Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello,

I've had my American Eskimo for 6 years and she's always had lots
of hair until i shaved her a year ago after being skunked. I did not know i was not allowed to shave the eskie. Her hair is not growing anymore, in fact, she has brown freckles and patches of bald spots. I've been to the vet and I've done a biopsy but nothing came up. The vet prescribe some thyroid pills but it didn't work. He also said it would take up to 2 years for her hair to grow. It just seems to get worse. I don't see any hair growth just hair loss. Has anyone encountered this problem and would anyone know if there is anything out there to help this condition.

Thanks

The thyroid dosage may have been too low. Have bloodwork done for thyroid testing to find out exactly how it is. The values that need to be checked are Free T4 by equilibrium dialysis, TSH, and Total T4. The blood needs to go to one of the laboratories approved by OFA. I believe both Cornell and Michigan State are on the list. It's a short list. Veterinarians are used to shipping these samples.

If your dog does have low thyroid function, these tests will need to be done repeatedly to adjust the dosage. If this is the problem, you will see excellent results.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

Kathy I do know for sure that Cornell is approved... my vet has sent one of my dogs samples there for a thyroid check. I also go there once a month for another of my dogs to the Opthalmology Dept.
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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

>>Kathy I do know for sure that Cornell is approved... my vet has sent one of my dogs samples there for a thyroid check. I also go there once a month for another of my dogs to the Opthalmology Dept.
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>>If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

>>>>>>>>>>>

Cornell did wonderful work on my Belgian Tervuren's thyroid results. The first result came back incredibly fast, and within 24 hours we began to see improvements in the dog! We checked periodically, and that really paid off. Cornell was always good.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47

Hey thanks for the responses,

My dog was on thyroid medicine for a bit but I guess the dosage wasn't high enough. My vet did blood works but I guess he didn't specifically test for thyroids. I'm going back to the vet to do the thyroid testing. Oh yes, I forgot to mention that I live in Canada but thanks for letting me know which state to go to. If my dog did have thyroid problems which i think she might, do you think that could be a cause for aggression. My dog just recently bit 3 people and I've had her for six years and never had that problem until just recently. This was after having been shaved and developing this hair growth problem. I've been to a behaviourist and she said to spray my dog in the face with water when she does jump out a things. This did not work. I have a muzzle for her now. Any suggestion to dog agression? I'm so fearful when i take her for walks because she might jump out and bite someone. I know American eskimos are not suppose to be agressive, protective, yes.

thanks for reading hope to hear from you soon.

One of the OFA approved laboratories for thyroid blood results is in Canada, I think. I believe the website is www.offa.org.

I'm not a fan of water spraying dogs. It is milder than a lot of corrections, but sometimes you need a dog to accept water spraying as a positive thing! Anyway, getting in trouble for growling, barking, etc. can make a dog think even more aggressively--after all, that person or other dog got them into trouble before!

Read the article "Attention, Please!" at the link with my signature. You'll find it in alphabetical order by title. Read the articles on Aggression there, too.

It is possible for a dog several years old to have thyroid problems connected with aggression. My dog was 7 when she was finally diagnosed with thyroid deficiency, and man, was she deficient by then. We were astonished by all the things it had caused, that corrected on the medication. But we did have to test her blood repeatedly to keep the dosage right. Thyroid deficiency is very common in dogs.

Avoid the situations where your dog could show aggression. Every time she does it, the habit gets stronger. Get a different behavior specialist--ask your veterinarian to recommend someone locally. And keep the dog's life low-stress and low stimulation for at least awhile.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series articles at http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=SRC&S=1&SourceID=47