Golden Retriever Shedding Considering Shaving Him for the Summer?

I would advice against shaving. That just puts very small particles of hair that you will be breathing and gets inbedded in carpet. While you cut down on the hair you can see, it does not reduce the shedding whats so ever. Frequent bushign and the right tools is you best bet, but he will still shed allot, it is just in the breed. And with a little one, I would rahter them crawl in the hair, then be breathing it.

Most our friends that have golden's shave them for the summer they look great.

I would recommend it. I have had dogs all of my life and wish that I had done it sooner with mine. All of them have been inside dogs. My latest is a Yorkshire Terrier/Poodle mix. Although small in size, between 10-20 pounds, I was frustrated by the tumbleweeds of fur that accumulated as fast as I would sweep and/or vacuum. In addition, he is much happier. He feels so much better. Before, even in the air conditioning, he would pant because it is so warm here.
Best wishes:)

Go for it .I have a long haired dog and I shave him every year.Forget the experts you tell me if you wore a fur coat every year in the summer if it would keep you cool.I dont know the experts say alot of things like a dogs mouth is cleaner than yours but they lick their butts I just dont get it.Also if they use there coats to cool off then why do they try to loose it.If you dont mind the way your dog looks shaved then go for it.I shave my dog and cat every year.I also think their coat comes back shiner than what it would otherrwise.Good luck I totally underrstand the hair delima

Hi L F,
I was a vet tech for several years BC (before children ")
I would suggest trying fish oil first. Salmon oil is great for shedding. A dog of that breed would probably take about 1000 mg a day. You can use human gel caps or find a liquid form on the internet or pet store. "Sometimes" when you shave a coat the hair grows back a bit odd (not the same as before). It is true that dogs use their coats to keep cool and it acts as insulation from the heat and cold. Also sun damage is a problem if the dog will be spending any time outdoors.
Best Regards,
C.

I have a choc lab that sheds horrible. We have had her shaved twice and it was the best thing we have done. She is more playful and acts like she is much cooler and we have definantly seen a huge difference in the amount of hair that is shed. I will get her shaved every year from now on

I would recomend not shaving him. Some groomes do the fuminator thing for shedding and you can also give him Fish Oil. It helps a TON with shedding,shine, and skin. You can ask your vet about it. They can prescribe it or you can buy the stuff at Walmart. One pill a day will work wonders within a month. We had a Great Dane that shed a small dog a day and the fsh oil made him not shed at all.The pet vacumms that claim to pick up hair do work. Good Luck.

If he is an inside dog I dont see the problem with shaving him. We have a Black Lab and an American Eskimo that both shed (terribly!) and we shave them both in the beginning of summer (May), but they are outside dogs and need their winter coats in time :)

I have a border collie and an australian shepherd and faced the same problem. It was driving me crazy. I would brush them and then vacuum, turn around and there would be hair. I had them shaved. They were thrilled and no more problem. I'm not sure about Golden Retreivers but I talked to my dog groomer (I use a mobile dog groomer) - and he said indoor dogs coats do not adjust to weather like outdoor dogs and they need to be shaved. My dogs came prancing in after their hair cut and they were so proud. They also didn't seem so hot and are more playfull now. That is my experience! Good luck!

I feel your pain - my Golden sheds terribly. I have thought about it before too, but all the research I did said that their coats don't grow back the same - it's really coarse. They're such beautiful dogs with gorgeous coats, I wasn't willing to risk it. Also, as one responder said, the coat really does help protect their skin from sun damage. My friends dog was just diagnosed with melanoma in an area where she doesn't have alot of fur.

While I do not have a recommendation on shaving, I highly recommend the FURMINATOR grooming tool. Its a little pricey, but definitely worth it because I too was vacuuming almost every day. The first time I used it I removed two plastic bags full of loose hair. Hands down it is the ABSOLUTE BEST tool I have found for shedding because it removes all the loose hair from the dog's undercoat. I bought mine at PetSmart, but I am sure you can find them anywhere. Its really worth the money.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=27519...