Some things that helped Sephy and Lara get along-
1. I supervise them very closely and make sure that there is no stealing. When I cannot supervise, I make sure that no stealing can occur.
2. When there are conflicts, I step in and resolve them. In this way, my dogs learn to let me handle things and not try to handle it themselves.
3. I do not allow them to use aggression with each other. If they show aggressive behavior I non-mark them (No or Ack-ack) to let them know that it is unacceptable. If they continue, they go to time-out.
4. I set them up for success. For example bully sticks is really high priority with my dogs, so when they are working on those, I separate them. In this way they can enjoy their bully stick without worrying about being disturbed.
5. All dogs have to follow the same rules and I try to be very consistent about rewards and consequences.

I also did a lot of group obedience training sessions with Sephy and Lara. This teaches them that when they work together they both get really good treats, attention, and even fun games. I try to manage things so that they get rewarded most when they cooperate. I also reward them for being calm around each other.

Here are more of my experiences with introducing a new dog into the family-
http://shibashake.com/dog/second-dog-introducing-a-second-dog

Here are a couple of articles on my experiences with dog biting -
http://shibashake.hubpages.com/_srec/hub/How-to-stop-your-dog-from-biting-you-and-biting-others-dog-aggression-aggressive-dog
http://shibashake.com/dog/puppy-biting-how-to-stop-puppy-biting

Also, Shiba Sephy is a lot more tolerant with people and dogs that he is familiar with. For example, he has no problems letting his play pals and the other family dogs sniff his butt, invade his space, and play rough with him. However, he does not like new dogs invading his space and he definitely does not allow butt sniffing. He also prefers being scratched in the chest rather than being petted from above, which can sometimes appear threatening. Usually, when he is uncomfortable, he has a very stiff posture, his mouth is closed, and sometimes he may vocalize.

Dog body language is often difficult to read and some of it happens very quickly. A professional trainer can really help with that. Another possibility is to record Raider and then play it back in slow motion.

Another thing that helped with Sephy are handling exercises. We slowly desensitized him to being touched in various places, so now he is more tolerant of people touching his tail, paws, head, etc.
http://shibashake.com/dog/hug-dog-teach-your-dog-to-enjoy-hugging

This article on dog greetings may also be of interest -
http://shibashake.com/dog/dogs-children-prevent-dog-attacks

In terms of neutering, it is clearly a very personal decision. Shiba Sephy is neutered and I did not notice any changes in his Shiba-ness before and after neutering.

Since Shibas are already stubborn and dominant, I decided that neutering was a really good thing for Sephy. It can only help to make things better.

Dealing with Sephy after neutering was not fun since he absolutely hates the cone, but it was a very short term thing. We let Sephy wear the cone for 2 weeks, which is the maximum amount and did not remove the cone until the stitches were removed.

Some Shiba owners report a much shorter cone time and some did not require a cone – so it is greatly dependent on temperament.

In general, I decided that 2 weeks of general unpleasantness was better than having to deal with any undesirable behavioral changes it *may* contribute to in the future, especially as Sephy matures.

The Humage Society has a page on common concerns of neutering or spaying -
http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/pet_overpopulation/facts/spay_neuter_myths_facts.html

Wrt. the food aggression, it is just as important to not reward him for showing any kind of aggression. If he bites, then non-mark and stop feeding. If he continues, then stop feeding altogether and try later.

It sounds like Shiba has learned that showing aggression means he gets the food all to himself, so you want to show him that aggression = no food whereas calm = food. In general, it is best to not put him in a situation where he is likely to practice aggression. The more he practices it, the more it will become a habit.

Another thing that may help is to put a lead on him and stand a certain distance from the food bowl. Then walk a step towards the food bowl, do some obedience commands with him, and reward him for doing the commands. If he is calm and able to handle that, then move a bit closer and so on. If he starts acting out in any way, then you have moved forward too quickly, so move back and repeat.

The key to the exercise is to always set him up for success – i.e. only move to a distance that you are sure he can handle so that he does not keep practicing aggression around the food bowl. You want to reduce the number of aggression episodes and increase the number of calm successes. I would only try one thing at a time, so that there is less chance of confusion, and greater consistency.

Is he only aggressive with the food bowl? Is he aggressive with food toys?

With aggression, it is usually very helpful to get a professional trainer to come over and observe Shiba. A lot of training is very situational and based on timing things exactly right. A good professional trainer will be able to read Shiba’s body language and come up with a good step-by-step program to help Shiba achieve success.

Good luck. Shania sends her licks, love, and positive energy.

Anything else I could try? Or is being touched just something that my dog will never accept during mealtime??