Shiba Inu Forum:
Need help diagnosing problems

We have a five year old Shiba and within the last six months, she has had numerous seemingly inhalant allergic reactions in the facial area. Her eyes are goopy and swollen and her muzzle is swollen and losing hair. She has been treated with steroids, which helps but then it comes back. She has been treated with antibiotics and anti-fungal medications, as well as special shampoo for the rash on her stomach. We have cut out all medicines to see if she has an allergy to those, but she does not appear to. Now we are looking at a special diet to see if that helps. The vet is thinking she may have an auto-immune disorder but is recommending a trip to a specialist in dermatology to rule out allergies. We have had extensive bloodwork done and she is on phenobarb for seizures. Anyone had similar problems or have any ideas?

I had the same problem with my shiba but it started when she was about 6 months old. Her problem was that she had an allergic reaction to her feet. She would always chew on them to the point where they were raw... after doing this for some time it transferred to her eyes. =( It was bery depressing and I spent over $2k trying to figure out what was wrong. I did all the blood tests and all the all the shampoos and ointments but nothing seemed to help. This has been going on for the last 4 years... my shiba will be 5 in June... until recently it was discovered that it had to do with her diet. However, my shiba doesn't have seizures... just the itching and biting of her feet. My suggestion is to change the food. I changed my shibas diet to Flint River Ranch Food and I haven't had the problem since. I hope that helps. =)