Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 10/9/2008

Question
Hi! I have a year old mini-sheltie. For the past few months (about 6), she's been bighting her skin so hard that she's ripping her fur out of certain areas. They get more irritated, because of her own saliva. These areas are really irritated and huge black blotches are under the fur on the skin. We took her to the vet but she didn't say anything was wrong and just brushed it off. The dog does have fleas, but we have drops for her so I don't think that's the cause. She never grew a thick, full coat like most shelties do. What could be the cause and how can I cure it?

Answer
IF she has fleas, then she may have a flea allergy. Ask your vet for some steroid tablets to see if that is the cause. Also, puppies are very prone to food allergies, so you might change her food to one with a different protein source than you are feeding now.