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SKIN
SUPPORTING FROM WITHIN
LUCY HUDSON BSC HONS RVN
When showing and breeding, the condition of the skin look at the structure of the skin.
and coat are vitally important, being a mirror to your
dog’s good health. In this article, we will look in depth The skin is divided into three layers. The epidermis
at this incredible organ and help you understand how is the outermost layer. Keratin-containing cells
to achieve the best skin and coat quality in your dogs. within this layer, called Keratinocytes, provide the
protective layer and are constantly forming new skin
The skin, also called the integument, is the largest cells to replace the old ones as they wear away (a
organ of the body, making up around a quarter of process called keratinisation). This process takes
a dogs bodyweight (Moriello, 2018). The skin is a around 22-30 days in dogs and several factors can
complex organ with an astonishing range of functions affect this process including nutrition, medication and
that will be discussed later in this article. First, let’s genetics (Moriello 2018). It’s important to remember
Photo ref: Copyright ROYAL CANIN
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K9 NEWS DIGITAL / OCTOBER 2020