was 5 yrs old he has had a thyroid condition and he takes .8 mg of Thyrosyn twice daily. Otherwise he is not on any medications aside from his monthly heartworm prevention.
Has anyone ever seen or experienced anything at all like this? I am completely at a loss...
Thanks so much for your time.
Christe
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1/18/09
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As dogs get older it can be common for their coats to suffer however it sounds like just a massive shedding session. Sometimes labs go through some kind of stress and will 'blow coat' and you can get those chunks you are describing. However since you mentioned that your lab has a low thyroid and considering his age I would take him in to your vet and get his thyroid tested again to make sure his medication doesn't need to be adjusted. At the age of 14 a dogs bloodwork can change rapidly. Also if you are not doing regular senior blood profiles I would get that done as well. Make sure his kidney/liver are functioning normally. At age 14 this should be done twice a year. Good Luck!
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Elizabeth
SciFi Labradors
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