# Dog's loss of tail feathers?



## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

I can think of a couple of things that could cause this. She could be pulling her tail feathers out due to boredom or anal gland issues. You could have the vet or groomer check her anal glands to see if that is it. If it is, keeping the anal glands emptied should take care of it. You can add bran to her food to add fiber and bulk to her stools. If she is bored, there are toys designed to provide intellectual stimulation, or extra walks and play sessions might help.

Or, one of the signs of an underactive thyroid can be a "rat tail"-basically, a tail without much (or any) feathering. 

Goldens can display one or more signs of an underactive thyroid, or have no outward signs at all.


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## nixietink (Apr 3, 2008)

I second thyroid. A full thyroid panel should be fun. Especially if she hasn't been pulling them out.


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## ladyhawk (Mar 9, 2010)

Hi Amber

I too have a Shiloh (male). I third the thyroid check. My Shiloh's only sign of thyroid problem was dry "puppy fur" coat. He has been on thyro for approx. two months now and I am seeing a vast improvement in his coat.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

My Daisy had a gorgeous tail like that and one day just started pulling her hair out. But she was going thru heartworm treatment at that time. She was a foster dog at that time. Since then I had to stop her everytime I saw her chewing on it and in time it grew back, but it did take forever. And I did trim it to get it all even. That seemed to help. I also put fish oil on her food. But I do agree on getting her anal glands checked and thyroid checked. And you might also ask Grandma very nicely is she trimmed Shiloh's tail feathers. Maybe she will tell you.


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## Finn's Fan (Dec 22, 2007)

Shiloh's coat looks like a hypothyroid dog to me. Be sure to get the six-panel test, and if your vet says she's in the normal range, get the numbers and post them here. Low normal often needs supplementing in a golden retriever.


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## Heidi36oh (Feb 27, 2007)

Chloe did that a few month ago, she had a staff infection and decided to pull out all of her tail feathers, she's been on Antibiotics for 6 weeks now and they are growing back nice.

But I would also have the Thyroid panel done just to make sure.


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## kwiland (Aug 27, 2009)

I also think a thyroid check would be a good idea. But, mostly, I just wanted to say how very pretty your dog is! I think she is beautiful!


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## Amber Aanensen (Mar 20, 2010)

Wow, thank you for all the information, everyone!

I am going to bring her to the vet sometime next week. I'll make sure to post the results on here. Are there any other symptoms for a hypothyroid dog?

Thanks again.


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## 2Retrievers222 (Sep 5, 2007)

what food are you feeding


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## Amber Aanensen (Mar 20, 2010)

My grandma is the one who pays for food, and she gets the worst stuff possible: Pedigree. I thought that might play a large role in it, but I'm not sure. I've always tried to sway her into getting something else, but she's rather stubborn and says "she's fed her dogs Pedigree all her life and never had any problems". Despite all the articles about that type of food I've showed her, she just won't change her ways...

However, this summer I'm going to be getting a lot of money and will be switching her to a raw + kibble diet. (Blue Buffalo Wilderness)


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## 2Retrievers222 (Sep 5, 2007)

sometimes the answer is right in front of you, and so simple

good luck on vet bills until until summer I sure they will welcome you with open wallet

try costcos kirkland half the price with no corn,wheat,by-products, but you cant beat raw


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

The second picture is thyroid coat! Often their coat will be dry and thinning, sometimes with bald patches, and often the tail suffers. Other signs are weight gain, lack of energy and temperment changes. It can affect a lot of things so getting it checked is important.

Even if you can afford to help your grandma get slightly better food now it'd help, or even getting a good oil supplement to add would be an idea.

Lana


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## Dog (Sep 26, 2006)

Amber is also going for testing sometime this week. So I've been reading about it and found this article quite useful.
http://www.grr-tx.com/resources/thyroid_problems.pdf

Good luck! (We are going to need it with the vet bills )


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## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

I just posted Dr. Dodd's optimal thyroid results she sent me on Tailor's thread. Gunner was low normal but we put him on soloxine.5 twice a day. We had a previous golden who was not correctly diagnosed or treated for thyroid and developed serious side effects: seizures and eventually megaesophagus. I was not going to allow that to happen again.
Make sure they do a FULL thyroid panel and then give you all the results. They will probably send it to Michigan State(it takes about a week to get back.) Then compare your results to Dr. Dodds optimal. 
Low normal is low for a golden. Gunner really had no symptoms.


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## scoopydoo (Sep 15, 2009)

I got Decker off to the vets at the beginning of this month to have his thyroid ck'd. What I noticed with him was a slow weight gain, lower energy level, a fat roll at the base of his neck and top of his back, coarser coat, and loss of fullness to his tail.
The vet listened to his heart and said that it was strong, but slow. She said that a slow heart beat could also be a sign of hypothyroidism. She also mentioned that Goldens can start showing signs for hypo around 3-4 yrs of age. 
After a blood test was ran, his levels were determined to be low. The vet was surprised that I recognized his signs. I had a dog many years ago that had hypothyroidism, but it went undiagnosed for a long time before the vet suggested testing her. 
Decker's now taking Thyroxine 0.6mg twice a day. He'll be retested in 8 wks to see how the levels are. Any adjustments to the dosage can be done then.
Shiloh will thank you for having her tested.


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