In general, fluffy hair is a prominent feature that adds to the popularity of the Golden Retrievers. Further, their lustrous and soft coat makes these breeds the perfect cuddling companion for your kids. But sometimes, the fur your pal may develop frizzy and thin. Do you know why your Golden Retriever is not fluffy?
Golden Retriever’s fluffy hair depends on several factors. And some of the reasons for coat thinning and volume loss are lack of nutrition, health issues, and improper grooming. Besides this, other influencing factors may be genetics, aging, and the breed of Golden Retrievers.
If you are the owner of a Golden Retriever, you would want your pet to have dense and lustrous hair. Do not you?
In this article, I will discuss all the reasons why your Golden Retriever’s hair isn’t fluffy with some solution. Therefore, prepare yourself.
Are Golden Retrievers Fluffy Since Birth?
Generally, the dense coat of Golden Retrievers develops after they are three months old. However, this does not mean that they are bald or hairless during birth.
Moreover, these breeds look like small, yellow balls with lots of fur in their initial days of life. Hence, you may say the Golden Retrievers are furry since birth.
Despite the excessive shedding of their puppy hair, the puppies never get bald in good health. Instead, as these breeds grow older, their furry skin coat becomes denser with longer hairs.
Now you may ask a question; if the Golden Retriever is fluffy from the beginning, why does it suddenly lose the voluminous hair coat? Thus, let us dig into this topic.
Why Isn’t Your Golden Retriever Fluffy?
Generally, the long and silky hair coat of Golden Retriever steals the attention of everyone. Thus, you cannot resist it. But, when you suddenly notice that the hair of your pet is thinning and losing its glamor. How would you feel?
Therefore, you may probably want to know the reasons why your Golden Retriever isn’t fluffy so that you can improve your grooming mistakes.
Hence, here are the reasons why your Golden Retriever doesn’t fluffy coat:
Your Golden Retriever Isn’t Fluffy Due To Age.
Although the puppy Golden Retriever has yellow hair, the hair is not long enough to add volume to the skin coat. Therefore, until these breeds are three months old, they may be furry but not fluffy. Thus, if your dog is still a puppy, it may not have a voluminous hair coat.
In addition, after a certain age, your pet’s hair loses its color, texture, and volume. Hence, when the dog becomes one year old, you may see gradual coat thinning of your pet with hair graying. Therefore, an aged Golden Retriever may not be fluffy.
Your Golden Retriever Isn’t Fluffy Because Of Genetics.
Since the offspring inherits the characteristics of their parents, genetics plays a vital role in making your Golden Retriever fluffy. Thus, the dogs born from parents with thinner coats and shorter hair are more likely to have less volume.
Besides this, your pet’s parents may have different hereditary diseases that could affect its skin coat. Hence, there is a higher chance that your pet may inherit those diseases. As a result, your Golden Retriever isn’t fluffy.
Dry Weather Affects The Fluffiness Of Your Golden Retriever
Generally, your pet is more susceptible to get windburn during dry weather. Since the air absorbs the moisture of your dog, it deteriorates the texture of its hair coat.
As a consequence, the coat of your pet becomes flat and thin. And eventually, your Golden Retriever isn’t fluffy anymore.
Your Golden Retriever May Not Be Fluffy Due To Lack Of Nutrition
The puppy Golden Retriever requires comparatively more nutrition than the adults. Thus, due to the lack of knowledge, the owners fail to provide the necessary nutrients. So, the deficiency of proteins, fats, and oils in the diet degrades the healthy coat of your pet.
Due to nutrient insufficiency, essential oil production declines. So, the hair coat of your pet dries and loses its natural shine and volume. And further, it causes dandruff, excessive shedding, and skin irritation in your pal.
And as a result, your Golden Retriever is no longer fluffy.
Your Golden Retriever Isn’t Fluffy Due To Disease
Since health conditions influence the skin coat of your pet, your Golden Retriever not fluffy anymore. As a consequence of various diseases, the color, texture, and beauty of your pet deteriorate.
