# Australian Shepherd - Coat & Ears Questions



## applesandshanana

I know there are quite a few Aussie owners peeking around here, so I thought I would see what answers I can get.

At what age do Aussies generally get their adult coat? I'm a first time Aussie parent and I've just been curious how long this fluffy stuff is going to stick around . 

And is there any way to tell how a puppy's ears will be set? Ruby's ears tend to hang at the sides, but every once in a while they stick up. Is it likely they'll stay down?

Thanks!


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## KodiBarracuda

Not sure about the coat, I didn't actually notice the difference in Kodi's coat until I saw younger pictures of him. 
Enjoy the fluffy stuff while you can  When they go through their uglies, they can sometimes look like hairless rats compared to the lush adult coats. I cant believe how short Kodi's hair got before his adult coat started coming in. Now it 3 and 4 inch long hair everywhere! (On the furniture, on my clothes, in my food...) and he is only 10 months! I don't want to know how hairy he will get as he ages! 
About the ears... Yeah, they do all sorts of funny things. I wouldn't take much too seriously this young with the ears, Kodi had days when I was so worried his ears wouldn't go down, and he still has ear up days and I say to him "Kodi, put your ears down" haha, I think he knows that up ears scare me because I think they will stay up. I suppose you could do a bit of cosmetic work with them if you really worried about it and planned on showing him, but I would wait, it doesn't sound like a problem if they are only up every once in a while.
You could look at his parents too, ear sets are often genetic, or so I've been told.
How old is your puppy now? That would help with knowing how his ears will lay.


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## AussieOwner

Just about 5 months old and I still haven't seen my little boy's ears. The hair on his head is so soft and fluffy it stands taller than his ears which are usually droopy or back with his "I'm so content right now" face. He's so damned cute. He has a couple tufts of longer (guard hair?) on his back but both my pups from the same litter have gotten slightly wavy coats on their backs already.


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## Keechak

Hawkeye's coat and ears as he aged His ears were taped for a time between 5 and 10 months old

9 weeks old









5 months old









8 months old









11 months old









2 years Old









Now 3 years old


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## dbulick

It hasn't been till the last couple months that Shiner's coat has started to really fill out into an adult coat. She is about 13 months old now. The ears most likely will stay down, that doesn't mean they are the ideal set though.

Shiner's ears are most definitely not the ideal set, and we had/have more problems with her ears flopping back.

Her ears flopping back:









How her ears usually sit, and what she looked like when her coat started coming in:


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## sheltiemom

Scarlett's ears went up and stayed up at about 6 months...before that they were tipped. My two medium coated dogs (aussie and border collie) had adult looking coats at 9 months, while my shelties continued to fill out past a year old.


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## Keechak

dbulick said:


> It hasn't been till the last couple months that Shiner's coat has started to really fill out into an adult coat. She is about 13 months old now. The ears most likely will stay down, that doesn't mean they are the ideal set though.
> 
> Shiner's ears are most definitely not the ideal set, and we had/have more problems with her ears flopping back.
> 
> How her ears usually sit, and what she looked like when her coat started coming in:


Her ears look just fine to me they are very much correct and as long as they are ether Rose or Button there is no preferred type per the standard


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## Pawzk9

Keechak said:


> Her ears look just fine to me they are very much correct and as long as they are ether Rose or Button there is no preferred type per the standard


But you know that in the show ring, it does get considered. Hawkeye has nice ears. What I really hate is the ears that people tape/glue so low that they dont' have any break. I never tape/glue my dogs' ears. Had one friend whose show prospect rough collie came to her with ears glued by breeder. One ear was glued a bit too tight and cut off circulation. He lost the tip of that ear. I want to actually know what sort of ears the dog actually has. In some breeds ears have been "fixed" for so many generations that you have no idea what they would be like if they weren't.


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## Keechak

Yep and I HATE how Hawk's ears look at 8 months, I am so glad I didn't ruin them from the tapping cause when he looked like that I nearly cried. I can't say I'm a huge fan of the look of his ears now since they break over far from the head but since they are correct I couldn't really care. Ears with no lift and break are a huge nit pick of mine also.


