I have a 10 yr old black bitch who I spayed at age 6 yrs.
before she was spayed, her coat would shed normally, after the spay, her coat does not shed normally; it doesn't want to come out, it turns brown ( which it did before spaying, when it dies ) , and now it mats, and doesn't fall out. I give her warm baths and try to loosen it, brush with a coat rake, but it is obviously uncomfortable for her, so I don't do it too often.
she always looks like a moulting buffalo! she is very grey now, and her coat looks awful, people laugh when they ask about her, and I tell them she is an Am./Can. CH, and CH. producer. poor old girl! she is a grand old lady, and I'd love to see her look her best. she still eats the same food she has all her life ( Kirkland chicken/rice adult ) she still struts around like the great showgirl she has been all her life, she just has an old, matted coat hiding her.
I'm pretty sure it is a lack of hormones, adding to this improper shedding.
anyone have experience with this/advice?

Well, my old spayed girls do get the fuzzy coat too, but they shed. I don't normally suggest this, but have you thought of shaving her down some - not down to the skin, but at least to get some of that matted coat off? If it's not going to shed out, I'm not sure there is an alternative.

Good luck with your old girl's coat!

I have one like this. Get a couple of grocery bags and comb, comb, comb. It will take several sessions over several days, but that is the only way to get the dead hair out. After you "think" you have it all, then give her a bath.

I have an older spayed bitch (she was spayed EARLY though) and she just never has a normal shed. It matts up on her butt cheeks and in her "wings" on her back legs. Sometimes I find it easier to hand strip it out or use a tight comb which I push in to her skin and gently wiggle until the matt of undercoat lifts out. She's got spots on her lower legs where you can see that the undercoat should come out, but she won't stand for brushing there, so I try to hand pick it out when she stands still....

I have tried this, but she cries! I feel like I'm torturing her.
I've used a slicker brush, a coat rake, etc., but it pulls, and hurts her. I trim the hair on her perineum, to keep poo from collecting there. ( she always has had a TON of coat )
I've tried feeding various coat supplements ( she just got fat ),

we also have a girl coming up 13 . and this year same issue we hve bathed her (i never bathe dogs) take the comb to her on a daily basis and the hair still comes. it has a different texture than before, and you can do only so much grooming as she doesnt like it, but she is happy goes for walks with the group, except for having to vacumm daily what she leaves behind, she is doing well.

You could always break down and take her to a dog groomer. Not cheap, but relatively painless for you.

In horses, not shedding is a symptom of Cushings. They have to be clipped. Maybe it is also a symptom in dogs? Maybe do a little googling.

I got this idea from watching an episode of "Bones" when they wanted to get some loose hair that had collected in a drain and wrapped around some bone fragments. They used conditioner! I've never tried it, but wonder if it would work on a dog???

One method: It's funny, I was out stripping my black 13 year old's now purply brown dead undercoat from her outer second thighs and belly. I rake it loose, then pluck the dead tufts. Next session, I will comb it with a Detangler rotating comb, then a real comb.

Second method: Use a professional style Tangler Rangler comb with rotating tines. Combing works better than any brush, shedding blade or Furminator on regular undercoat. If it is already matted, not just clumped like on a shedding husky, you may have to use conditioner. If you use human hair conditioner, you can dilute a spoonful in a spray bottle of warm water, just as if you were grooming a long coated dog. I can't imagine it being really matted, unless she had an open coat as a youngster or lay in mud recently.

Other method:For a true matt, you might need some horse conditioner, Cowboy Magic detangler. You put it on at least an hour or the night before and work it in gently. Beware: it has silicone in it, so pet it in, then have her lie on a dog bed, not on a floor that will get slippery. You might use a pinbrush to loosen it up, as a slicker hurts more. (The Chris Christensen pin brushes and butter combs are easier on old skin, but make sure skin is gently stretched so combs don't catch on wrinkles. Chris Christensen's spray conditioner Ice On Ice is a milder detangler.) One can also carefully use an open shears/grooming scissors in the matt as a single blade matt rake. Again, gently smooth out old skin so wrinkles don't get caught.

Good luck!

I bought one of these at a dog show for my senior girl with the same problem:
http://www.amazon.com/Mars-Coat-King-Stripping-Medium/dp/B00061MPL0

Some posters may be mentioning this same tool but calling it something else, I call it a stripping comb. There are razor sharp edges on parts of the comb and it goes right thru the matts. My girl got matted exactly like yours and it was painless fixing the problem with this comb.

If you try this comb do a search first because the comb comes in different depths for different breeds. My comb is also wider. They are made in Germany by Mars Solligen. The vendor told me it was for removing undercoats.

Thanks, I'll give the suggestions a try!

I've started using a furminator on our old gal, she won't tolerate any other brush/comb but loves this. I'm not worried about damaging her coat at her age. I don't use it on the younger dogs.

Too bad she is spayed...Otherwise, you could enter her in a dog show. That always does the trick for me!!

I have a much older bitch the same thing happened with. I finally used a German steel comb and did a little daily, whatever she could tolerate comfortably. I used the edge of the comb lengthwise to loosen the coat then used a brush over and over.

It loosened daily then finally a cool bath did the rest. I was plucking out loosed chunks of coat every day. Now I brush and comb her daily and don't let it get out of control.

Old dogs gain more undercoat quietly and it gets *stuck*. I would try the furminator also. At the real old ages, who cares if they're not going in the veteran classes.

I use a shedding blade - strip of metal looped over with the 2 handles held together. Google it for pics and instructions. Works like a hot damn, and it's tolerated well by the oldies.

What size furminator do you all use.

I have the medium sized one as Fran has the odd skin tag that I have to avoid, find it works better around the ears, etc.

Try a curry comb(not really a comb) that you would use for a horse. Get one that is specifically made for the face as it is a little softer.

The rubber gently "pulls" as you rotate it around. Good time for a massage!!! My old guy likes it better than the Furminator as the hardness of the steel shedding combs sometimes hits the bonier parts of his body.