Hi Carla,

The two main causes that I know of for extreme dog scratching and itching are-
1. Allergies – This could be food or skin.
2. Skin parasites – .e.g. fleas or mites

My Shiba had some food allergy issues initially and I was able to narrow it down to an allergic reaction to wheat. Has anything changed in your Shiba’s routine in terms of food or environment? Environmental changes could cause skin allergies if he is coming in contact with certain plants, chemicals, etc.

My Siberian had an episode with skin mites early on. She got them from other puppies at daycare. In addition to the itching she also had hair loss on her paws and face. The vet was able to give us something to take care of the mites.

Here is more on my experiences with dog itching.

That is wonderful Meg! Go Moksha! And what a great name too (I looked it up on Wikipedia because it sounds so interesting).

Yeah I also value obedience and affection from my Shiba a lot because it is harder to come by. I guess Shibas really have us figured out!

Make sure to take lots of pictures of Moksha and share then with us in the new year. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Foxxy sound like such a good Shiba. My Shiba is more aloof, so he should definitely get some lessons from Foxxy.

My breeder also told me that female Shibas tend to be more adventurous and are more likely to bolt. In fact, when I first visited my breeder, one of her female Shibas ran out and had a nice prowl around the neighborhood. She always returned home though after she had had her fun. I am sure Foxxy will as well.

Our thoughts and positive Shiba energy are with you and Foxxy.

Here are some things that helped with my Shiba -
1. Ask people to ignore him – no talking to him, no touch, and no eye-contact. The last one with very important but difficult for people to follow.
2. As soon as he jumps, non-mark him (No or Ack-ack) and move him away from the people. Ask him for a Sit. If he complies and is calm, then you can try the greeting again after a short time.
3. Initially my Shiba would escalate his behavior and start biting the leash or redirecting on me. When he does this I leave and end the fun walk.

This way he learns that jumping and biting means he doesn’t get to interact with people at all but being calm will get him attention.

The most difficult thing in terms of people greeting is that people will try to push the dog away, or otherwise engage with the dog physically when they are jumping and biting. This usually just gets my Shiba even more excited, and any kind of physical interaction is a reward to him. As a result his jumping and biting behavior was just getting reinforced.

I also got some friends to come over to help with my people greeting training. This way I was sure that they would follow all of my instructions, and I had full control of the environment.

Make sure that jumping and biting = they don’t get to meet at all; and only let them interact when they are calm and have all feet on the ground.

I got her from a local breader, there is only 4 that i could find in the UK. she was about 2 hours away from where i live.
We visited twice and she stood out as not being to forward but not shying away to much.
she cost us £950 ($1700) and we had to sign an agreement to say that we would not breed her.
she is fantastic the only things she does that are a bit naughty are she likes to chew the sofa if not watched, likes to eat the lawn and is not very keen on little kids. She is ok but if there are 2 or more at a time she gets very shy and scared. She is fine with adults tho.
Love the happy noises she makes when ever i get home for work or if i have just left the house for 10 minutes you would think i had not seen her for a week, she is a treat to come home to.

B

She is now 8 months and I took her to get her nails trimmed….oh boy….for the first time ever she FREAKED!!

lol – yeah Sephy is not big on nail clipping either.

I now do nail grinding and it is a very significant improvement. I don’t have to worry about clipping into the quick, and Sephy will actually lie down nicely and let me do it in return for some mackerel.

I love the Shiba 500 comment! That is exactly what we call it when mine runs around the front yard in cirles! She is so energetic. We love the dog parks, she is very friendly with other dogs. At 42 pounds I now walk her on a front lead harness. It works well. She is now 8 months and I took her to get her nails trimmed….oh boy….for the first time ever she FREAKED!! THey had to put the cloth muzzle on her even though I was sitting right there. I guess I will be doing it from now on. WONDERFUL dog though…I love her!