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## applesandshanana

Thanks for the help! Ruby is about 13 weeks right now. We're not planning on showing her, but since we're talking about breed standard...she does not meet standard because she is not solid around both eyes, right? She has really light merle around the eyes, but no solid liver. 

Also, is there a way to tell based on how big she is now what she might grow to? We just took her to the vet and she was 19 pounds. Her mother was a small Aussie, so we're kind of hoping she'll follow suit.


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## Keechak

It looks to me like she has pigmented coat around both eyes, merled coat around the eyes is just as acceptable as solid colored coat around both eyes, it just can't be white. Size can be a funny thing Hawkeye's mother is 19.5 inches tall and Hawkeye's father is 21.5 inches tall, the litter all grew to be between 17 and 21 inches, non of the girls are as big as their mother and non of the boys grew quite as tall as their father. And size isn't terribly important in aussies and any breeder stressing a specific size requirement is not a breeder I care for. They should be big enough to work cattle and small enough to be agile, a good aussie should have versatility skills of stock.


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## dbulick

It is hard to tell, but I agree doesn't look like a problem. Also if you aren't planning on showing, and she isn't have any vision issues I wouldn't worry about it anyway.


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## Pawzk9

applesandshanana said:


> Thanks for the help! Ruby is about 13 weeks right now. We're not planning on showing her, but since we're talking about breed standard...she does not meet standard because she is not solid around both eyes, right? She has really light merle around the eyes, but no solid liver.
> 
> Also, is there a way to tell based on how big she is now what she might grow to? We just took her to the vet and she was 19 pounds. Her mother was a small Aussie, so we're kind of hoping she'll follow suit.


I think 19 lbs. is quite a bit more than Alice weighed at that age. She's bottom of the standard size wise. I'd guess she's going to be a bigger girl. By the way, her markings are within standard. Eyes and ears need to be surrounded by a color other than white. On a merle it can be either the dilute or the non-dilute spots. As long as it is not white. Also, white recedes with age, so I'd expect her blaze may fill in a bit around the edges and as an adult she won't be pushing the envelope on white.


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## MLove84

Love those Aussies..

beautiful pup you have.

I'm curious too as to what weight our little lady may get up to. She's currently 11 weeks old now and only tipping the scale at 5.0LBS. 

Her mother was 25lbs, father I'm not sure an exact weight.. assuming around 19 or so. 

(legs are shaved since she spent 11 days in Parvo Treatment)


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## Keechak

MLove84 your dog is a Miniature American Shepherd not an Australian Shepherd so your puppy will naturally be smaller than most Aussies


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## Austinsmom

Adult coats take years to mature and several shedding cycles. As for ears, ears change as puppies teethe.
If this is just a pet there is no need to take any measures to set them. I would suggest a little Ester C daily
during teething to help keep them set naturally.


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## luv2byte

Yeah, the new name, per akc, for our dogs is Miniature American Shephers, those really into their Aussies do not like us referring to our dogs as an Aussie of any kind. No matter what akc wants to call them they are still an Aussie, just smaller. When people ask I do tell them their new name but explain they are otherwise known as a mini Aussie.


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## Austinsmom

Sorry, they are not small versions of Aussies. 1. A size variety has to be accepted by the parent group. USASA and ASCA never sanctioned this. 2. They very never truthful about their stud book. Other breeds were introduced and swept under the rug.

It would be like you going to bed and waking up the next morning to a knock at the door. A stranger is standing there and says, "While
you were sleeping I built an addition to your house. I'm going to live there and get my mail in your name. OK? You should be happy 
about this. Thanks."

Besides this thread is about fur no more no less.


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## Pawzk9

luv2byte said:


> Yeah, the new name, per akc, for our dogs is Miniature American Shephers, those really into their Aussies do not like us referring to our dogs as an Aussie of any kind. No matter what akc wants to call them they are still an Aussie, just smaller. When people ask I do tell them their new name but explain they are otherwise known as a mini Aussie.


They come from completely different foundation stock from Aussies. Except of course, for the Aussies who were bred in to make them look more like Aussis. The originals were very small, and very un-Aussie looking. If you think they are "bred down" Aussies, you're not very familiar with the history of your breed.


