Dry skin on puppy.

 I wouldn't use ANYTHING by Hartz. They're known for selling products that cause horrible reactions.

Is Simba getting fish oil on  his food? That makes a big difference! I use Sea Pet 200 with vitamin e already added in. They only need a tiny bit (the smallest bottle will last you a month or better, with a puppy), and it really helps dry, itchy skin.

jennie_c_d

 I wouldn't use ANYTHING by Hartz. They're known for selling products that cause horrible reactions.

 

Is Simba getting fish oil on  his food? That makes a big difference! I use Sea Pet 200 with vitamin e already added in. They only need a tiny bit (the smallest bottle will last you a month or better, with a puppy), and it really helps dry, itchy skin.

 o.o Really? I didn't know that....I used another shampoo as well as that one, and a conditioner not Hartz brand. I used to use Hartz on Toby and nothing ever happened to him. :-s 

No he doesn't, but we've been using proderma. I believe that's the name. We get it from our vets. Which is suppose to keep their coat shiny and healthy.

hartzvictims.org is a site made up just for animals who've become ill or died, from reactions to Hartz products.

 Yeah I just found that. Eeep. :-s I told my mom we're not using that again or anything hartz. That's so horrible!

Not sure if this has been discussed previously, but what are you feeding him? IME, a lot of skin and coat problems can be fixed with a change in diet. Try feeding a high quality grain free food, like Innova EVO, Wellness CORE, Taste of the Wild, or Canidae Grain Free. Jennie's idea of adding fish oil is also great.

Try to avoid overly shampooing. Shampooing can dry out the skin even more and strip oils out of the fur and off the skin, causing more irritation. So if you want to shampoo, try something mild (generally a hypoallergenic shampoo is good) with minimal ingredients.

tenna

Not sure if this has been discussed previously, but what are you feeding him? IME, a lot of skin and coat problems can be fixed with a change in diet. Try feeding a high quality grain free food, like Innova EVO, Wellness CORE, Taste of the Wild, or Canidae Grain Free. Jennie's idea of adding fish oil is also great.

Try to avoid overly shampooing. Shampooing can dry out the skin even more and strip oils out of the fur and off the skin, causing more irritation. So if you want to shampoo, try something mild (generally a hypoallergenic shampoo is good) with minimal ingredients.

I feed him Science Diet's Large Breed puppy formula.  Today was the first time I gave him a bath.

 Science Diet often causes flaky skin. I can't tell you exactly why, but MOST of the dogs I groom that eat it (and one of mine eats one of their RX formulas, so I'm not *totally* biased!) have a super soft, heavy shedding coat, and flaky skin. Try out one of the higher end diets.

jennie_c_d

 Science Diet often causes flaky skin. I can't tell you exactly why, but MOST of the dogs I groom that eat it (and one of mine eats one of their RX formulas, so I'm not *totally* biased!) have a super soft, heavy shedding coat, and flaky skin. Try out one of the higher end diets.

I didn't know that. He's had the dry skin since we got him though. It seems to be better now, but I'll look again tomorrow. What type of food would you recommend, as well as shampoos?

punkchica321

I feed him Science Diet's Large Breed puppy formula.  Today was the first time I gave him a bath.

I would get him off the Science Diet and on the a higher quality food. For the price you are paying for the Science Diet, you can get a much better food. Here are the firs 10 ingredients for SD Large Breed Puppy:

Ground Whole Grain Corn, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Dried Beet Pulp, Chicken Liver Flavor, Animal Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), Fish Oil, Flaxseed, Soybean Oil, Iodized Salt

Science Diet is full of hard to digest grains, and not so full of high quality meat products. The first ingredient is Ground Whole Grain Corn. Corn is a common allergen, and a common cause of skin and coat problems in dogs. It's hard to digest (think of what happens when you eat corn!) and as a main ingredient, is really just a lot of filler and not so much anything worth eating.

The second ingredient is chicken by product meal. The AAFCO definition of chicken by-product meal is “a meal consisting of the ground, rendered, clean parts of the carcass of slaughtered chicken, such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs and intestines, exclusive of feathers, except in such amounts as might occur unavoidable in good processing practice.” So those by products could be things like chicken feet! Sounds icky to me.

The third ingredient is another corn product, Corn Gluten Meal. Again, another hard to digest filler. Regardless of whether dogs should be eating corn, it at least should not be the main source of protein and nutrition, as it is difficult to digest. Dried Beet Pulp is also a common allergen in dogs, and can cause skin and ear infections. And Animal Fat is another questionable ingredient - you cannot figure out the origins or quality of "Animal Fat."

Personally, I feel this may be the cause of all your problems. I'd ditch the Science Diet and switch to something like Wellness CORE or Innova EVO or another grain free food. Here are the first ten ingredients of Wellness CORE:

Deboned Turkey, Deboned Chicken, Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Potatoes, Dried Ground Potato, Tomato Pomace, Natural Chicken Flavor, Canola Oil, Chicken Liver

And the first ten ingredients of Innova EVO:

Turkey, chicken, turkey meal, chicken meal, potatoes, herring meal, chicken fat, natural flavors, egg, apples

 And the first ten ingredients of Taste of the Wild Wetland Formula

Duck, duck meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes, peas, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), potatoes, roasted quail, roasted duck, smoked turkey

Can you see the difference? Remember, your pup is a carnivore!

According to PetCo.com, a 35lb bag of the food you are feeding is 51.99!! That's a lot of money for a bag of corn. You can get a 32lb bag of TOTW off Amazon for 41.99!

 Hm, I'll have to check out those other products. I'd like for my pup to have a good diet. Thanks for your help hun! I'll talk to my parents about it. :)

punkchica321

 Hm, I'll have to check out those other products. I'd like for my pup to have a good diet. Thanks for your help hun! I'll talk to my parents about it. :)

Remember also, higher quality foods often have more calories per unit, and are more easily digested. This means you will be feeding less food, and the puppy will be producing less waste. All good motivators to switching to a higher quality food! ;)

Sometimes dogs get dry skin in the winter time just like people do from the dry, heated air.  Running a humidifier may help.

 Tootsie gets Grizzly Salmon Oil daily, along with Vit. E. Her coat is to die for, also she only gets bathed once a month the at the groomers.

punkchica321

 Hm, I'll have to check out those other products. I'd like for my pup to have a good diet. Thanks for your help hun! I'll talk to my parents about it. :)

Parents often balk at the expense, so please tell them that while the higher quality foods are more expensive per bag, you actually feed less because usually the kCal per cup of food is higher.