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What makes a dogs coat shine?

Is it food or something else? I have never been able to buy the most expensive food but I dont feed the worst either. Her coat just never seems to get that shine like other dogs do.

Just wondering.

when the last time she had a bafh

Most labs eat between 2-4 cups per day. Some more, some less. If you have one dog you are talking about $0.50 per day on a bag of food that cost $40 vs. $25.

I feed Pro Plan Performance and can tell you that all of my dogs shine like new pennies. It does matter. I get dogs in that have been on whatever....It takes about 1 - 2 weeks for them to start really looking good but it happens every time.

If you really can't afford it I understand but I would find a way to handle that $0.50 cents for a high end food.

Troy

Generally speaking...when you feed a premium food it usually comes out pretty close to the cost of feeding the less expensive/quality foods...you usually have to double the amount of food you give to a dog on the "cheaper" food.

bacon grease!

Premium food, and when you do give a bath, dawn dishwashing liquid... its what all the show horse people use. travis

CF wrote:Generally speaking...when you feed a premium food it usually comes out pretty close to the cost of feeding the less expensive/quality foods...you usually have to double the amount of food you give to a dog on the "cheaper" food.

+1

Any soap will give them a shine. Be careful to rinse very well if you use dawn or whatever. Dawn cuts the oils from their coat and makes their coat not so water repellent. I don't use soap ever unless one gets into something; I just give them a good hosin' off fairly regular.

Dawn kills fleas but everything you read says to make sure and rinse dawn very well to avoid skin irritation. Alot of Dawn these days has a bleach alternative in it as well so be careful. I use it on my dog trailer all the time.........
Keep Bathing to a Minimum

While it's ok (and preferable!) for humans to take daily showers, excess bathing can actually be detrimental to your horse's coat. Soap robs the skin of the essential oils that are responsible for that show ring shine. However, sweat will also take its toll, so hosing your horse off after a workout is desirable-just leave the soap at home. Reserve bathing for before a horse show or special occasion, or on those occasions when you want to spend some extra time with your horse or he is especially dirty. You do not need a special horse shampoo-Dawn dish detergent works fine (although I do use a whitening shampoo on grey horses). Always follow up with an equine coat conditioner to help replace any oils that have been stripped away from the bath.

Also agree on the feed amounts. You may realize you are feeding less and that may make your $0.50 p/day get down to say $0.40 or less.?.

Good luck!

Armor All !

Copiah Creek wrote:Armor All !

Some of the people I know may try that!!!!

Bacon Grease does work!!

BGITTER wrote:Bacon Grease does work!!

I been told to never feed a lab any kind of pork????? That it messes there stomachs up.

Ask your local vet. He can tell you a healthy way to do it, and you don't have to worry about other people's opinions. Although many remedies do work (fish oil for example) the vet is your best bet. He won't charge you anything for a question. Also, I never give my dogs a bath. My current lab never had that shine to him, and I feed Pro Plan. I asked the vet, he told me to try brushing the dog. I got a good brush and realized the problem... some labs shed more than others and the reason my dog wasn't shiny was due to the undercoat of hair that had released fromt the skin, but had not released from the rest of his coat. He looks great now. He also mentioned if that didn't work to try omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. He said the pro plan should be providing all I needed, but he did mention that. Just thought I would pass this info along.

Dito on the good quality food and it does not have to be pro plan (although it is one of the best I have fed)

You can pour 1/3 cup of cooking oil (peanut is the best) over the food from time to time for some extra shine, if your dog's stomach can handle it. I will do this from time to time during hunting season to help him keep a good oily coat.

I add jack mackarel to my dog's feed durning hunting for the added fat and oil.