Seriously dandruffy dog

[FayRose]

Very early in January Molly was prescribed a low dose of steroids and some nutritional support stuff called Nutrameg because she was beginning to show signs of itchiness, her coat was looking dry and she had developed dandruff. The dandruff appeared quite suddenly.
The vet decided she was having a major moult which was some of the reason for the coat condition. Molly has allergy problems and has had since she was a pup. It is usually worse in the spring but the vet thought the moult was exacerbating things.

It is now mid Feb and Molly is still very dandruffy. I've brushed her a few times and I'm pretty sure the moult is done, there is not much hair to remove at all but as soon as I brush there is a huge snow storm of dandruff. Her coat otherwise looks lovely again, very soft and glossy. As well as the Nutrameg I also give her the odd drop of coconut oil or a few squirts of YouMove itchy dog in her grub.

Molls has raw food at breakfast, Nature's Menu Country Hunter chunks and in the evening she has JWB kibble with a tin of sardines a couple of times a week. She has been on this diet way before the dandruff started.

Has anyone here had this happen to their dog and if so did you ever get to the bottom of it and, how long did it last? Will be very grateful for some ideas.

 

[Cath]

Annie can be a bit itchy, but she gets a teaspoon of Salmon oil every morning. Her coat and skin are lovely now, she doesn't have dandruff.
Hope Molly is soon better.

 

[snowbunny]

This is probably not related at all, so will be of little help, but Willow gets flaky when she experiences stress. It comes on really quickly. This might just be something relatively innocuous like driving from Andorra to Spain or vice versa, or when she's experiencing her noise sensitivity.
She also gets flaky if I brush her too much, so I only do that when absolutely necessary (a couple of times during each moult).
She now very rarely experiences any flakiness.

Since it's been going on so long, I'd be tempted to have a dermatologist look at Molly.

 

[FayRose]

I did wonder about some sort of trigger as it came on so suddenly but I can't think of what it may have been. Molly can become anxious quite easily but only briefly and this has been going on for almost 2 months. I think you may be right about the dermatologist.
Thanks both.

 

[kateincornwall]

When Sam developed dandruff , I bought some coconut oil, the virgin raw one and rubbed it into his fur, it seemed to help and smelled lovely , plus you can use it in cooking x

 

[Emily_Babbelhund]

Even with regular sardines and other fish in his diet, Carbon still gets flaky skin if I don't give him his tablespoon a day of salmon oil. I ran out when I was in the US and decided it wasn't a big deal (he hadn't been itchy since I started salmon oil) but sure enough, after about 10 days, there came the flakes in his coat.

I agree about getting a vet check, but it wouldn't hurt to start on the salmon oil as well.

 

[SwampDonkey]

I've used omega star oil and am going to try yuderm too. Rory gets druffy when he gets stressed or colitis. Last year he was terrible the omega star worked and his new coat came throw shiny and thick. His coat was dry and faded this moult he's not druffy either. I used them about 6 weeks before he's due to blow his coat. I'm going to use the yuderm next I've tried salmon oil before and that didn't help as much. He's looking very fine at the moment.

 

[FayRose]

Thank you everyone, your comments are very helpful. Thank goodness for MLF and the kindness of members x

 

[Beanwood]

Few things I would consider, increase in dog dander is usually a response to an imbalance somewhere, due to an intolerance, stress (as @snowbunny has commented ) or even external bugs, one flea bite can cause three weeks of irritation and can be virtually impossible to spot as we discovered with Casper. In fact, we never found a flea or fleabite on him, we did though find them on one of our cats.

An exclusion diet switch all food over to a single source protein, novel if possible such as fish or lamb. Not chicken or beef
Check your flea /tick control, especially if she has been in contact with cats or visited somewhere with cats.
Check carefully for any yeast, especially ears, a subtle overgrowth can tip the balance elsewhere.
Invest in a good doggy probiotic supplement with enzymes, to help with gut health
Add a glug of quality salmon oil to her diet.

 

[SwampDonkey]

Can I ask what salmon oil everyone is using? I have a crufts shopping list

 

[Beanwood]

Look for cold pressed Norwegian salmon oil that's the best IMHO, plus packaged in an opaque bottle, as it's not supposed to be exposed to light.

 

[SteffiS]

This is the one I use CSJ , lasts for ages.

 

[Ashley]

I add omega oil, which has made a big difference over the winter with her dandruff. Quinn is also on a single protein food (lamb) with added oils - she still gets dandruff, and it shows with any rubbing - harness or coat especially but it's better this year for sure. I bought a rubber brush that is supposed to help with the skin oils (or something) and I'm not sure if that helps, but she likes it! Quinn is an allergic and stressy dog, so it's probably a combination of things!

 

[Loraseal]

Hunter gets dandruff when he is stressed (long travel to UK always kicks it off) or if he over indulges in protein.

This article explains probiotics and what happens when it is imbalanced. It is quite lengthy but informational!
https://trk.klclick.com/ls/click?up...2FVdmZRYcD09S8CJcW-2FJQSB49jxZoXONI-2BA-3D-3D

 

[edzbird]

I used omega 3 fish oil capsules for Scooby's dreadful dandruff. It cleared - a change of diet, stable stress-free living (compared to his previous home) & fish oil capsules from Nature's Best. Coco & Meg(an) Sparkle both continue on the capsules - their coats are divine.

 

[Stacia]

I use Fish for Dogs Salmon oil, very good. Stress can also bring on dandruff suddenly.

 

[Cath]

Fish 4 Dogs here too.

 

[M.F.]

If you haven’t already, I’d give her a bath to wash off any allergens. It will give her great relief, even if only temporarily while you try to figure out what’s going on. I’d only be using steroids as a last resort. They can be life saving, but also come with bad side effects.

Could you stop the kibble for a while and just feed raw or home cooked and see if there’s a change? There is no knowing what’s in the kibble.

Re the probiotic, you can make your own kefir. It’s very easy.

 

[FayRose]

Re the probiotic, you can make your own kefir. It’s very easy

Can you give me a recipe please?
I use Yuderm itchy dog supplement as suggested by the vet. This contains borage, flax and salmon oil supposedly an effective supplement for dogs with Molly's sensitivities. She has been on the same diet for ages with occasional flares of itchiness which also includes ear, eye and anal gland problems but never this dandruff. Since I went back to using coconut oil too, her coat is now soft and glossy, fine apart form the dandruff.

I'm very concerned now as so many people are suggesting stress as a cause. I can't think of anything that has caused such stress and for such a
long time.
I shall start to change her diet but 1 thing at a time to see if there is any change. Will try the bath too, thanks.

 

[snowbunny]

I'm very concerned now as so many people are suggesting stress as a cause. I can't think of anything that has caused such stress and for such a
long time.

Lots of things can cause upsets in skin health - stress is just one of them that happens to be quite noticeable. It's likely not the cause in Molly's case; I'm sure you'd be aware of it if it were