Moreover, some of the diseases that affect the voluminous hair coat of your pet are:
- Endocrine disorder (Hypothyroidism, Cushing’s disease)
- External parasites (fleas, mites)
- Fungal infection (ringworm)
- Bacterial infection
- Allergies (food, atopic)
Some Types Of Golden Retrievers Are Not Fluffy
Although most Golden Retrievers are fluffy, it is a myth that all of them have long and dense hair coats. However, the breed type of Retriever determines its skin coat.
Generally, the English Golden Retrievers have a long and lustrous hair coat. But the hairs of the Canadian breeds are shorter and thinner.
Besides this, different crossbred Golden Retrievers has distinct hair coat. Thus, the breed type also affects the fluffiness of your pet.
If you want to know more about the types of breeds, read the article –Types Of Golden Retrievers. Do You know them?
After discovering why your Golden Retriever isn’t fluffy, don’t you want to know how to enhance their skin coat?
Read further to get your answer.
Your Golden Retriever Is Not Fluffy! What Should You Do?
Since a Golden Retriever becomes a part of the family after you bring it home, you probably want to do every possible thing to maintain its good health. Don’t you?
And the lustrous, shiny, soft, and dense hair of your pet enhances its beautiful features. Thus, when you see your lovely pal losing its beauty, it breaks your heart. Doesn’t it?
Therefore, I have some methods that can help to enhance the fluffiness of your pal. And they are:
Routine Bathing Makes Your Golden Retriever Fluffy
Although Golden Retrievers have a double-layered dust-resistant skin coat, their dense coat is susceptible to foreign particles. Thus, to remove these infectious particles, you should bathe your pet regularly.
Besides this, bathing your pet improves blood circulation and relaxes the hair follicles. As a result, it promotes hair growth and increases the fluffiness of the coat.
However, the excessive bath may remove the essential oil and dry out the skin. Thus, I suggest you give your pet a comfortable bathe only once a month unless an unavoidable situation (like allergies, matting, muddy fur, skin diseases, etc.) occurs.
Brush The Coat Daily To Increase The Volume Of Hair
Since Golden Retrievers enjoy exercising or playing, they hardly settle in one place. Thus, they will bring bacteria, dirt, dust, and mud into their fur when they return from the playing ground. And all this causes matting of hair coat that leads to skin conditions or ear infections.
Therefore, daily brushing eliminates dust, dirt, and bacteria for the skin coat of your pet. And it detangles the matting fur. Besides this, brushing distributes the essential oils throughout the body of your pet.
As a consequence, the texture of hair in your pet` improves. Finally, making your Golden Retriever fluffy.
Coconut Oil Massage Makes Your Golden Retriever Fluffy
Since coconut oil is a natural moisturizer, it soothes the dry or cracked skin of your pet. Besides this, the oil relaxes the hair follicles of your pet. Thus, it helps to enhance the texture and increase the fluffiness of the hair in your pet.
Therefore, you should massage your pet with coconut once in a while to enhance its skin coat. Besides this, a teaspoon of coconut oil mixed with the meal promotes the production of essential oil. As a result, your Golden Retriever becomes fluffy.
Use An Oatmeal Shampoo To Make Your Golden Retriever Fluffy
Generally, oatmeal has soothing properties. Thus, using oatmeal shampoo while bathing your pet relaxes the irritation and redness of the skin. Moreover, the oatmeal smoothens the dry, scaly, and cracked coat of your pet.
As a result, your pet stops scratching or pawing. Eventually, it prevents further abrasion of the skin. Therefore, the skin and hair condition of your Golden Retriever improves.
Include Herbal Supplements In the Diet Of Your Golden Retriever
Herbal supplements (like horsetails and spirulina) enhance the skin coat of your pet. Since the horsetails are high in silica, they help in the growth of skin coats and bones. Thus, their use results in the fluffy hair coat of your Golden Retriever.
Along with this, spirulina is rich in Vitamin B and protein. Thus, it enhances the texture of the skin and hair. However, never use these supplements recklessly. Always consult with your Vet about the required dosage before including them in the diet of your pet.
