Hi there....I was wondering if someone could give me some grooming tips. I've been working with a miniature pinscher (6 and a half mths old)who's nonstop active, rough and bounces like he's always on a springboard. His fur is very short and he has bald spots. He's been checked for mange (negitive). I think his rough play contributes to his spotty skin appearance. Other than that he is healthy. We add oil in his food and take special care of his skin. Any suggestions?

It's possible that your minpin has an allergy. I had a lab-mix once who had the same problems. My vet told me that she had allergies. We put her on a medication and that seemed to help. Has your vet suggested any potential cuases or remedies?

We've had a couple of dogs at our kennel that have bald spots as well. They take a supplement called synovia. That's about all I can tell you. Hope this helped a little.

Julie

http://www.all-about-small-breed-dog...e-pinscher.com

HI Julie...There is so many things that can go wrong with puppies' skin. I started paying a bit more attention to it (this is a petstore dog and he found a really nice home and I am glad). What I did was first (besides add oil to his food) took a gentle brush to him to try to stimulate the skin then rub a little mineral oil on him especially over the bald areas. I gave him a gentle oatmeal wash bath and then brushed him again and to finish it off I took him out into the warm sunshine (just a thought that puppies that are inside are not getting the vitamin D from the sun. It dried him quickly and he seemed to enjoy it). This seemed to improve the way he looked. He had such a fine coat. The people that took him home have another minpin so they knew what they were getting into and I am sure he will be happy.

So "synovia?" Is that added to the diet? It would be good to keep that in mind. I will pass that info onto other people I know who seem to be having that problem--THANK YOU!

It really sounds like you love the dogs in your care. They're lucky to have you.

Check the food you are feeding. Does it contain corn, corn gluten, or wheat gluten. These are known dog allergens. If the food contains these ingredients stop feeding it and go to a food that has rice, brown rice, sweet potatoe as a filler. There are a lot of good foods for dogs that don't contain these ingredients that irritate the dogs digestive system..