Suplementation to improve Pigmentation - Page 1

Hi, Just wondering if there is anything that is used to improve the color pigmentation of the dog?

There is an ecxellent product. Its name is Velcote and it is distributed by Grau GmbH. There is also carotin supplement (dry carrots) also marketed by Grau

Petros Do you know where I can get the Velcote Thank you very much

I have heard regular beta carotine supplements like you buy for people can help, I bought some and have just started using it.

There is a product called Olewo. I have used it for years. It tends to bring out a red pigment in the coat.

Why would you want to feed that stuff to change a dogs coat? If the dog has shitty pigment then so be it. I am sure this is not going to be a popular comment but its a valid question

vargas, You must understand show line people. They want to cheat to get the best results. AKC is WORSE! Some people actually surgical implant stainless steel rods up dog’s tails to make them stick up properly. I heard this from reputable resources too.

Brittany, Not all of us "show line people" want to "cheat to get the best results"! Shameful for you to be criticizing and lumping anyone who has a showline dog into one category that MAY NOT FIT!!! I don't want to cheat at anything, and I have showlines. It's mentalities like this that cause so much dissention between showline and workingline owners. You shouldn't add fuel to the fire and then fan the flames. At least you've made your position clear. Clearly you do not want to breed to a SHOWLINE dog. I'll remember that in the future.

VonFelsenHof, I agree with you. Most breeders of showline and working dogs I know are honorable and honest. And many actually work at improving the breed as they see it, hoping to breed good producers with minimal faults and bad recessives. And interestingly enough either showline or working lines are capable of producing fantastic animals confirmation-wise and/or temperament-wise. The crossover dogs who can compete and place in both sports are amazing dogs. It's always about the individual animal and its specific socialization and training. I have seen temperament in both working and show lines which is absolutely superb to the extreme. It can exist in both and it is always amazing when it occurs.

Another interesting and controversial topic indeed! One should not go over this lightly. There is indeed a problem. "Honest people" like you who dropped a comment above might NOT want to cheat. However, "honesty" is a quality that does not apply to ALL of the so-called "gsd-fans". We will always have to deal with the extremes, and this website is a great tool to inform the world. Let me shed some light on this through one of the comments of "an insider", David Payne. I assume he wants his comments to be read all over the world, and I hope he won't mind me copying some info from his "Sieger Impressions 2005" here: "At this point of my IMPRESSIONS I must mention a topic which came up in conversations throughout the Sieger Show, THE ASSISTED COLOURING OF SOME DOGS WITH DYES. It was clear that some dogs had been coloured in most, if not all classes. The gold, or brown markings of the dogs is where it was most obvious, but black saddles, and possibly the black fore-faces, were also considered to have been done on some dogs. This is a serious matter and needs to be urgently addressed by the SV before it gets out of hand, otherwise the floodgates will inevitably open on this problem. When people seeing this done and also see it being an advantage to the dog, they will do the same. Some people laughed when they saw some dogs which had obviously been dyed, but this is no laughing matter. The other serious side of this behavior is when breeders use a male that has been coloured, thinking his colour is genuine, this can lead to a litter with colouring they did not want or anticipate. I would have thought it was possible to take several samples of hair from say each of the top 20 dogs in each class, and others randomly, immediately the class has been judged. The samples can then be analysed and any found containing a prohibited substance, then the SV could decide that the dog concerned, forfeits his place at the Sieger Show, and what appropriate action is taken against the owner and/or halter. (a person who looks after and trains the dog)" When David wrote these lines, he definately must have had good reason (and evidence) to do this. I can do nothing but agree with him. Any manipulation needs to be checked by the SV. Let's hope they will do that.