Does coat "type" change for an individual dog by c
Portage and Theeps had similar thicknesses, but Theeps (our trouble child LOL) had curly hair. Portage had straight smooth hair. Both had a moderately thick coat. Theeps matted if you looked at him funny. I'm assuming that the curls had a lot to do with that. Hudson has the thickest, most infuriating coat ever. It's so much thicker than any sheepie we've had before. TONS of the undercoat, and he doesn't just matt - he grows felt. He wasn't particularly matted a few weeks ago, and then I was sick while Gordon was out of town, and he got quite wet from the snow and BAM! Instant felt. Had to be shaved out. No choices. And, if you looked at him you'd believe he hadn't been brushed in his life. (Well, up until we finished shaving him and starting over.) He's not great for the grooming, but we do try to keep up. He's just got the most thick, fast growing coat. And things will seem to be going fine and then he just must sneak out at night and hang out with a bad crowd or something because the next day he looks like hell. Enter Rudy. He seems to have a nice, soft, thin coat. He's been a joy to groom (he loves it...even leans in for more!) and is easy (so far) to keep in good shape. His fur's only about four inches now, but if it were Hudson the felt would already be coming in fast. So, my question is, is it likely that by next winter his coat will be thicker due to the change of climate? Do sheepies grow fur according to conditions? Is this beautiful, thin, brushable coat because he was in Florida? And will it change? Or, does an individual sheepie keep the coat type he/she has for life? Just wondering. We've never moved a sheepie from one climate to another before. I'd love for this to be Rudy's coat forever. It looks good, and grooms easily. |
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Soft and thin makes me think perhaps time to check thyroid, or at least keep that in mind if his coat doesn't improve (OK, not from an ease of grooming point of view  But from an OES coat point of view). Then again, we probably can't be sure what his previous nutrional etc situation was, if his undercoat had been artifically stripped out, and so on. I forget how old he is, but puppy coat is fairly soft and some dogs take longer to clear it than others.
Cold probably does promote undercoat growth to some extent. That doesn't necessarily mean he'll turn into a bush next winter, but if his undercoat does improve you can always strip it out to keep life easier. Kristine |
| I should clarify that I do think Rudy's coat is healthy. It's not too thin. It's just a lot less dense than Hudson's. I think it's fine as it is. I'm just wondering if it's climate dependent and will be very different next year. Do sheepie coats generally do that? |
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