# thicker fur



## kaebonz (Dec 5, 2007)

Hi there, my little Pixie is now a year and a half old and her fur growth seems to have hit a standstill. Unfortunately it is wispy at the ends and kind of thin. I am wondering if there are products or supplements out there that help grow thicker fur. And I have never trimmed her, do I need to trim the ends so it grows in thicker? I am thinking about joining a Maltese group and showing her so need to get her fur in top shape.

Thanks, Laura


----------



## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

Awww is she show quality? I wish you all the luck with that!
As for products, I do not know any, but maybe somebody on the firum does.
I might be showing my Gigi and she does not have a really thick coat but I just love how her coat looks. It's really silky and really shiny. It's also easier to take care of and so far no breakage


----------



## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Sounds like you've got some damage. I would at least trim a bit off the ends and then maybe keep her in a heavier conditioner (don't rinse all of it out). Does she run and play on carpet and in the grass? Things like that will keep breaking hair off so you have to be realistic about how long you will get her coat.


----------



## madden (Jan 15, 2009)

I don't have any advice, but good luck showing Pixie.


----------



## bellaratamaltese (May 24, 2006)

Welcome to SM!!

as JMM said, it sounds like she has coat damage. Growing a show coat is no easy task, esp. depending on what type of coat your Pixel has. Do you have any pictures of her? 

Which maltese group were you thinking of joining? I belong to a lot of them! Are you in the United States? I just started showing a few years ago - and can definitely say I have learned a lot! The dogs I have in show coat (I have three right now but one is only 5 mos old so she doesn't really count yet) do not walk on carpet and have very limited grass exposure. If you want to have a nice show coat, it's easier to do it if they don't run around in the backyard on a daily basis. 

I would trim those ends and try to get it where it's not so thin and wispy at the bottom of the coat. Also, maltese have hair, not fur. Let me know if you have any questions about showing - I'll be happy to help! The best way to get started is to go to a dog show and watch the maltese show in the ring. You can see how it's hours of grooming and you only spend 5 min. in the ring typically. Please share pics of your baby! I'd love to see her!


----------



## kaebonz (Dec 5, 2007)

Hi again, I am going to try my luck at posting pictures of Pixie. As far as her being show quality, she is definitely not champion quality, I am sure, but I figure the club I join can point me to some small local shows I can do for fun with her. She still needs some training and has a retained baby tooth still. I don't want to put her under to have it pulled so I wiggle it every night when I floss between them (I don't floss all her teeth, ha-ha, but the baby canine presses right up agings the adult one and I don't want her to get a cavity) The baby canine on the other side did finally come out last November so I am hoping...

We live just north of Seattle, we do have a small yard that she plays in on nice days, May-September here, but the rest of the year she gets her business done and wants in. I do admit that on a camping trip last year, her underside was the campground dust mop and halfway through our 5 day trip, I clipped away all hair on her underside from her armpits to her tummy. She was a mess of twigs and matts from just a couple days playing hard outdoors and in the lake, so that has also probably impacted how thin her fur looks. She is headed to Florida with me next week to work on her dark points (and visit my college daughter), we don't get much sun here in the winter.

She has a very cottony coat and my expectations may be a little high as my other fur babies are Shih-Tzu's and a Yorkie-poo so have nice thick undercoats. I did not brush her before I took the latest pics as her hair looks thicker if I work on it, maybe that is just the trick? I am out of the Coat Handler conditioner, which I love, and have been out for about a month. And she has had more mats this month and even if I am careful, some hair always comes out when I have to tackle mats, I definitely need to be better about keeping up on that, uggg.


----------



## briones1980 (Aug 21, 2008)

Wow, she's precious. I don't have any show tips, but in that 2nd pic especially the sheen on her coat makes her look so silky, not cottony.

Cute profile she's got, too!


----------



## kaebonz (Dec 5, 2007)

She does not like the flash going off in her eyes so I had it turned off and some of the pictures turned out dark, the 2nd and 4th I think, and my husband used an auto-editor on them to lighten them up so I could post them, she sure does look shiny in those two photos.


----------



## ilovemymaltese (Oct 9, 2008)

I can't tell but is her coat like this when you brush it out?:

























I just snapped a few pics of my Gigi. Gigi hair is naturally straight and silky but not thick. Both her parents had thinner hair too than most maltese you see so I expected her hair to grow thinner. I don't think your darling has a thin coat but it's deff. really silky and shiny! How much does she weigh? She looks so small and adorable. :wub: :wub: 
Let me know if you find any products or supplements out there that help grow thicker fur :biggrin:


----------



## kaebonz (Dec 5, 2007)

Pixie's hair puffs out a bit when I brush her and looks full enough I guess, it just gets so thin and wispy at the ends and does not seem to want to grow any longer than it is. The show dogs I see always have their hair to the floor, hmmm. It also has some waviness to it as you can see. She is 4.5 pounds. I will try to post a picture of her groomed today.

Your Gigi is precious, I envy those fabulous dark points!!!


----------



## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

If you want to show her you need to cut off the ends and start fresh. You will more than likely need to keep her in oil or wrapped/limit her access to carpet and grass. If she does have a wave, you will need to iron it out before showing. You also need to band her facial hair so it can grow out. 

If her canine is not yet out, you need to get it pulled and yes, for a canine, that requires anesthesia. 

Is she show quality structure-wise? If not, I really would not waste my time with conformation. There are plenty of other fun activities like Rally, Obedience, and Agility you can do with her.


----------

