Akita or Shih Tzu: Two Coats, Two Completely Different Jobs

The Shih Tzu's coat is long, flowing and effectively single, growing continuously rather than shedding out. That is why it drops so little hair and why it mats so readily.

Kept in full coat it needs combing to the skin every day, plus a topknot to keep hair out of the eyes and regular bathing. That is a real daily commitment and it is how the breed is shown.

The alternative is a short all-over clip — commonly called a puppy cut — kept up by a groomer every six to eight weeks. It reduces the daily work to a quick comb, it is more comfortable for the dog, and the great majority of pet Shih Tzus wear one. There is no reason to feel apologetic about it.

What does not work is the middle option: a long coat brushed occasionally. That produces mats to the skin, which cannot be combed out and have to be clipped off, often uncovering sore skin underneath.

Eye and face care come with the coat — hair growing toward the eye surface is a genuine irritant on a face this flat, so trimming or tying it back is health maintenance rather than styling.

Brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome heads the Shih Tzu's condition list. The skull is shortened while the soft tissue is not, producing narrowed nostrils and often an elongated soft palate.

It is generally less severe here than in a Pug or a French Bulldog, but the rules are the same in kind: exercise early and late in warm weather, a harness rather than a collar, strict weight control, and no parked cars. Snoring and snorting are normal for the breed; laboured breathing at rest is not, and warrants a conversation with a vet.

The eyes are the more common everyday problem. They are large, prominent and set in shallow sockets, and many Shih Tzus cannot fully blink, so the surface dries and injures. Corneal ulcers are frequent and urgent — a squinting, weeping or closed eye needs same-day attention, because an untreated ulcer can perforate.

Ask a breeder how the parents breathe under exertion, how open their nostrils are, and about eye health in the line.

The Akita has none of this. Its constraint is a dense coat that means summer walks move to the cooler ends of the day and should never be clipped.

Kidney disease and liver shunts both appear on the Shih Tzu's list, and both are worth recognising early because both present quietly.

Renal dysplasia is an inherited condition in which the kidneys do not develop normally. Affected dogs may be smaller than their littermates, drink and urinate excessively, eat poorly and fail to thrive, and it can show in the first year rather than in old age. Blood and urine testing are how it is found.

A liver shunt is a blood vessel bypassing the liver, so toxins are not filtered out. The signs overlap — poor growth, excessive drinking, disorientation or unsteadiness after meals, occasionally seizures — and a bile acid blood test is the standard first step.

The practical rule for both is the same: a small-breed puppy that drinks a great deal, grows poorly or seems vague after eating should be tested rather than watched.

Hypothyroidism, ear infections, patellar luxation, hip dysplasia, allergies and dental disease complete the list.

The Akita's burden is autoimmune and endocrine, with hip dysplasia and bloat.

The Shih Tzu runs $120–$250 a month and $1,500–$3,000 in the first year, against the Akita's $110–$240 and $1,700–$3,200.

Grooming explains most of the monthly figure. A professional appointment every six to eight weeks across a life that can reach sixteen years is the single largest predictable cost of owning this breed, and unless you learn to clip the dog yourself it does not go away.

Eye treatment is the other recurring item, and dentistry the third — crowded teeth in a small jaw mean daily brushing genuinely reduces the anaesthetics needed over a long life.

The Akita's spending is food-dominated and flat, with autoimmune disease and bloat as the large uncertain risks, and no grooming line at all.

On exercise the Shih Tzu needs 2/5 against 3/5 — two short walks, timed around temperature in summer — and it rates 5/5 for apartments against 2/5.

Lifespan runs 10 to 16 years against 10 to 13, with well-bred dogs at the upper end.