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## luv2byte

http://mascaonline.com/breed-info/history/


During the 1960’s, a Californian Australian Shepherd enthusiast acquired several small working Aussies from the rodeo circuit. Intrigued by their compact size, she worked with a veterinarian to develop a breeding program in order to preserve the trait, which quickly resulted in litters producing both dogs only 13 to 14 inches tall as well as larger Australian Shepherds. The smaller dogs eventually became known as “miniature” Australian Shepherds.

http://www.australian-shepherd-lovers.com/history-aussie-shepherd.html

Where do Mini Aussies fit in? Smaller spaces of course! (Sorry, I couldn't resist that one.) The history and origin of the Mini Aussie is closely tied to the Australian Shepherd. Miniature Australian Shepherds were bred from Australian Shepherds and they have a shared history.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_Australian_Shepherd

The Miniature Australian Shepherd (MAS) was developed by breeding smaller Australian Shepherds for the desired size. Miniature Australian Shepherds are rapidly increasing in popularity among those interested in a compact dog with a strong work ethic. They are especially popular in dog agility, and do well in other dog sports including herding, obedience, disc dog, and many other activities


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## Pawzk9

luv2byte said:


> http://mascaonline.com/breed-info/history/
> 
> 
> During the 1960’s, a Californian Australian Shepherd enthusiast acquired several small working Aussies from the rodeo circuit. Intrigued by their compact size, she worked with a veterinarian to develop a breeding program in order to preserve the trait, which quickly resulted in litters producing both dogs only 13 to 14 inches tall as well as larger Australian Shepherds. The smaller dogs eventually became known as “miniature” Australian Shepherds.
> 
> http://www.australian-shepherd-lovers.com/history-aussie-shepherd.html
> 
> Where do Mini Aussies fit in? Smaller spaces of course! (Sorry, I couldn't resist that one.) The history and origin of the Mini Aussie is closely tied to the Australian Shepherd. Miniature Australian Shepherds were bred from Australian Shepherds and they have a shared history.
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_Australian_Shepherd
> 
> The Miniature Australian Shepherd (MAS) was developed by breeding smaller Australian Shepherds for the desired size. Miniature Australian Shepherds are rapidly increasing in popularity among those interested in a compact dog with a strong work ethic. They are especially popular in dog agility, and do well in other dog sports including herding, obedience, disc dog, and many other activities


Umn, sorry. Try again. These dogs are the foundation of the Miniature American Shepherd. They are not nor ever have been Australian shepherds http://www.myspace.com/travistoyaussies/photos/albums/my-photos/270488 though Cordova's Spike was an outstandingly cute dog.


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## Austinsmom

Yes, there are common dogs in the stud book but the dishonesty happened after that. Many pedigrees were 
and ARE a forgery. 
Now ASCA has all dams and sires DNAed before any litter can be registered. 

What you are not understanding is that the Australian Shepherd club had to sanction a size variety before it
can be excepted. ASCA and USASA did not and won't. Why? Firstly, there is no size disqualification for our breed.
Many of us have smaller Aussies and do not need to have prejudice when stepping into a conformation or performance
ring. Quality is not to be sacrificed in favor of size. 

Can't we have this discussion in another thread? This is about this dog's coat not breed history.

Back to ears and coat.
As for ears, rose, button and high breaking are totally acceptable. And they do finish both in ASCA and AKC.


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## aidenmommy

My aussie is 4 years old, and her ears are permanently up or she has them back.. is this normal..


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## Austinsmom

Yes. Aussies have several natural ear sets including prick ears(ears that stand straight up).
I have one bitch with natural folds yet she can pull one ear completely up at attention.


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## Pawzk9

aidenmommy said:


> My aussie is 4 years old, and her ears are permanently up or she has them back.. is this normal..


