Help with Science Project- Which grows faster hair or fur
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dedesadecki
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Help with Science Project- Which grows faster hair or fur
I am doing my science project on Which grows faster human hair or dog fur? I have found research on growth of hair but nothing on dog fur. Can anyone help me out? Also, I am not sure how to measure the growth of the hair or fur. I would appreciate any help!!
Dede Sadecki
2nd grade student
2nd grade student
Dedesadecki,
What I would suggest is having your parents shave a small patch of fur off of your dog (I assume you have a dog). Then you can measure the fur as it grows back.
Does your father have a beard? Would he be willing to shave a little bit off of it and let you measure it as it grows back in? If he doesn't have one, would he be willing to grow one for a few days? This wouldn't tell you about the growth of hair on the human head, but I doubt you can find anyone who would be willing to shave a small patch of hair on their head!
What I would suggest is having your parents shave a small patch of fur off of your dog (I assume you have a dog). Then you can measure the fur as it grows back.
Does your father have a beard? Would he be willing to shave a little bit off of it and let you measure it as it grows back in? If he doesn't have one, would he be willing to grow one for a few days? This wouldn't tell you about the growth of hair on the human head, but I doubt you can find anyone who would be willing to shave a small patch of hair on their head!
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dedesadecki
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Dedesadecki,
What sort of research on hair growth are you interested in? For example, I put 'dog hair growth' into Google and found the following site, which is probably a little advanced for a second-grader so feel free to post back if you don't understand any of it: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm ... icleid=357.
There are plenty of other sites...but are you looking for actual research papers?
What sort of research on hair growth are you interested in? For example, I put 'dog hair growth' into Google and found the following site, which is probably a little advanced for a second-grader so feel free to post back if you don't understand any of it: http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm ... icleid=357.
There are plenty of other sites...but are you looking for actual research papers?
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ChrisG
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Dedesadecki,
Here is a recent scientific article on the topic. I assume you will read this with your mom or someone else who can help you understand it.
Title: An analysis of canine hair re-growth after clipping for a surgical procedure
Author(s): Diaz SF, Torres SMF, Dunstan RW, Lekcharoensuk C
Source: VETERINARY DERMATOLOGY 15 (1): 25-30 FEB 2004
Document Type: Article
Language: English
Cited References: 36 Times Cited: 0 Find Related Records Information
Abstract: Hair growth and replacement have been studied extensively in humans, sheep and laboratory rodents, but in dogs and other mammalian species few studies have been published. The objectives of this study were: (1) to determine the time required for the hair to re-grow in dogs after clipping for a surgical procedure; (2) to define whether the season of the year influenced the period of time required for re-growth and; (3) to determine if season might influence the telogen: anagen ratio. Eleven Labrador retrievers were recruited during spring, 10 during summer, six during autumn and 10 during winter. Hairs re-grew to their preclipped length in 14.6 weeks, 14.5 weeks, 13.6 weeks and 15.4 weeks when shaved in the spring, summer, autumn and winter, respectively. The differences in these values were not significant suggesting that season has no effect on the rate of hair re-growth in Labrador retrievers housed indoors (P = 0.12). The mean values for the telogen: anagen ratio in each season were: 5.2 (spring), 6.1 (summer), 9.5 (autumn), and 5.3 (winter). The differences in these values also were not significant (P = 0.89). The percentage of hairs in telogen was over 80% in all four seasons.
Here is a recent scientific article on the topic. I assume you will read this with your mom or someone else who can help you understand it.
Title: An analysis of canine hair re-growth after clipping for a surgical procedure
Author(s): Diaz SF, Torres SMF, Dunstan RW, Lekcharoensuk C
Source: VETERINARY DERMATOLOGY 15 (1): 25-30 FEB 2004
Document Type: Article
Language: English
Cited References: 36 Times Cited: 0 Find Related Records Information
Abstract: Hair growth and replacement have been studied extensively in humans, sheep and laboratory rodents, but in dogs and other mammalian species few studies have been published. The objectives of this study were: (1) to determine the time required for the hair to re-grow in dogs after clipping for a surgical procedure; (2) to define whether the season of the year influenced the period of time required for re-growth and; (3) to determine if season might influence the telogen: anagen ratio. Eleven Labrador retrievers were recruited during spring, 10 during summer, six during autumn and 10 during winter. Hairs re-grew to their preclipped length in 14.6 weeks, 14.5 weeks, 13.6 weeks and 15.4 weeks when shaved in the spring, summer, autumn and winter, respectively. The differences in these values were not significant suggesting that season has no effect on the rate of hair re-growth in Labrador retrievers housed indoors (P = 0.12). The mean values for the telogen: anagen ratio in each season were: 5.2 (spring), 6.1 (summer), 9.5 (autumn), and 5.3 (winter). The differences in these values also were not significant (P = 0.89). The percentage of hairs in telogen was over 80% in all four seasons.
