Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

Some breeds never need cutting. But when I did have my lab's hair cut, it grew back to just the same length as before. How does dog hair "know" how long to grow?

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

Well, I really don't know. But, the same question could be asked about our own bodies. Why does hair grow only so long on my arms, but much longer on my legs and underarms -if I let it.

Why don't we have to cut our eyelashes or eyebrows but we do have to cut the hair on our heads. They are not that far apart.

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

That's the difference between "hair" and "fur". Hair just grows and grows. Fur has a cycle, it grows for a certain amount of time, then the follicle goes dormant, the hair falls out, the follicle wakes up and grows a new hair. That's why dogs with a "furcoat" like a Lab shed so much, but dogs with a "haircoat" like Yorkies and Poodles don't shed but must have haircuts.

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

It's not hair, it's fur. Hair can continue growing, but fur has a specific length which it can grow to. And yes, this means that some hair on the human body is actually fur.

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

they shed

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

The fur doesn't exactly "know" when to stop growing.

First of all, dogs FUR is different than hair. It will grow to the certain length that the breed has adapted it to be than fall out. The fur is replaced by new follicles and it is repeated.

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

It's like eyebrows and arm hair!

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

its all up to genetics

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

that's how some dogs are bread. If they were in nature, they would need that length of hair for whatever reason, or certain body adaptations to whatever environment they're in. Even though pet dogs are domesticated, they still need to be able to survive in the wild if they had to. Think of why someone may have darker skin, because of the climate they live in.

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

Genetics tells a dog's fur how long it should grow to. Just like genetics tells a dog's eyes what colour they will be etc..

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

It's in their genetics, but also for what their environment was. For instance, the St. Bernard is strong and muscular, with long hair and deep undercoating. Well, they are strong and muscular, because they first lived in the mountains where they were used to pull carts, and work for humans. Their long hair/undercoat, is because of the tempertures they were bred into. It was always very cold, so the dogs needed to be warm, so they could use their body heat, to rescue people, and save them from the elements, by putting their warm body,overtop of someone needing help in the deep snow. Living outdoors in the harsh weather, the St. Bernard will "blow" their hair in the spring and again in fall. Huge amounts of hair come out, you vacumm daily with this dog. Labs are water dogs, and their hair allows the water to shed off of them, you'll notice their hair feels just a bit greasy, not alot, but their is oil there. I always had Labs growing up, playing in the water. Now with my St. she doesn't know how to swim, it's very weird for me, after Labs all my life. She would have drowned, had my daughter and I not been close by when she jumped in. She was clueless about water, and what to do!

Why does hair on a dog only grow so long?

Never heard of GENETICS,huh?

duh?

Still living in a mud hut,too?