There's some discussion in ASCA about changing prick (upright) ears from a serious fault to a fault, because it is fairly common in the breed. Many people tape or glue ears to make them conform to the standard, which I think keeps one from knowing what sort of ears their dog will produce. Earset is not a major consideration for me, but if if I have a dog with very high ears, all other things being equal, I'll pick a mate with a better earset. Of course, my girls go back to some prick eared dogs. Rikki's ears are almost TOO low for my taste (and were never cosmetically altered) She was bred to a dog who had some high earsets but no prick ears close in the pedigree and had one folded and one rose ear. Two puppies in the litter had prick ears, and another had tulip ears (just the tips breaking). The pup I kept has one folded and one rose.


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## Austinsmom

I know on FB they said they many people tape and glue prick ears to standard. I can tell you that 
is impossible. Perhaps some zealots have them surgically altered, although I have never heard of that 
done in my area. When they breed their dogs, they will have more prick ears. Personally, I do not care
for the earset. BUT with so many incorrect dogs becoming the top dogs in the country, we have bigger
things to worry about then ears.


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## Pawzk9

Austinsmom said:


> I know on FB they said they many people tape and glue prick ears to standard. I can tell you that
> is impossible. Perhaps some zealots have them surgically altered, although I have never heard of that
> done in my area. When they breed their dogs, they will have more prick ears. Personally, I do not care
> for the earset. BUT with so many incorrect dogs becoming the top dogs in the country, we have bigger
> things to worry about then ears.


Actually, there are a lot of people who routinely tape/glue ears. But of course, if it's routinely done, you really never know what sort of ears your dogs would naturally have. I hear some people justify it by stating theat they are just looking to preserve the nice earset their puppy had before teething. But that's bunk. All puppies (including dogs who are supposed to have upright ears like GSD and Corgis) start with nicely folded ears.


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## Austinsmom

Pawzk9 said:


> Actually, there are a lot of people who routinely tape/glue ears. But of course, if it's routinely done, you really never know what sort of ears your dogs would naturally have. I hear some people justify it by stating theat they are just looking to preserve the nice earset their puppy had before teething. But that's bunk. All puppies (including dogs who are supposed to have upright ears like GSD and Corgis) start with nicely folded ears.


Of course, they tape and glue, I am talking about taping and gluing PRICK ears. I tape ears before an AKC show so they sit well
just for the show. I don't bother for ASCA. I have glued puppy's ears but now I found a Ester C helps set ears better BUT they still are folds or buttons.
Tape, Glue and supplements will *not* set Prick ears to folds. You may be able to tip prick ears with weight like a collie but
you would not get the 1/4 break.


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## Pawzk9

Austinsmom said:


> Of course, they tape and glue, I am talking about taping and gluing PRICK ears. I tape ears before an AKC show so they sit well
> just for the show. I don't bother for ASCA. I have glued puppy's ears but now I found a Ester C helps set ears better BUT they still are folds or buttons.
> Tape, Glue and supplements will *not* set Prick ears to folds. You may be able to tip prick ears with weight like a collie but
> you would not get the 1/4 break.


I don't know of anyone who tapes or glues who waits to see if the ears go prick. Generally they start when the pup is just starting to teethe and ears are just starting to go wonky. I would agree that once the ears are fully set and up, you're not going to change that without surgery. I have no dog with a "perfect" earset, though I do have one with what a lot of the show people seem to like (or get by taping and glueing - she has only a bit of lift. But then it has been years since I've shown in conformation. (even when I did, I took the dog in the ring with the ears they had - and sometimes still won.)


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## Austinsmom

You can't change natural prick ears even when they are young. You can enhance button or folds with tape or glue
if you choose. Prick ears will go prick no matter how much glue and tape and I imagine it can't be comfortable for
the puppy. Had a friend that taped but one of the puppy's ear went prick. You can't change genetics with a roll of tape
or tube of glue.


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## Pawzk9

Austinsmom said:


> You can't change natural prick ears even when they are young. You can enhance button or folds with tape or glue
> if you choose. Prick ears will go prick no matter how much glue and tape and I imagine it can't be comfortable for
> the puppy. Had a friend that taped but one of the puppy's ear went prick. You can't change genetics with a roll of tape
> or tube of glue.


