Brittle nails

keroppi78keroppi78
edited June 2009 in General
I was wondering if any of you would know the answer to this or any suggestions...

My parents have a 10 year old golden retriever... an old puppy dog that is my first love. He's has tons of allergy problems, right now it's summer so poor Dusty is starting to get hot spots. There's really nothing that works for him on the hot spots... my mom just cleans them daily so that he's not in too much agony. We tried the shots that the vet recommended, but he's so sensitive that he got sick of them...

I don't know if it's his age, but my mom said that he is starting to have really brittle nails. They are, I'm not sure what words to use, but crumbling off and breaking. Do you know what we should give him? What vitamins or food might help him?

Thanks!

Comments

  • lindsaytlindsayt
    edited November -1
    He could have an immune issue or a fungal infection...what does the vet think? I don't know if a supplement suggestion will fix nails that are actually falling off. I would check with the vet and determine a cause first, just my opinion.
  • brandon_wbrandon_w
    edited November -1
    What is Dusty being fed? He might need more calcium in his diet. A diluted mixture of tea tree oil and organic apple cider vinegar can often help hot spots heal. I've only used it on Nemo's hot spots, which were not the big open oozing wound type though.
  • StaticNfuzzStaticNfuzz
    edited November -1
    I would check with the vet and also ask for a thyroid test. It is not uncommon for thyroid issues to crop up in older dogs of any breed.

    There is supplementation that can help generally but you need to know his prelim situation. As far as allergies the steroid shots can make some dogs sick. Maybe a smaller dose of a different type of steroid. Again look into over all health first and go from there. Work with your vet to narrow down the situation.

    Good luck
    Snf
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