u/fueledbytisane

Hazel went full on derp mode while snuggling today. Goofy girl cracks me up.

I posted here a few weeks ago asking for advice on how to help my foster dog's coat become the beautiful shiny soft coat I knew was hiding under her dull neglected fur.

For background, Lily came to me about 6 weeks ago from a hoarder situation. She was one of 90 dogs seized and rescued by animal control. All I knew about her was that she was a Labrador mix about 1 year old, had been malnourished, and lived her entire life in a cage.

When I picked her up from the rescue, she weighed 26 pounds. I could feel every bone when I petted her. Over time, she gained 12 pounds to reach a healthy weight of 38. Her coat was dull and wiry feeling, but I could tell that wasn't her natural texture. So I asked here for help to get her coat where I knew it deserved to be.

Reddit had a lot of great suggestions for how to help Lily's coat. I don't have the funds to use the most common suggestion, adding salmon oil to her diet, but I was able to implement most other suggestions. (I would like to reiterate that Lily is a foster, and we are not ultimately in charge of what care she is given unless we are willing to cover what the rescue cannot.)

I am very happy to report that Lily's coat is much healthier! She's been in our care for 6 weeks now and has actually grown an undercoat in, then started shedding it. I'm fairly confident that is why her coat looked all scraggly when I posted looking for help. Her coat was just in the middle of healing. All the suggestions y'all made helped support what her scrappy resilient body was already doing, and now look at her! She's such a beautiful baby!!! Thank you to the For Black Dogs community for helping me brainstorm how to help this sweet baby! She's in a much better position to be adopted now.

She's 41 pounds at almost 7 months. Up 6 pounds from last month. She's on the small side due to being part Heeler, so she's right on track for growth according to her vet. I'm just a little bit sad at how fast she's leaving puppyhood. I don't think putting a brick on her head would work any better than it has on my 8 year old daughter, but I'm tempted to try, haha!

My foster girl Lily was malnourished when I took her in. Her coat was dull and rough, and I could feel her bones as I petted her. She's gained weight under my care and is at a healthy size, but her coat hasn't gotten as soft and glossy as I'd like to see. The fur on her head and along her spine has gotten nice and soft, so I know it's not just her fur texture like if she were a wiry-haired mix.

Any tips for helping the rest of her coat get to a better place? I've started feeding her the same salmon sensitive skin/stomach food my GSD mix eats and supplementing her diet with cooked eggs, sweet potato, green beans, carrots, and dog safe frozen fruit. Maybe I just need to be more patient? Just trying to give this sweet baby the love and care she deserves.

My husband sent me this picture of our family dog (Hazel, left) and our foster dog (Lily, right) snuggling on the couch together. I just had to share it with someone. The cuteness is overwhelming!!

Lily has only been with us for two weeks. She comes from a hoarder situation and has spent most of her life in a cage. Even with her tragic background, she still has so much love to give. She's really settling in to family life and learning what it means to just be a dog. We are honored to be part of her healing journey.