My Portuguese Water Dog’s skin is dry and flaky? HELP!?
I have a PWD and his skin is really dry and flakes when you pet him. It doesn’t seem to bother him too much but he does itch a lot and its not fleas. What can I do to help him with this problem besides brushing him? Keep in mind Portie’s have hair not fur. Is their cream? Home remedies? Conditoner?
thanks
Wow thanks everyone. Lots of great ideas. I can’t decide who should get best answer. Dog people are the nicest. haha
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Tagged with: fleas • fur • haha • home remedies • Lot • Portuguese Water Dog • pwd
Filed under: Portuguese Water Dog
The spring/fall dry skin syndrome. eh?
Since these guys don’t have an undercoat, their skin takes more of a hit from elements – sun, wind, heat…. all very drying for the skin.
. Do a two-prong approach.
(1) DIET
(a) Up the fats in his diet. I use either fish oil or corn oil.
(b) You might consider switching foods. Solid Gold (one of THE CHOICES of serious dog show people) works very well on dogs with sensitive skin. Even works on Chow Chows who can really get going with the sensitive and dry skin so much that they literally look like they have been shaved in places beacuse they have blown the coat out completely. Can’t buy it at Petsmart or the grocry but they have stores all over. Costs more than Iams but is so concentrated that it work out about even.
http://www.solidgoldhealth.com/
(2) Coat care
(a) Minimize baths. Unless they have rolled in something nasty, dogs don’t need bathed except once or twice a year. They don’t sweat through their skin.
(b) To soothe his skin on an immediate basis, go get some cortaid cream at the drugstore – the strongest they have which is 1% as I recall – and use it on the worst areas.
(c) GO here and get some medicated shampoo and condtioner for dry and/or sensitive skin. This is the supplier used by the serious dog show people. There are different brands they carry – all pretty good and all about 5 times better quality than the stuff at Petsmart.
http://www.petedge.com/
Here are the dry skin and anti-itch shampoos
http://www.petedge.com/jump.jsp?itemType=INDEX&itemID=251
You might want to do a hot oil treatment. If his skin is dry, so is his coat.
http://www.petedge.com/jump.jsp?itemType=INDEX&itemID=103
or a good conditioner (or both)
http://www.petedge.com/jump.jsp?itemType=INDEX&itemID=249
needs to be moistened
Okay, I know my skin gets dry around this time of year too, and one thing that has made a huge difference in our home is to use a humidifier. My Doxie has the same problem, but much better when we got the humidifier last year. Don’t know if your dog resides inside your home, but if so, this may help.
Yep there is a cure for that! You can use head and shoulders for that (no really) and I know this is for horses but people use it as well as all kinds of animals. It is called maine and tail! It is a shampoo and conditioner and it not only smells really great but if you let the conditioner soak in for 5 minutes or so it does WONDERS! I have a cocker spaniel and he has skin problems as it is… his hair is much easier to manage and it cut itching and flakes out all together!
my dog happens to be a big swimmer and I think it does something to their skin this time of year because she has dandruff too. It’s not a big deal, its not like it bothers her, I just brush her every so often.
You have to treat this problem from the inside out. This is probably some sort of skin / food allergy. First try a high quaity dog food such as "Natural Balance" they use different sources of protein due to th fact some dogs over generations, have become "immune" to the goodness in most dog foods of today. Another product that is guaranteed to work or your money back would be "Dr Maggies" this is a supplement that is added to food or given as a treat daily. It’s benefits come from Omega 3,6 &9 fatty acids, Vitamins ADE and lethicin. This product is all natural and tastes like roasted chicken. It works for dandruff, dry skin, skin allergies, hot spots, excess shedding and just an excellent supplement to any diet. The best thing about it is the company guarantees that it will show results in 6-8 weeks or money back. Hope this helps.
It is either dandruff (most likely) or a skin allergy.
If it is either of these, you need to go to your vet and buy a cream or tablets.
Remember, only bathe your PWD when necessary, do not do it every time he gets dirty as he needs all his natural skin oils to keep him in good condition.
It could also be his diet. Are you feeding him top-quality, premium dog food? If not, you may want to try out a more expensive brand, which can always be bought either at your local vet or local pet store.
I have a Jack Russell Terrier with the same problem…the vet told me to put some olive oil on her food and it would help… to be honest it made a world of difference..try it
I HAVE A PORTUGUESE WATER DOG WHO IS NINE MONTHS OLD. SHE HAS BEEN ON STEROIDS FOR MONTHS FOR ITCHING. NOTHING SEEMS TO WORK. GROOMING, CHANGE IN DIET. PLEASE HELP!