Omega Fatty Acids Makes Your Golden Retriever Fluffy
Omega fatty acids have a peculiar property that is very helpful during skin disorders. Thus, including omega acid-rich foods in the diet can improve the skin and hair of your pet. And, the foods high in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are:
- Seafood
- Salmon
- Sardines
- Flaxseeds
- Walnuts
Moreover, if the hair coat of your pet has dry out, using these foods in moderation. Furthermore, using omega fatty acid supplements will improve the hair coat of your pet within six weeks.
Provide Qualitative Food
Food plays a vital role in the health of your pet. Thus, if you want a healthy lifespan for your Golden Retriever, you should give them all the essential nutrients. However, only giving food is not enough. Also, ensure that the food is beneficial for your pet.
Besides this, some of the human foods are harmful to your pet. So, avoid giving the food you eat to your pal. Some of these foods are:
- Sodas
- Coffee
- Chocolate
- Raisins
- Biscuits and cookies
Since the Golden Retrievers have different metabolism and physiology than humans, human food leads to various health issues like constipation, obesity, allergies, skin infections, cancer, etc. As a consequence of these diseases, the skin coat of your pet deteriorates.
How about giving your pet healthy natural snacks as treats? These natural snacks are both healthy and tasty. And I am sure your pet will love them.
Furthermore, failure in the management of disease leads to permanent skin damage and loss of coat texture. Therefore, if you want your Golden Retriever to be fluffy, you should be careful about the food you give.
Seek The Help Of The Vet
Frequent visit to your Vet helps to promote the health of your pet. Since the Vet knows more about the disease than you, the advice he gives can be helpful in the management and treatment of the disease.
Besides this, the Vet prescribes various supplements to promote the hair growth of your pet. And, the suggestion that he gives for the diet schedule ensures qualitative nutritious food for your pet.
Therefore, seeking advice from the Vet helps in the effective grooming of your pet and promotes a healthy coat.
Your pet has flat and fuzzy fur. How will you increase the fluffiness?
Do you know how to use a blow dryer?
How To Fluff Up The Hair Of Your Golden Retriever?
In addition to the above methods, you can increase the volume of hair in your pet by using blow dryers. Generally, groomers use this method to fluff up the flat hair in the pet. But, you need some specific tools to carry out this process. i.e.:
- Hairdryer
- Spray bottle
- Leash
- Slicker brush
Once you have all the necessary tools in your hand, you can start the process. And the steps are:
- Wash the hair of your pet with oatmeal shampoo and rinse it.
- Apply dog-specific conditioners. However, you can use dog baths for washing your pet.
- Gently dry the hair of your pet with a soft and clean cotton towel.
- Brush the hair of your pet and dry it with a blow dryer.
- Lift the hair with a slick brush while drying.
- Take small portions of the hair and follow the above procedure.
Moreover, this is a professional method. Thus, you may not excel at the first attempt. But, after some practice, I am certain that you will be perfect in grooming your pal.
However, I have some do and do not for this process.
What Should You Do While Blow Drying?
The things you should do for increasing the hair volume in your pet include:
- Give your pet breaks and offer treats while following this method.
- Make sure all the equipment you use is dog-specific.
- Wash the shampoo thoroughly before starting.
- Use a clean and soft cotton towel to dry your Golden Retriever.
- Brush gently
What Not To Do While Blow Drying?
Since your carelessness can lead to permanent damage to your pets’ fur, you need to be cautious. Moreover, there are some things you should avoid while blow-drying your pet:
- Avoid the hairdryer from blowing in the eyes of your pet.
- Do not scold or threaten your Golden Retriever while you blow-dry its hair.
- Avoid the use of a dryer that makes noise.
- Do not blow-dry close to ears. Instead, use a soft cotton bud to clean the ears of your pet.
- Avoid pulling the hair while brushing the coat of your pet.
I hope you can enhance and improve the skin coat of your pet following the above methods.
Please make sure you give your feedback after you use these ideas for your pet.
The comment box below is waiting for your suggestions.