How to Handle Bernese Mountain Dog Shedding

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Bernese Mountain Dogs are large dogs with a double coat and thick fur, so expect them to shed a lot. This breed is known for its intelligence, alertness and affectionate nature. These dogs are protective, but not usually aggressive. Bernese Mountain Dogs can be quite shy and distant with strangers, so they should be exposed to various animals and people early in life.

How Much They Shed

This breed needs to be brushed every day, especially during the shedding season. A de-shedding brush should be used when brushing the underlying coat. Bernese Mountain Dog pups have a single layer of coat and eventually develop a double-layered coat.

Until they have shed their puppy coat, they will just have a single layer of hair. The amount of shedding isn’t as large as of other breeds. Bernese Mountain Dogs pups usually shed their coat at 7 to 9 months old. They have to shed in order for the double-layered coat to grow.

The shedding period will last for a few weeks, so you have to be patient. Brush his coat gently using a curry brush to remove knots and tangles. After this, you can use brush his coat with a de-shedding brush.  The long teeth of the brush can grab your pet’s undercoat and remove fluffy old hair.

Shedding Season

This breed usually sheds heavily during late fall and early spring. If you see your Bernese Mountain Dog shedding heavily, you should check his diet as a poor diet can cause extensive shedding. Your dog should have a diet that is packed with good nutrients and fatty acids.

Fleas and mites can cause extensive shedding as well. Your dog might start scratching himself if he’s been bitten by a flea or mite. Take him to the vet to get the pests removed. Dogs that are stressed will also shed more than those that are not.

You have to make sure that your pet is living in a peacefulenvironment where he won’t be disturbed.  Don’t keep him in an open space with a lot of new people entering and exiting constantly. Pregnant dogs will also shed a lot.

How to Control Shedding

Here are some tips on how to control Bernese Mountain Dog shedding.

Brush his coat on a regular basis – It doesn’t matter whether it is the shedding season or not. You should brush his coat on a regular basis to get rid of loose and dead loose from the outer coat. Work your way up your dog’s body. Start brushing his coat from the roots to the tip of his hair. Every section of hair should be held upright, so you can clearly see the roots.

Remove any excess hair from the brush. Brushing your pet’s coat twice a week will considerably reduce the amount of hair he sheds.

Use a rake comb to keep the undercoat clean – This breed sheds two times a year, but it’s important to keep the undercoat clean to prevent hair from landing everywhere in your house. A rake comb can be used when your dog starts shedding to remove the loose undercoat before it becomes matted with your pet’s outer coat or lands on your couch.

Wash his coat using protein conditioner and shampoo – Bernese Mountain Dogs can be given a bath twice a month. Use a protein conditioner and shampoo for dogs. The protein infusions will help strengthen your pet’s hair and prevent it from breaking or shedding prematurely.

If your dog is not given a bath often, you can mist his coat with a mixture of water and protein conditioner before you brush his coat. The water and protein conditioner should be equal amounts. This will helploosen tangles and strengthen and protect his hair.

Give him high quality food – Always give your pet high quality food that contains protein sources and few bi-products or fillers because it can be easily digested and will also strengthen his skin and coat. It is important to keep in mind that changing his food or diet will not get rid of the shedding problem completely.However, a balanced diet can reduce the amount of dead hair that they shed.

What Are the Tools You Need?

Any kind of brush for dogs can be used for surface cleaning. However, you should use the right tools in order to get the best results. Bernese Mountain Dogs have double coats, so you need to pay extra attention to them. If their coat is neglected for a long time, expect your furniture to be covered with fur. Some of the best tools for managing the coat of this breed include the slicker brush, pin brush (stainless steel) and stainless steel comb with coarse and fine teeth.

The slicker brush and pin brush are recommended for grooming. A pin brush removes debris from the coat and lifts up loose hair. It has arectangular or oval end and wires with blunt pins or ends. It works best for general grooming. The pins of a regular pin brush can be retracted to remove excess hair.

A slicker brush has fixed ends. Regardless of the brush you use, just make sure that it can reach your pet’s undercoat. If you don’t, only a small amount of loose hair will be removed and the heavy shedding problem will continue. Daily brushing is recommended as it not only prevents shedding hair from accumulating, but also distributes natural oils around your pet’s fur.

Coconut oil can help improve the moisture balance in your pet’s fur and skin as well. Just mix some coconut oil (1 tablespoon) and water (0.2 gallons or around 1 litter). Shake well before use. You can transfer the mixture into a spray bottle, so you can spray it directly onto your pet’s fur and skin.

Coconut oil can be given orally as well. Give only a small amount of coconut oil at first to make sure that your pet can handle it.

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