Problem:
Sudden
hair loss
Hi
Shannon
My
female dog died recently of liver cancer - and now about
a month later my other female Shar Pei is losing all
her hair. Is it because of the loss of her best friend
or can it be something else?
At
A Loss
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Dear
At A Loss
In
extreme situations of stress a dog may possibly show
chronic hair loss, but this is very rarely seen. I cannot
find any literature on stress induced hair loss in the
absence of underlying skin irritations and I have never
seen such a case myself.
When
exposed to sudden stress, a dog may enter a period of
telogen (shedding of hair) that results in acute shedding.
This is often evident in unsocialised dogs being injured
and taken to the vet etc. However, after the initial
acute telogen phase the dog appears to regain a normal
cycle immediately and there is no noticeable baldness.
In effect it appears that hairs that were due to shed
in any case are shed simultaneously.
Chronic
hair loss, which shows a patchy or bald coat, is almost
always caused by an underlying physical factor - get
your dog to a vet to ascertain the reason for the hair
loss. Thinking that the hair loss might be attributed
to grief or depression is delaying possibly urgent medical
treatment.
Notwithstanding this advice I have included some information
on the hair of dogs. I am not a vet, so the information
below is from The University of Tennessee's College
of Veterinary Medicine.
The hair of dogs goes through three phases:
" Anagen - This is the growth phase and the hair
will reach the end of anagen once its genetically predetermined
length is reached (the predominant anagen cycle in people
is very similar to that of dogs such as poodles, which
require regular trimming). In people the hair follicle
spends most of the time in anagen. This phase can last
years, depending on the ultimate length of one's hair
as determined by one's genes.
" Catagen - It then passes through a transient
catagen phase as it proceeds to enter the resting phase.
" Telogen - Once the hair enters this phase, a
new anagen hair starts growing and the telogen hair
is shed.
Most dogs have what has been termed, a telogen-predominant
cycle. The anagen phase is short, long enough to achieve
the genetically desired length of coat. Therefore, the
anagen phase lasts probably anywhere from one month
to a year or more. The hair then cycles into telogen
and remains there for a prolonged period of time. This
hair is tightly bound within the follicle and will not
readily fall out or be pulled out.
In the Nordic breeds, it is thought that the telogen
phase may last for years. Replacing an entire dense
coat yearly is very energy-dependent. At some point
the telogen hair falls out and is replaced by a newly
developing anagen hair; thus the cycle continues. The
trigger for the telogen hair to fall out and a new hair
to grow is not known at this time.
Best
wishes
Shannon