[iluvthree3]

My yorkie was groomed and needed a summer grooming because we live in FL and it’s hot. When I picked her up, I almost died. All of her back hair was shaved but groomer left her longer hair to about 6″‘s. I was assured her hair would grow back in and here it is three summers later and she is still bald. Her face hair is pretty and i have that groomed often. Has anyone out there had this problem with their yorkie? The vet doesn’t have an answer either. Thanks for your help.
Linda J

[soho]

Hi iluvthree3

I have seen shave downs expose an undiagnosed condition such as low thyroid or alopecia.

I will explain. Let’s say your dog had a low thyroid and so far had no symptoms. Now you shave your dog down and the hair grows back sparsely or in patches. What happened was the shave down exposed the underlying disease. The hair would have eventually become as sparse or as patchy as it became after the shave down but the shave down allowed the process to become immediately visible.

That being said, I have never seen a dog’s hair not grow at all after a shave down. Even with an underlying disease you would probably see peach fuzz or patches or some kind of hair growth.

If this were my dog I would do a complete blood workup with a FULL thyroid panel, not just a t4 measurement. This might give you some insight into what is going on with your dog. I would also try to figure out if your dog was or is being exposed to any environmental toxins in or around your home.

I hope everything turns out all right!

[Author]

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