I would never use a human shampoo on most dogs(the exceptions are breeds like Lhasas that have the same PH as human hair) I would use a good quality dog shampoo(I use Doreen Paige as they are "natural"products)

Friend of mine used to have Newfies in all three colours & I cringe at what the groomer did to your boy It certainly won't have helped his coat. We used to spend hours just brushing her dogs coats to encourage the natural oils to be produced as well as adding the SFO to their food. Hers used to do the water work & we spent a lot of time getting very wet with them in training hence their need for the oil in their coats for protection. He could also be going through a coat change so his coat could tend to be drier than normal because of this too.

I would go down the putting food down for tem minutes & taking it up if he doesn't eat it & not put it down again until the next meal time. I presume being a bloat prone breed he's on two meals a day ?

It is only my opinion but I think shampooing can cause a lot more problems than it solves, dogs coats should not need shampooing at all but I agree it is sometimes needed because they have rolled in something or been in stagnant water, apart from that I think less is best.

Hi, I use oil of evening primrose for my lab. Since he was castrated two years ago he developed very dull coarse fur, the vet suggested one capsule a day and his coat is gleaming. I am not suggesting this will work but it is worth a try.

Hi everybody, thank you for your suggestions and thoughts on this, Think Seth's been bathed 3 times in 12mths once before he came home at 8wks, once when he stood in the way of my other dog and got pee'd on and once trying to sort out this problem now but it was only the last time that baby shampoo was used

Seth goes swimming in lakes etc although not been swimming just lately due to me being unable to drive for a few weeks but his coat has never been like this even after swimming in lakes etc ..........

Yes JoedeeUk ... Seth is on 2 meals a day

Suki has always had a very shiny coat but when she was fed Bakers (which is what the breeder had her on) she had dry and flaky skin.

We changed to Burns (not that this is a cure for all dogs) and within a couple of weeks noticed a huge difference - she also eats Tuna in vegetable oil about once-twice a week, which OH swears helps maintain her coat.

I'm not sure but think a combination of regular grooming, bathing (we use crazy dog shampoo - which is very mild and smells like baby powder - she gets bathed about one a fortnight now) and good diet all helps. I'm sure though that some dogs will just be prone to dry skin and the heat over the past couple of months can't be helping.

is he itchy with it?
is the condition of his coat bothering him at all?
i only bath mine when needed but use the neutral shampoo you get from vets as tob seems sensative with other brands.
it is supposed to be ph balanced for any type of coat.
do you think she damaged his coat and its showing up now hes moulting or could it be the change in his coat due to age?

Leo ... he is itchy with it and on closer inspection the flakey bits of his coat look like bites, he hasn't got any fleas on him (not that I can see anyway ) and it's only about 5/6wks since he's be 'de-flea'd' but he's a Monkeymoo for going in the undergrowth when we're out walking
I think you may be right in the fact that its his coat changing/shedding and the fact that it was stripped in April hasn't done him any favours, it just bothers me as his litter brother has a perfect shiny bouncy coat and he's been bathed more than Seth has .... Guess I just got the rough thug of the litter!
He's been on JWBL like Banjo but all of a sudden he's gone off it and I've been told by the vet to change Banjo's food in the hope that it'll sort a few of his probs out (which I doubt! ) so now we're on a food that's very similar, all natural ingredients etc .... so fingers crossed!

Thank you to everyone for your replies!

Hi

I can sympathise Although Lola has now done the worst of her shedding and is now more of a 2-tone brown rather than every shade of brown in the whole spectrum!

We've never had too much problem with Lola's coat. Like you, I don't shampoo often but when I do, i use Groomers Royal Jelly shampoo which was recommended to me by someone who shows Newfs (and has had a fair bit of success)

Lola has had a recurring skin problem since she was little. It's nothing major and comes and goes but it is irritating for her when it flares up. We changed vets recently and my new vet is wonderful. He recommended giving her high doses of fish oils daily (3 x 1000mg, along with a natural Vitamin E supplement) and her skin has improved dramatically. Not only that, but her coat is in fantastic condition, probably the best it's ever been despite the fact that she's just had a major moult It might be worth a try for Seth and it certainly wouldn't do him any harm to give it a go?

Thanks for that ShaynLola :smt023

How do you supplement the vitamin E oil? Tablet form or direct into food?

I buy capsules and just chuck them in with her food.

These are the products I buy as they are very good quality:
Vitamin Ehttp://www.healthspan.co.uk/shop/product.aspx?Id=VE4V

Fish oils
http://www.healthspan.co.uk/shop/product.aspx?Id=O3-1

Hope it works for you but it can't do any harm to give it a go as the fish oils are of benefit to joints/brain function anyway (although I'm not convinced about the brain function bit if Lola is anything to go by )