Managing Dog Hair Loss from Endocrine Imbalance
📝 Summary
Endocrine hair loss starts with pigmentation and scaly thin coat, then symmetric shedding on the belly, chest, and thighs. Thyroid, adrenal, or sex-gland disorders are common; treatment uses hormone testing and thyroid supplements.
1 Managing Dog Hair Loss from Endocrine Imbalance
I. Causes of dog hair loss
1. Often from hypothyroidism: drowsiness, fatigue, obesity, cold intolerance, infertility, dry rough coat, sparse shedding, excess keratin.
2. Adrenal cortical tumor, excess ACTH, or long-term steroids cause loss; signs: urine specific gravity below 1.020, muscle wasting, tiredness, big belly with ring-shaped fat, thin skin showing vessels and belly folds, uneven calcium and pigment deposits, overeating.
3. Sex-gland imbalance shows foot tumors in males; females’ loss often links to ovarian cysts, with repeated shedding in both.
II. Treatment
Diagnosis is by hormone levels; treat foot tumors and give oral or injected drugs. Spay females with ovarian dysfunction. Try thyroid hormone 0.4-0.8 mg/kg daily, 4-8 weeks, higher first 2 weeks then lower, for good results.
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