cleaning herself or fleas?

shimaurashibalover92shimaurashibalover92
edited April 2009 in Shiba Inu (柴犬)
ok so Katsu has been nipping at herself for like 2 days now. she nipps at all four of her legs and her tail. is this just the way a shiba cleans themselves or should i be worried? i've checked her all over and especially where she is biting and i dont see anything. can u even see fleas? she doesnt do it all the time, mostly after we've come in from a walk. any suggestions?

Comments

  • KFontaine04KFontaine04
    edited November -1
    Sake does this a lot and she doesn't have fleas. She will also do the same thing to my head if I lay on the floor. I think they just get the itchies.

    Just keep an eye on her, if the area becomes red or sore it might be an allergy.
  • CaliaCalia
    edited November -1
    If you suspect fleas, take a fine toothed comb and sweep it across her fur. Even if you don't catch any fleas, check to see if any blackish specs are caught in the comb. This stuff is flea dirt(poo) and can be double confirmed by wetting it down on a paper towel and seeing if it dyes it red.

    She may also be experiencing an allergy to something.
  • shimaurashibalover92shimaurashibalover92
    edited November -1
    thanks for the advice guys!
  • SangmortSangmort
    edited November -1
    Beth has given some awesome advice.

    Also, as much as I hate to bring it up, as it IS brought up a lot [ with good reason ] she might be allergic to something in her food [ esp. if it has grains in it ] or maybe she's not getting enough Omega? They can lead to itchy / dry skin. ~
  • shimaurashibalover92shimaurashibalover92
    edited November -1
    i thought about a food allergy too but we've been feeding her Wellness Just for Puppy (which has no grain in it and is partially what the breeder was feeding her) and she get a pump of salmon oil in every meal which has Omega in it (which is also what the breeder was giving her) the only extra things she gets is some boiled chicken or cooked ground beef mixed in with her meal. she doesn't d it very often. it only seems like when we get back in from a walk or late at night if she's bored. i've checked her and i don't see anything. i think she's just cleaning herself because after she nipps a little bit she starts licking herself and there are no red blotchy spots. we'll see if it persists or gets worse.
  • SangmortSangmort
    edited November -1
    She probably is just cleaning herself then. If she's started doing it recently might also be time for her to blow coat?


    I wouldn't worry about it then unless she starts doing it excessively &/or you start to see skin problems, fur falling out, brittle fur, etc. :) ~
  • lindsaytlindsayt
    edited November -1
    Dogs have different kinds of grooming techniques and there are some that are more consistent with fleas vs allergies vs normal grooming.

    Flea reactions can involve sudden bursts of very determined and focused chewing/nibbling at random body parts, the base of the tail and the tummy. Flea infested dogs have their patented three legged mangey dog scratching behind the ear thing also. You may see them staring at certain parts of their bodies as if they can feel something crawling along themselves, just before they attack that particular area in a fevered chewing burst.

    Allergy itching may focus more on chronic licking and nibbling, sometimes intense, of the feet, the groin, ear scratching, funky smell, staining and sneaking licks when they think no one is watching, also that slurping licking noise in the middle of the night that keeps me awake :[

    Regular grooming, from what I see with Ike and the other dogs I have had, isn't frantic or intense usually, some occasional gentle chewing and scratching with no focus on any particular body part (I think Shiba and some other breeds however like to clean their feet a lot).
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