Flaky Husky?

flying solo

flying solo

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Hi

I always seem to pop in here when things go wrong as I always get great advice so unfortunately I'm back for some more.

I have a 2 1/2 yr old Husky who is moulting like never before! A carrier bag a day and I still have fluff balls roaming about the house! The thing is her coat is really flaky which is new. She's always been fed raw meat with the odd egg. Anything else including fish gives her the runs so her diet is meat. Is there anything I can do to help the skin apart from medicated baths (booked into see the vet on thurs incase he can prescribe a shampoo that I can't buy)?

Any help would be great, thanks x
 
Northern breeds can suffer from zinc deficiency that can manifest in a dry coat and skin.

Seal oil, Kelp, and oily fish (or fish oil capsuals if fish affects her) are very good for coats.

My young malamutes had flaky skin during their first moult, but kelp tablets sorted it out.

If you do bath her, make sure you dry her properly, so her skin doesn't get sore.

Look into getting her onto a more balanced raw diet - try different ways of feeding fish, and don't forget raw meaty bones - great for firming up poo's! Eggs, live natural yoghurt, pureed vegetables, cottage cheese, all parts of the animal - liver, heart, tongue, kidney etc.

There is a really good raw feeding sticky on here in All About Dogs - some very knowledgable posters!
 
Thanks misterjay, I will try the kelp tablets. I studied the raw thread like it was a bible and tried so many different things and apart from chicken, bones, lamb, beef etc she won't eat anything else or it doesn't agree with her. Thanks for the advice, it's much appreciated :-)
 
I wouldn't worry. Some of mine go flaky when they blow their coats, soon returns to normal. Salmon oil is good and of course zinc supplementation is always wise in anything Husky / coat / skin related. We have a couple that need Zinc for part of the year (winter) and we use Nutrazinc.

Has she recently been spayed? I ask this because once that's been done it often results in a thicker coat with Huskies and that would explain why she's moulting more than normal.
 
Suzy she hasn't been done yet. I have no intention of breeding its just every time I go to get her spayed she shows signs of being in season! When this season finally happens she'll be done straight after. I'm feeling a lot more relaxed knowing that other dogs get 'dandruff' I have honestly never seen a dog with this.

How will I know if she needs zinc and when to start/stop using it? sorry probably sounds silly. I find it's difficult to explain stuff to the vet, he disapproves of the raw diet (made feelings very clear before) so when ever I have a problem he always puts it down to her diet, which I know probably doesn't help. unless I keep her on a hill's prescribed diet and prednisalone the way I feed her is the only thing that works unfortunately.
 
Great to hear your views on spaying. Six weeks after her season and you should be fine.

Anyway, the classic signs of ZRD in Siberians are lesions around the muzzle, ears and eyes (with ours 2 it's just round the muzzle, 1 is round the eyes). It looks a bit like ringworm. Kind of red, scaly patches of skin. Huskies and other Northern breeds evolved on diets rich in fish and this diet is high in digestible zinc and vitamin A (needed for zinc absorption). Many diets now either don't have enough zinc, or the zinc isn't easy enough to digest.

Most of ours that get 'flaky' when coat blowing have never shown signs of ZRD. They just get flaky when their coats are shedding. The rest of the time you never see any issues and their coats are lovely. I do give the 'flakes' salmon oil (fish4dogs) when blowing coats and it helps a lot - it's just an extra boost.

For adding zinc - we use it when we see the signs and start reducing when the signs go. It's just trial and error. The effects are seen within days. Ours that need it only do so when the working season is underway. Most others I know are the same with their dogs. Ours are all fed the same (fish based and also raw meat) but only a couple need supplementation.

If it's just flaky skin, and only when moulting, I wouldn't suspect ZRD. As for your vet, Hill's...no surprise as I suspect they get extra cash for flogging it. Thankfully my vets aren't like that and frequently comment how nice it is to see ours as their teeth are great and they aren't overweight (unlike most dogs they see). They very very rarely see them other than for vaccinations.

PS I really wouldn't go to the vet unless your girls coat also smells different. Let her finish moulting first and see how she is.
 
Thank you so much I will try everything you have suggested from tomorrow, it's great to meet people who have experience of these things rather than a vet 'guessing' or going through the process of elimination.

I really do appreciate your help
 
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