Shedding

Is there any way to calm shedding down at all?

I dont know why but the past 2 weeks Sparky has begun really shedding like mad, maybe it's his coat changing from being neutered or age?

Im not sure how to reduce shedding per se, but I must admit that the furminator is the best product i have ever purchased for the dogs. Whilst I dont use it on them everyday, i do tend to make a point of doing it at the very least maybe once a week, although whilst brushing Holly and Murphy each day, it does remove much of the dead hair.

Starters though, is definitely the furminator.... cuts down dramatically on the amount of hair being left on carpets, sofas etc. (They should pay me. I tell so many people about that nifty little gadget).

I recommend hoovering everyday:v*cuum: as I can't control it even though I brush them regularly!! It's a pain but I get lots of love in return!!
Also I got rid of all the carpet around the house over a period of time whiach was fantastic!

How old is Sparky? ...I so love that name! I have a 10 month old b&t that has a light coat that hardly sheds at this point. I understand that this will certainly change as she gets older but I'm crossing my fingers all the same hoping that she won't heavily shed.

We have a problem with shedding too. I must try the furminator, is that good for fine coated cavaliers? In spite of daily brushing, we have tufts of tumbleweed floating down the hall. We don't have carpets or fabric couches any more but she gets onto the beds and we need to vacuum beds daily and wash weekly.
As we have a bitch we notice that mid way between heat cycles the shedding is particularly bad then after coming off heat she develops a beautiful coat with only mild shedding and happily this phase can last for several weeks.
Sins

petcrazyme said:

How old is Sparky? ...I so love that name! I have a 10 month old b&t that has a light coat that hardly sheds at this point. I understand that this will certainly change as she gets older but I'm crossing my fingers all the same hoping that she won't heavily shed.

Click to expand...

He's 1 on Sunday, he had quite a light coat but since he's been neutered it seems to have gotten thicker (but that could also be age too!)

I ordered a new mason pearson brush for him as he's a bit picky with brushes so maybe I dont brush him as often as I should! I looked at the furminator but he dosnt like the slicker brush so I'm not sure if he'd take to the furminator or not!

I dont have any carpets (except on the stairs) & I sweep daily!

Dottie is now 17 months and we have had her since she was 6 months old. She has had two major sheds so far. Her first was when she was about 10 to 11 months old, then it went down to a minimum easily handled by daily brushing. She started another big shed about a month ago, which lasted about 3 weeks, and is now almost back to normal. From what I have read, and heard from other Cavalier families...this is pretty normal, to shed quite a bit two times a year. There is also some genetics involved whether the dog is a light or heavy shedder I think.

Claire, our rescue who is about 7 or 8 years old, had her coat clipped short in early October when she was vetted. She has shed very little so far, but her coat is growing back little by little.

During heavy sheds I just buy the multi pack tape rollers to use on my and my guests clothing, refuse to wear black, and daily sweep up alot of hair bunneys rolling around on the floor. We have hard wood floors and leather couches which makes clean up a snap. Our family room which is an extension of the main house does have a good grade commercial carpet which I chose in a multi color of rust and tan to hide the hair between vacuuming. :v*cuum:

If your dog does not have a really thick bouffy coat I would caution against regular use of the Furminator though. I bought one and was amazed at how much hair was coming off Dottie, thinking it was just dead loose hair. However, I think it was cutting the coat in addition to pulling loose hair off, so I just put it away.

Dublin said:

He's 1 on Sunday, he had quite a light coat but since he's been neutered it seems to have gotten thicker (but that could also be age too!)

Click to expand...

Maybe the wooly coat thing has nothing to do with being neutered or spayed. At 10 months Maisy still has a very light coat with just a bit of feathering. There is not much to brush and so far sheds very little. But in terms of her coat, it has always been very very shiny, silky and rich in colour but I've noticed that on her back she is starting to get thicker and it doesn't have that shiny look to it. So I wonder if it is possible that this is just a maturity thing ..?? If I had had her spayed by now then I'd be blaming the coat texture change on that fact when in truth it would have happened anyway (spay or no spay).

Hair City!

Hair on the floor drives me mad, and I have to deal with quite a lot of it! I brush all the dogs at least once, if not twice, per day and feel like I am fighting a losing battle. The floor downstairs gets swept at least once a day (if not twice, if it is really dodgy) and the carpet gets done 3ish times a week. It gets so annoying when I come down in the morning and there are tumbleweeds of hair around the place. I find if the dogs are not brushed the hair concentration on the floor increases quite a lot so def brush brush brush! It can get so frustrating...

Ah, you do it because you love them though! :luv:

Dont anyone laugh, but I use the Hoover with the small, soft bristled brush attached to go over the dogs. They love it.

Heh Heh, I guess it's easier to hoover the hairs off the dogs than hoover the curtains!! You must have very very well behaved dogs,The moment our hoover appears madam either takes refuge in her crate or battles the hoover all the way down the hall!:v*cuum:
Obvious question, does it actually work??
Sins