Hi,

We have a 4 year old golden who is losing his fur everywhere. This is not a normal shedding period for him and we are at a loss for what could be the cause. We have ruled out mites, bacterial infections, thyroid and are now battling down the road of allergy testing. Has anyone had a golden who had severe hair loss due to allergies? He has progressed for itching over the spring/summer to hair loss late this fall ... we are still wondering if it could be the early stages of a thyroid problem...any input or help would be appreciated. On top of this he seems to have a yeast overgrowth on his body....

Thanks!
Melissa

Do a full thyroid screen (not just the t4) - and I probably would do it through Dr. Dodds if you've had the thyroid tested before.

Our vet we have right now for my thyroid dog (Jacks) freaked out when she saw his T4 (routine 6 month retest) numbers. This a week after our other vet said they were steady and where they should be.

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Brooks (for the first time in his 7.5 year life) started shedding his fur in clumps this fall. I was concerned and took him to the vet for a thyroid re-check (he has been taking thyroid Rx for a couple of years) and blood work. Nothing seemed to be wrong so I guess he was just "blowing his coat"

yeah - the fur loss our guy has is excessive to the point of skin showing and his entire coat just not looking healthy and smelling - I guess our vet checked his T4 and some other free T values (not sure exactly what was checked in addition to the T4)...

Other than shedding, did you found his skin colour tuning to black colour? If yes, I guess it was allergy. You may exam his skin to see any inflection that cause smell.

A full thyroid panel would have been sent out--a vet can't run it in house though they can do limited testing. Also, low normal in goldens needs to be treated with meds--not all vets are up to speed on this as they look at the dog falling within the the "normal" range and stop. My 11 yr old boy came to me practically bald with darkened skin and his vet records showed years of being treated for allergies--I ran a thyroid panel and sure enough he was low. He immediately started growing hair back once on thyroid meds. He also has shown zero signs of having allergies since I've had him which is soon to be a year.

Melissa

I would get him to the vet asap so this can be properly diagnosed. He must be freezing and very uncomfortable and itching!

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Tonka & Tucker

SNOBEAR at the Bridge
Dec. 23, 1999-March 27, 2010


SMOOCH at the Bridge.
Feb. 14, 1999-Dec. 7, 2010