My dog has really bad dandruff, what can I do?

Question

She scratches a lot and when I brush her there is dandruff like skin pieces in the brush. I feel bad for her, what can i do?

Answer 1

Use Head-and-Shoulders shampoo!

Answer 2

Now, don't you be talking about this in front of her. You think that she can't see the dandruff? And think of this. All of the canines at the dog show will be whispering to each about ''Did you see Hillary? I know that I wouldn't come to this dog show with such bad dandruff. Oh well. Much easier for us, eh? Does my butt look big in this new haircut?' All right then. Get her some nice Head and Haunches Shampoo that is carried by the more discriminating vets. And give Hillary a 'Woofs up?' from me, would you? That's a good girl! Good girl!!! And I think that Hillary is a good girl too! Yes I do! Yes I do!!!

Answer 3

In most cases dandruff (white flakes appearing on your pet’s coat) is easy to home treat. Your dog’s skin is constantly creating new cells and shedding the old. However, when the when the skin-replacement cycle is out of balance, you will see an overabundance of the white flakes. Dandruff may also be caused by a parasite, hormonal imbalance or may indicate liver disease. In eastern medical models, the liver and skin are very closely connected – the point here is that you should have your vet check out dandruff to rule out a serious underlying disease. For home treatment your best bet is to bring the oils back into balance. Dogs require the proper amount of fatty acids in order to have healthy, dandruff-free skin. Switch to a home-prepared diet (recipes on our site) and add our Flax Oil. In a few weeks this problem will vanish and the skin will return to normal. Give your dog plenty of exercise and brush the coat daily. Exercise will stimulate the organs of elimination and brushing will help to bring the skin’s normal activities back into balance. Often you will see larger amounts of dandruff in the sacral region. An excellent homeopathic treatment is Sulphur 6x given 3 times a day for 2 weeks. This is especially indicated for the dog that has a strong ‘doggy’ smell or if the skin is red, warm or even hot. When the scales come off in large flakes, particularly in older dogs

Answer 4

Shampoo is not going to help you. Your problem comes form the inside out. You need and better quality dog food, I personally am a believer in RAW but either way you should be adding some kind of omega 3 fatty acids to your dogs diet, this can come in a variety of forms. You could purchase Cold water fish oil from a quality pet store Flax oil form the grocery store or you could just give him a sardine once or twice a week. Hope this helps

Answer 5

Sounds like she has very sensitive skin or a skin infection. There is special doggy shampoo for sensitive skin that can help her out by moisturizing. I had a golden retriever with this problem. If you notice that she is scratching more than usual and the sensitive skin dog shampoo doesn't help, you may want to ask the advice of a vet. My dog developed terrible sores from scratching.

Answer 6

Use Head and Haunches..

Just Joking, but seriously..I had a German Shepard with the same problem..we bathed him in Avon's Skin So Soft, and fed him a diet rich in added minerals and fish oils to promote skin health..

Answer 7

i have a pointer puppy and he had really really bad dandruff and we started feeding him eukanuba dog food and his dandruff has dramatically decreased. it was suggested by our vet. its a bit more expensive but it does the job and his coat is very shiny and he very rarely scratches anymore. i suggest trying it. its about $30.00 for a big bag.

Answer 8

SELECTING A PET FOOD
http://www.api4animals.org/articles?p=361&more=1

Dog Feeding Info (top 10 foods according to the WDJ and specific health diets)
http://www.dogaware.com/

Answer 9

There are great skin conditioning products on the market today in Petco, etc. including special shampoos or spray on, etc.

Answer 10

Wash her with an Oatmeal shampoo.

Answer 11

Our dog had this problem and it turned out she had some kind of an allergy.....you may want to get it checked out. (All the other suggestions sound good too!)