I have reached that moment all of us dog lovers fear. My Shiba Inu Takara will be 15 in February. Their lifespan average is about 14 or 15. He has been slowing up a bit this last year and has gone deaf, but otherwise looks like he's 5 and he still likes to romp and play with out 1 year old Papillion. But since the day after Christmas he is very unsteady on his feet, sometimes falling down, very slow moving, and not much of an appetite. This downturn was sudden, so there is a chance that he just not feeling well and will recover and we will have him around for a while yet.