Coat Condition
Healthy true coat condition comes from nutrition & maintenance, it does not come from a bottle of shine shampoo or spray.
Nutritional deficiencies are the most common cause of dull coats typically from a lack of healthy fats in the diet. Every dog is an individual and some may simply need more of certain nutrients than others.
Healthy Fats adding a healthy fat in the form of real food not supplements to your dogs diet every day is great way to boost your dogs coat condition. Whilst supplements can be helpful, supplements should always be additional to real food.
Get started today with 6 healthy fats to include in your dogs diet.
Zinc - When Zinc is lacking in your dogs diet, it can lead to dull coat, hair loss, skin ulcers, skin thickening and cracking over joints and paw pads as well as dandruff, so make sure your dog is getting various sources of Zinc in their diet, the following list will give you some ideas but does not encompass all foods that contain Zinc:
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Red meat
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Poultry
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Seafood (oysters, crab, lobster)
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Eggs
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Legumes
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Seeds (ground)
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Beans
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Nuts
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Whole grains i.e. Oats, Brown Rice & Buckwheat
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Dairy products i.e. Kefir, Raw Goats Milk, Yogurt
Biotin - Biotin is one of the Complex B vitamins. Dogs treated with anti-biotics may become deficient in Biotin and some dogs may simply need more than what the average dog requires and getting from their diet.
Whilst biotin deficiency is considered rare, there was a study of 119 dogs that had skin conditions and when they were treated with Biotin for 3-5 weeks, 60% of them were seemingly cured and 31% showed an improvement and 9% showed no change. Some breeds seemed to better respond that others with all German Shepherd Dogs responding but only minimal Poodles responding. The dose was 5mg biotin per10 kg body weight per day.
The skin conditions the dogs were affected by included:
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Dull coat
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Brittle hair
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Hair loss
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Scaly skin
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Pruritus
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Dermatitis
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You may have come across on the internet that you should not feed raw eggs to a dog as it will cause a biotin deficiency...gah...the internet...there's more to this than this very lazy statement. You'd have to be feeding quite a bit of egg whites which is where the issue is to be getting a sniff of the issue, as mentioned earlier, Biotin deficiency is quite rare and in fresh food feeding, you're generally feeding foods that are quite rich in Biotin. Dogs Naturally Magazine make the statement that you would need to be feeding around 8 eggs per day for it to be a problem and I'm not sure what size of dog they make that reference for.
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Foods that are rich in Biotin include:
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Egg Yolks
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Legumes
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Nuts and Seeds (ground)
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Liver
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Sweet Potatoes (cooked)
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Mushrooms (cooked)
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Bananas
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Broccoli
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Brewers Yeast & Nutritional Yeast
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Avocados
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Oats
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Wheatgerm
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Spinach
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Antinol Rapid - Antinol Rapid is a supplement for dogs with joint disease as well as acting as a preventative of joint disease. Antinol Rapid is a broad spectrum omega-3 and one of the first things people notice is that their dog coat condition improves. We recommend Antinol Rapid over other fish oil supplements because it is safe from heavy metals, safe for Dalmatians (low in purines), C02 extracted, doesn't have the rancidity issues other fish oils can have and most importantly contains types of omega-3's that are actually beneficial to your dog. Australians, contact The Balanced Canine Sydney for an online supplier with free shipping if you need such a supplier.
Copper - If Copper is lacking in the diet can result in a dull, dry coat with patchy hair loss and loss of normal hair pigment, coat can take on a “washed out” appearance.
Foods with good amounts of Copper include:
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Liver
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Oysters / Oyster meal powder
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Spirulina
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Shiitake mushrooms (cooked)
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Nuts and seeds (ground)
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Lobster
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Leafy greens such as spinach, kale (cooked) and Swiss Chard (Silverbeet)
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King Island Bull Kelp - this wonderfully healthy kelp found in Tasmania, Australia has been attributed to assisting with the growth, thickness, colour & shine of animal coats.
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Bull Kelp is beneficial because:
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It contains prebiotic fibres to promote good gut health
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It is a lovely source of iodine without having to be worried about overdoing it
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It contains 60 different minerals and vitamins
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It contains 21 amino acids
The Balanced Canine stock a King Island Kelp product with canine dosing, click here.
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Get Brushing - many dogs go through molting cycles and abnormal weather conditions can interfere with seasonal drops, daily brushing is a great way to help the coat be at its best. For short-coated dogs, a rubber brush can do a great job. For longer coats or special needs coats, speak to your breeder or a local groomer about how to best care for your dogs coat.
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