Coat care advice please
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Welcome. I use the furminator on my girls ( and you're right, no feathers) and they have beautiful abundant coats. I bathe weekly with a mild, diluted shampoo and rinse, rinse, rinse. I use a high quality food ( Fromm, Acana, Innova are all ones that cycle thru our house) and also a human grade fish oil. We alternate the Carlson's Finest Fish Oil and Icelandic Pure Fish Oil......... makes a huge difference in coat and is also very good for joints and any other inflammatory process.
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I don't use a furminator as it "breaks" the coat but I do use an undercoat rake but only when the dog is wet/damp. For day to day grooming, I spray the dogs with a 50/50 mixture of Listerine/water before using the rake.
One of the most important rules about golden grooming is to do it on a regular basis to avoid very lengthy sessions. As well, regular grooming catches any matting before it becomes a major issue (& pain for your furkid) and any irritations/hotspots/health issues that can arise.
Grooming isn't a big deal for my three as they're on the grooming table at least twice a week. They actually enjoy grooming & wait their turn on the table.
As far as shampoo, we use Alexander's Own Blue Max - no perfumes, nice shine, a nice clean smell and you don't have to use a whole bottle (dilute 5:1) Alexander's Own is a product line developed by Canadian professional handler, William Alexander.
We do use human grade Salmon Oil gelcaps (Cloverleaf) - 1 per day - as well as supplementing their dry food with 1/3 can of canned pink salmon or chunk tuna daily. Yes, I do give both to our 7 month & 10 month puppies.
One of the most important rules about golden grooming is to do it on a regular basis to avoid very lengthy sessions. As well, regular grooming catches any matting before it becomes a major issue (& pain for your furkid) and any irritations/hotspots/health issues that can arise.
Grooming isn't a big deal for my three as they're on the grooming table at least twice a week. They actually enjoy grooming & wait their turn on the table.
As far as shampoo, we use Alexander's Own Blue Max - no perfumes, nice shine, a nice clean smell and you don't have to use a whole bottle (dilute 5:1) Alexander's Own is a product line developed by Canadian professional handler, William Alexander.
We do use human grade Salmon Oil gelcaps (Cloverleaf) - 1 per day - as well as supplementing their dry food with 1/3 can of canned pink salmon or chunk tuna daily. Yes, I do give both to our 7 month & 10 month puppies.
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The Icelandic Pure salmon oil you can order from amazon. The Carlson's Finest Fish Oil ( which my DH & I take too) I order from www.iherb.com However, many health food stores carry it also.
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If you go to the thread "Diva's Newest Win Photo" under "Show Results" you will see a show photo of a golden retriever bitch with a gorgeous coat--something that is so difficult to get. That owner feds her Innova and Nupro and fish oil (and there's no discounting good genetics I'm sure!)
I'm always interested in learning about what will make my pup healthy & pretty. I'll check out Nupro.
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I feed Chicken Soup, supplement with fish oil and never use a furminator- it's fine if you don't care about coat length/thickness, etc. The job of the furminator is to strip away undercoat, which results in breaking of the top coat as well- neither is something you want in a show puppers.
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So here are my tips for getting an awesome coat on your golden:
1) Buy a golden puppy that has parents with tons of coat. (i.e. not a Yogi kid
2) Feed a quality food. Supplements are hit or miss, don't depend on them.
3) Keep your dog parasite free.
4) Keep the dog clean. A bath at least every other week, weekly is better.
5) Keep the tips of the feathers trimmed. Tip them with thinning shears.
There ya go.
1) Buy a golden puppy that has parents with tons of coat. (i.e. not a Yogi kid
2) Feed a quality food. Supplements are hit or miss, don't depend on them.
3) Keep your dog parasite free.
4) Keep the dog clean. A bath at least every other week, weekly is better.
5) Keep the tips of the feathers trimmed. Tip them with thinning shears.
There ya go.
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1,537 Posts
Yes, I have Erik Strickland's DVD and I recommend it; I also had the opportunity to attend a two-day grooming seminar that my local breed club hosted--and he was excellent.
In the DVD, Erik goes over the standard, and goes over each part of the dog; ears, neck, paws, tail, feathering--you really need excellent equipment in order to take advantage of his technique because he really sculpts the feet and ears--it is amazing to see in person, and it is incredible to push yourself to do.
In the actual seminar, Erik will evaluate dogs as per the standard, and provide guidance on how to groom so that your dog's features are enhanced according to the standard. He also shows you that unless you really think about the standard, and how your dog compares to it, you are going to have a difficult roadmap when you groom your dog. His opinion is that the golden standard is rather murky (hence, all the different "styles" you see in goldens--different headpieces, etc.)
He sells a great set of grooming shears--I've heard from some of the people who bought a set were very, very happy--said they are among, or the best pair of scissors they've every owned. I had bought a set because I really needed a new set, and didn't know any better. I have a group of friends who didn't buy his scissors and one friend has borrowed mine for the past month--they are now all going to order from him. Hope this all helps.
In the DVD, Erik goes over the standard, and goes over each part of the dog; ears, neck, paws, tail, feathering--you really need excellent equipment in order to take advantage of his technique because he really sculpts the feet and ears--it is amazing to see in person, and it is incredible to push yourself to do.
In the actual seminar, Erik will evaluate dogs as per the standard, and provide guidance on how to groom so that your dog's features are enhanced according to the standard. He also shows you that unless you really think about the standard, and how your dog compares to it, you are going to have a difficult roadmap when you groom your dog. His opinion is that the golden standard is rather murky (hence, all the different "styles" you see in goldens--different headpieces, etc.)
He sells a great set of grooming shears--I've heard from some of the people who bought a set were very, very happy--said they are among, or the best pair of scissors they've every owned. I had bought a set because I really needed a new set, and didn't know any better. I have a group of friends who didn't buy his scissors and one friend has borrowed mine for the past month--they are now all going to order from him. Hope this all helps.
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Curious - I have lots of canned tuna (I ordered it bulk b/c I love tuna sammiches) and a few weeks ago I was wondering about giving some of it to Flora. However, I am concerned about the Hg levels in tuna. I eat only skipjack tuna which supposedly has the lowest levels of Hg, but I was wondering if you've read any literature about mercury and dogs. Are you not worried about feeding tuna to your dogs?
The weekly recommendation for an adult is 8oz of tuna a week. I figure for a dog it should probably be 4 oz, max.
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