Dog hair loss!!

Question
QUESTION: My 9 month old chocolate lab girl beau, i have noticed in the last two weeks she has three patches of grey hair, two on her back and the other on the base of her tail. The grey hair comes out really easily when pulled and the hair is brown on the end and grey at the root. she is not balding in the areas and seems fine in herself. Still happy. she has been frontlined so no fleas of ticks or mites. Any ideas??

Kind regards R hedges

ANSWER: Hi Rebbecca,

The only way to find out the reason for your puppy's hair loss is to have your vet examine her.

If her skin is in good condition, and she's not having any itching,  broken skin, or lesions, there's a chance she has a thyroid problem, or Cushing's disease (hyperadrenocorticism). Labs have a genetic predisposition to hypothyroidism, so running a thyroid test might be a good idea.

Some dogs develop "seasonal alopecia" (Alopecia means hair loss). The disease usually starts in the late fall or early spring, and can regrow in about six months.

Some breeds can develop an inherited disorder called Color Dilution/mutant Alopecia. In this condition, hair in areas that are either "blue" or fawn-colored start to thin at around 6 months of age. You said your puppy has some grey patches, but grey can also be described as "blue" in dogs.

There are many things that cause hair loss, your vet is the real expert to consult.

I hope I've been a help.
Best of luck,

Patti

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your help its most useful.
I should have said i did take her to the vets and they were stumped, they said they had not seen anything like it in ten years of practice, and that was three vets!!
Its now a waiting game to see what happens with the hair if its just a one off or a continuous cycle, then the vets will do some test!!
They said they didn't want to rush in as it could be nothing and then i would have hefty vets bills!!
Thanks again
R Hedges

Answer
Hi Rebecca,

If your dog's skin is in good condition, it's probably a hormonal problem. A blood test will either confirm or rule this out. If the tests come back negative, then it's probably some form of alopecia, which is more or less a cosmetic problem, it won't hurt your dog. However by not running the blood work to see if the problem is hormonal, your dog's health can suffer, as you "wait to see" what happens.

These blood tests are not expensive, and neither is the treatment, if it's called for.

Best of luck,
Patti