# hair discoloration



## sanae (May 18, 2010)

I adopted a 3-5 yr. old red-nosed pit bull last July from a shelter. At that time he was emaciated and his coat was more blond than red. In a couple of months he put on weight and his coat became uniformly darker. Recently, however, his coat become really blotchy and uneven. He now has 5 inch dark spots or "wings" on his shoulder blades and 5 inch dark band underneath his collar at the top of his neck and symmetrical 2 inch blotches on his jawbone on either side of his face. The hair in this area is darker (blackish) and also somewhat courser than the hair on the rest of his body which is normal and mixed with fuzzy down hairs. I checked his skin underneath in these areas and it is white, no discoloration. Is this just normal shedding or is it something more serious? My last dog was a red nose and i never experienced anything like this.


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## Patch-O-Pits (Jan 12, 2008)

Hi there, the dogs coloring as in being a red nose has nothing to do with anything. Color is just that, a color. As for the coat color change, coats in dogs that are malnourished often get gross and even discolored. That is great that he got a lot better when you adopted. If the dog is not itchy or going bald in areas and is just getting blotchy and shedding a lot, I'd say it is do to the change in weather. You may want to use a curry brush to get all the dead hair off and add some omega fatty oils to the diet. If it gets worse or doesn't start getting better in the next couple of weeks, I'd get to the vet for a check up to make sure nothing else is going on health wise. I hope that info helps.

Post some pictures!


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## sanae (May 18, 2010)

Hi, thanks so much for your response. I'm hoping it's just the way he sheds (haven't seen that yet) and will keep an eye on him and check out the curry brush. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't something I might not be familiar with. He has been on a diet of holistic select wet/dry and fish caps since I adopted him. No unusual or major hair loss or itchiness just weird blotches of darker colored hair. He has normal, even high energy despite the fact he has had a mild case of the runs for the last two days and vomited this morning. He has had this (runs/vomiting) once before in the fall and it resolved itself within a week but I'm going to see if i can get him into the vet tomorrow if that continues just to be safe. 

Thanks again,
Overly concerned pit mom


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## beccaboo (Dec 27, 2009)

its all good  my girls coat does the same thing. not super dark but does lighten and darken throughout the year. i just chalked it up to sun bleachin it out  for the loose stool- some yogurt with each meal helps digestion and decreases gas and canned pumpkin stops loose stool and helps with constipation altho i still haven't seen it in the stores yet... good luck!


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## sanae (May 18, 2010)

Yogurt! never knew that! Will read up and pick some up tonight. Thanks for sharing about your girls' coats too. (what sweeties!) So relieved to hear it happens with other pits. 

this forum is so great! 

thanx patch o pits and georgey porgey's mom for helping me be a better pit mom!


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