My dog's coat isn't healthy. What natural diet can improve it?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! To help the hair coat reach it's potential (you can not change genetics) feed a high quality commercial dog food (no people food), supplement with Omega 3 fish oils, brush the coat daily, deworm regularly if exposed to the outdoors and bath with a moisturizing shampoo as needed. I am not sure if Bee is losing hair, has balding areas or if you are just hoping for something different but you can always post a picture or provide details on what is going on with his coat. Have a good day!

Hello. The best way to improve hair coat quality is to first make sure no parasites are present (fleas, mites, etc). Then getting him on a good quality dog food. Thirdly, grooming him and brushing him will help improve hair quality. Fish oils can also improve hair quality, however a good diet will be better than this! Good luck!

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Sharon is handsome! His fur looks very good. Diet plays a huge role in coat health. As does taking care of his overall health-vaccinations, deworming, external parasite control etc. Omega 3 fish oils can help with the coat. Try VRS Omega Benefits or Nordic naturals. http://vrshealth.com/canine-products/omegadog/ I hope this helps!

Besides feeding a high quality dog food, you could try Free Form Snip Tips and see if that helps. Free Form Snip Tips provides a concentrated source of Omega-3 fatty acids that promotes healthy skin and a shiny hair coat.

I typically recommend using Free Form Snip Tips help keep the skin and coat healthy. If they are too expensive than you could add one teaspoon of coconut oil to her food and see if that helps. If not, than she should be examined by a vet to determine the cause of her skin and coat problem. She could have a skin infection and need an antibiotic. You could also bathe her with a medicated dog shampoo and see if that helps.

Patchy hair coat can be due to a number of factors, including endocrine disease (such as hypothyroidism), allergies, bacterial or fungal or parasitic infection of the skin. I would recommend an exam at your vet so they can see the hair coat and skin. They may recommend testing such as bloodwork to screen for thyroid disease, or skin cytology to check for infection.

In general, using a high quality brand is the best way to assure that Bear Bear's coat is healthy. Brands that I typically recommend include Science Diet, Purina ProPlan and Royal Canin because these companies conduct extensive clinical studies and analyses regarding their foods and source ingredients appropriately. Continue feeding Bear Bear puppy food until he is 1 year old, then gradually transition to an adult dog food. Anytime you make a diet change, be sure to do so by gradually mixing old and new foods together over 5-7 days. Bathing every 2-4 weeks in a gentle oatmeal based dog shampoo can also be beneficial. If he seems to have dry skin, an omega 3 fatty acid supplement (such as Welactin) can be beneficial. Also, make sure that he is receiving a high quality flea and tick preventative (such as Nexgard, Bravecto or Advantix) regularly.