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dedesadecki
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ChrisG
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Just for clarity, can I ask who is writing these posts for / with Dede? I am not sure who I am addressing. Is it Mom?
From the abstract I posted, you can see that it took about 14 weeks, or about 100 days, for Labrador retrievers' fur to grow back to its original length. In the full paper, they do not provide data on the length of the Labrador retrievers' fur. You could email the corresponding author (Dr Sheila M. F. Torres, torre009@umn.edu) or you could measure or estimate the length of a Labrador retriever's coat on your own. With the number of days of growth and total length grown, you can estimate an average growth rate in mm /day.
I hope that helps,
Chris
From the abstract I posted, you can see that it took about 14 weeks, or about 100 days, for Labrador retrievers' fur to grow back to its original length. In the full paper, they do not provide data on the length of the Labrador retrievers' fur. You could email the corresponding author (Dr Sheila M. F. Torres, torre009@umn.edu) or you could measure or estimate the length of a Labrador retriever's coat on your own. With the number of days of growth and total length grown, you can estimate an average growth rate in mm /day.
I hope that helps,
Chris
Growth w/ Hair & Fur
Mom-
This may sound like a weird comment, but I would first explain the difference between hair and fur in simple physiological terms so that she understands what she is actually doing.
Another suggestion---
I would try to culture the hair/fur in a regulated environment as opposed to measuring it directly on a human/dog (this could yield experimental error)...
Please reply if you guys need more help...
-P
This may sound like a weird comment, but I would first explain the difference between hair and fur in simple physiological terms so that she understands what she is actually doing.
Another suggestion---
I would try to culture the hair/fur in a regulated environment as opposed to measuring it directly on a human/dog (this could yield experimental error)...
Please reply if you guys need more help...
-P
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HeatherL
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Re: Help with Science Project- Which grows faster hair or fur
Dear Dede (and Mom),
The other experts have offered some great advice! Since I study fur (though not its growth rate), I couldn't resist adding my two cents.
As ChrisG pointed out, you can estimate hair/fur growth rate from the data in the article. For your actual project, I would suggest simply measuring the hairs. Your measurements would be most accurate with calipers, but a small ruler will work fine too. You may find a human who is willing to let you shave a small area of his/her arm, or perhaps a leg. You can measure the length of the shaved hairs, or pluck one to get the full length. (Keep in mind, though, that shaving leaves some of the hair behind, so measuring the shaved hairs will probably be more accurate for comparison!) You can measure the length when you first shave the area, and then again a number of days later. (Just shave the hairs again!) The growth rate will be the second length divided by the number of days you let the hairs grow.
Hairs grow at different rates on different areas of the body, so it will be best to compare the same body part in humans and dogs. The initial length of the hairs may also affect the growth rate, which is why it is important to measure the length when you first shave the hairs.
I think this is a really cool project. Please post again with your progress!
Cheers,
Heather
The other experts have offered some great advice! Since I study fur (though not its growth rate), I couldn't resist adding my two cents.
As ChrisG pointed out, you can estimate hair/fur growth rate from the data in the article. For your actual project, I would suggest simply measuring the hairs. Your measurements would be most accurate with calipers, but a small ruler will work fine too. You may find a human who is willing to let you shave a small area of his/her arm, or perhaps a leg. You can measure the length of the shaved hairs, or pluck one to get the full length. (Keep in mind, though, that shaving leaves some of the hair behind, so measuring the shaved hairs will probably be more accurate for comparison!) You can measure the length when you first shave the area, and then again a number of days later. (Just shave the hairs again!) The growth rate will be the second length divided by the number of days you let the hairs grow.
Hairs grow at different rates on different areas of the body, so it will be best to compare the same body part in humans and dogs. The initial length of the hairs may also affect the growth rate, which is why it is important to measure the length when you first shave the hairs.
I think this is a really cool project.
Please post again with your progress!Cheers,
Heather
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adance
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Re: Help with Science Project- Which grows faster hair or fur
Hi Dede/Mom
This is a great project. I see that you've found info on human rate of hair growth, but are having trouble finding the same info for dogs. If you can't, that's OK--your experiment will tell you the answer! I think MelissaB's suggestion is a great starting plan. If you want to make a bigger project, you could try different body parts or more than one person and dog--then, you could figure out the average rate of growth for dogs and people.
Good luck,
Amber
This is a great project. I see that you've found info on human rate of hair growth, but are having trouble finding the same info for dogs. If you can't, that's OK--your experiment will tell you the answer! I think MelissaB's suggestion is a great starting plan. If you want to make a bigger project, you could try different body parts or more than one person and dog--then, you could figure out the average rate of growth for dogs and people.
Good luck,
Amber
Amber Dance
Science Buddy
Science Buddy