If the ears are small or the cartiledge is very strong, it's not unlikely that taping or gluing may fail. However, there are probably a lot of dogs whose ears would be prick (or semi-prick, or much higher) if they were allowed to develop without cosmetic alteration. Thing is, if you alter the earset of every puppy when they reach teething age, how can you really say what their natural earset would be? Answer is, you cannot.


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## SheltiePuppies75

Very informative thread. Read more about the double coat and sheltie pictures


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## applesandshanana

Just thought I would update a bit on my little Ruby girl, since I asked the original question.

We've definitely moved into a bit of the hair uglies now that she's at 8 months. Her hair is super long along her spine and around her butt, but still fluffy and a little scraggly everywhere else. I'm waiting for that pretty chest hair so she'll look a little complete . Ears are still a little strange and are not staying down all the time, but they seem to almost stick out. Her color has definitely filled in a ton, especially around her eyes, too.


















She's about 19 inches tall right now, so I'm starting to wonder if she'll grow a bit more. She seems so much shorter than the other Aussies we see, people have even asked if she is a mini.


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## Keechak

applesandshanana said:


> She's about 19 inches tall right now, so I'm starting to wonder if she'll grow a bit more. She seems so much shorter than the other Aussies we see, people have even asked if she is a mini.


I get people asking if my Aussies are "Mini" too. It's like people think Aussies are always supposed to be 70 pounds and tall. I've seen Aussies anywhere between 25 and 75 pounds. and I'm sure that's not even the extremes. Just because an Aussie is under the "preferred" height range it's not ethical to call it a "Mini" cause it's not. "Preferred is just that "Preferred" it's not a fault to be under 18 or over 23, and Aussies should NEVER be bred specifically for size (Like the MAS breeders do). 

And FYI 19 inches is in the "preferred" height range.


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## CuddlyKat

I have a male red merle!! Yours reminds me of him. He's almost 5 months old now. 
I hope these pics come up 
He's mismarked with too much white in the face, but I love him and he's still cute.


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## Equinox

Seeing the posts in this old thread just makes my heart so heavy


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## Laurelin

Me too. I always get a little jolt when I see one of Sandy's posts from a while ago. I actually was talking to some people about her today at the pet store. She is very missed around here.


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## Fantasia ryon

Hello!  I bought my australian shepherd (cowboy) when he was almost two months old I have a question about his coat now that he is almost 5 months old now it's still rather short I was wondering if this is normal? I noticed that his fur on his hind legs are starting to get longer andhe still has some short patches on his sides his hair is around ad inch plus some long, Here is a photo of him at almost two months 












and him at 4 months


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## Keechak

His coat is unusually short for an Aussie but at 4 months they tend to have the shortest coat of their entire life so all I can say is wait till he's about 2 years old to judge coat. What were his parents coats like?

In comparison here is my youngest girl at 6 months old, her coat was still sightly longer than your pup's tho.


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## Miss Bugs

I have seen 3 Aussies now with coats super short like that(adults) all just very recently, like within the last month, all the owners have said that the dog was a purebred Aussie..2 of them I really don't believe, they are dead ringers for Kelpies and I can totally just see a random pet person being told that a Kelpie is a type of "Australian sheepdog" and them totally misunderstanding lol. but the 3rd looked exactly like Cowboy and confused the heck outa me!


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## Fantasia ryon

I know both of cowboys parents that's why I'm confused to why his hair is still so short he is almost 5 months and I have seen Aussies at 7 months with hair just a tad longer then his i was just wondering if his hair is just growing slow or what here is some pictures of his mother


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## Kei San

Do you have a picture of his father? He could just be a slow maturer. All Australian Shepherds are different as are all dogs. As Keechak said wait until he is at least a year or two. Or why just ask the person you received him from about it.

Aurora always had long fur even as a pup. She was a fluff ball. Here is a comparison. Just turn 5 months in the first picture and just turn 6 months in the other.


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## Six Aussies

Hey guys, 
Just a quick question. We recently adopted an Aussie, but I'm worried that he might not be full bred like they told us he was. Not that it matters, we still love him, but I'm just curious. He's five months old, and has a short coat. I always just assumed that his adult coat would come in, but now that he's this old, I'm having doubts. Other than his coat, he looks a lot like an Aussie. 







