QUESTION

My boxer girl looks like she has dandruff. I feed her James Well Beloved, give her Cod Liver Oil and use Exmerid lotion. Whilst she was pregnant it seems as if it has got worse, what could it be? I tried stopping brushing her as much because the more I brushed the worse it got.

Jen

ANSWER

Dear Jen,
Often scurfy skin in dogs is caused by an overgrowth of a certain yeast in the skin called Malassezia, in much the same way that people can get dandruff. Good quality food and essential fatty acids like evening primrose oil can help, but better is a special shampoo that you can get from your vets called "malaseb". This works to kill the offending yeast.

Julian Norton