For all of you that have Aussies, is this normal? I've attached a picture of him.


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## Keechak

need some side shots of him


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## Six Aussies

I did my best to get some side shots of him, but if you can't see he has a very short and silky coat. The fur is about 3/4 of an inch long, and he's about 6 months old. The thing that's throwing me off is that he was a pretty fluffy puppy.
He might just be a late bloomer, he only gained three pounds at his last vet trip, and I'm estimating that he only weighs about 20lbs now. He's all legs.


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## Mikeincalgary

Six Aussies said:


> View attachment 98921
> View attachment 98929
> 
> I did my best to get some side shots of him, but if you can't see he has a very short and silky coat. The fur is about 3/4 of an inch long, and he's about 6 months old. The thing that's throwing me off is that he was a pretty fluffy puppy.
> He might just be a late bloomer, he only gained three pounds at his last vet trip, and I'm estimating that he only weighs about 20lbs now. He's all legs.


My boy is 4 months and just over 25lbs - got me worried he is going to be a big one!


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## Keechak

Six Aussies said:


> View attachment 98921
> View attachment 98929
> 
> I did my best to get some side shots of him, but if you can't see he has a very short and silky coat. The fur is about 3/4 of an inch long, and he's about 6 months old. The thing that's throwing me off is that he was a pretty fluffy puppy.
> He might just be a late bloomer, he only gained three pounds at his last vet trip, and I'm estimating that he only weighs about 20lbs now. He's all legs.


in addition to his very sort coat his head shape is also very atypical for the breed, he definitely could be a mix but give it a little more time, like I said to an earlier poster this age is a terrible time to judge coat. They don't call this stage the "puppy uglies" for nothing lol


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## kaelin

Hi, I'm not sure if I should post this question here or start a new thread (I may do both)..I just adopted a dog about a month ago, Foster he is 7 months old and he came from northern Canada along with about 100 other strays that had been living on the streets. The person in charge of the community they were living in threatened to have a cull on them, and that's when a shelter stepped in to help. Anyway, needless to say the breed of mine and most of the others is unknown. People have thought that they could see Australian Shepherd in mine, which brings me here. When we first got him (a month ago) he had an extremely long thick and somewhat wiry coat. in the past month he has almost completely lost his long coat and is only left with his short undercoat(?) which is very soft and silky.































He's been to the vet 3 times already ( for other things) and none of the vets seem to know whats going on.Could it be temperature change? since it's probably 30 degrees warmer then where he used to live? or stress? or could it just be normal for him? and might it grow back? If anyone can help to set my mind at ease I would really appreciate it!


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## Keechak

kaelin said:


> Hi, I'm not sure if I should post this question here or start a new thread (I may do both)..I just adopted a dog about a month ago, Foster he is 7 months old and he came from northern Canada along with about 100 other strays that had been living on the streets. The person in charge of the community they were living in threatened to have a cull on them, and that's when a shelter stepped in to help. Anyway, needless to say the breed of mine and most of the others is unknown. People have thought that they could see Australian Shepherd in mine, which brings me here. When we first got him (a month ago) he had an extremely long thick and somewhat wiry coat. in the past month he has almost completely lost his long coat and is only left with his short undercoat(?) which is very soft and silky.
> View attachment 99209
> View attachment 99185
> View attachment 99177
> View attachment 99193
> View attachment 99201
> 
> He's been to the vet 3 times already ( for other things) and none of the vets seem to know whats going on.Could it be temperature change? since it's probably 30 degrees warmer then where he used to live? or stress? or could it just be normal for him? and might it grow back? If anyone can help to set my mind at ease I would really appreciate it!


I would ask your vet to run a thyroid panel on him.


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## kaelin

I was just reading about thyroid issues and wondering if that could be it. Thanks so much for the advice  I will definitely ask my vet to run some more tests.


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## Miss Bugs

if checking thyroid specify a full panel, which they usually have to send away, the test they do in office just checks T4, his thyroid could be totally out to lunch and that test will say your dogs is totally normal lol.


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