Hello, I have a one year old Shiba. She is the love of my life. I have never had a dog quite as special as my Shiba. We actually named her Shiba because from day one that was the only name she would respond and react to. I have a question – I know that generally Shibas are never supposed to be off a leash. My Shiba has ran out of the house 5 times through one of her sneaky escape routes. She runs for a few blocks and I run after her until she gets tired and sits down for a rest, that’s when I grab her. Do you have any suggestions on how we can get her to stop or to obey my commands as im running after her? I always have this fear one day she will run too fast or too far and I won’t be able to keep up.

just a quick not to offer hope to others that read that you cant take your shiba off a lead.
Well we have had dusty a while now and after getting her over the panic of having a lead on we are now able to take her to the park and let her off her lead. I would not do this in a small park or near cars/roads.
Dusty is great for about 30 minutes then she starts to get a little over excited and want to chase birds or becomes very aloof and is hard to get back. we them put her back on the lead for 15 minutes before allowing her off again. its working great. we have been working very closly with the trainers on her recall prior to doing this.

Lowerlifeform : I know what your saying about the cuddles. we are very lucky and Dusty loves a belly rub or a cuddle during the day, she does become a little less keen at night time unless we are eating. I wish you luck in your challenge

they never want to play, cuddle, get pet,or hang out with me.

Yeah Shibas are an aloof breed. My Shiba is not really into getting too much affection either. When he gets too much unwanted attention he will get up and walk away – as if to say “Talk to the butt” My Sibe really loves attention though, so they make a really good pair.

Also dogs may sometimes see hugging and cuddling as a dominance move. When dogs interact with other dogs, the gesture of putting their paw over the shoulder of another dog is sometimes used to show dominance.

You can enhance the hugging experience for your dog by slowly desensitizing him to it, and tying the hugging experience with positive rewards.

Here are some ways to help your dog enjoy hugging.

HELP!! I feel I am the lower life form here. My 2 shibas could care less about me(unless i have a porkchop hanging around my neck). I give them a healthy lifestyle; good puzzle games, long walks, trip to mickey Ds’, but they never want to play, cuddle, get pet,or hang out with me. They dont want anything to do with me unless it involves food. A friend of mine suggested smearing peanut butter all over myself of which I am serious considering… any suggestions???

Hi Meg,

What you describe sounds eerily familiar

He was kicked out of day care because of his mouthy nature and I tried to keep socializing him at a dog park, but he has been been starting fights there as well.

I have tried putting my Shiba in 3 different daycares, and only after doing research on them and checking each of them out. He didn’t like any of them. Spent the whole time whining, and wanting to play too rough. Ultimately, I think the whole experience was just very frustrating for him as well as for the people at the daycare – lol.

I have also tried enclosed dog-parks – which I do not do anymore because the environment is too unstructured for an excitable Shiba. He started practicing bad behaviors and also became a lot more mouthy.

What worked best for my Shiba in his younger days was to have nice neighborhood dogs come over for visits and do one on one playgroups that I supervised. One of my neighbors had a lovely dog that she found abandoned on the road. Her dog – Kai – is extremely social and friendly. Kai was best friends with my Shiba. Whenever we walked by her house, my Shiba would sit by the gate and wait for Kai to come out and play

I also took him to my nearby SPCA to play with social dogs there – one on one.

Another thing you could try is to find a dog walker that does group dog walks at hiking parks (not enclosed parks). My Shiba did that for a while – but the walker wanted to start using a choke chain on him – so it didn’t work out in the end. Only use a dog walker with a lot of experience. It is better if the walker is also a trainer or linked to a trainer. Otherwise – he/she will not be able to handle a Shiba.

I have tried some of the dog whisperers tactics but they don’t seem to be working with him…HE IS RELENTLESS

Some of Cesar Millan’s techniques worked well on my Shiba but some of them made things a lot worse. In particular, what Cesar says about energy and being calm and assertive is very true and absolutely necessary for a Shiba. My Shiba is extremely sensitive to my energy so I always stay calm with him.

Techniques that didn’t work out include alpha rolls and leash jerks. Those made things a lot worse for my Shiba. Here is more on my experiences with Cesar Millan’s dog training techniques.

Here are some things that helped when my Shiba was younger and also very hyper. My Shiba also loves playing the flirt pole and the water hose game.

My Shiba got a lot more calm after over 1 year. Nowadays I just walk him in the morning, and he is good for the rest of the day. Most of the time he is too lazy to even play with my Sibe. She has to really convince him before he will awake from the royal Shiba nap

Never a dull moment, It feels like it’s one thing after another with my Shiba. I am currently having trouble with my shiba. The problem is that he seems to be having trouble with little big man syndrome. He was kicked out of day care because of his mouthy nature and I tried to keep socializing him at a dog park, but he has been been starting fights there as well. He growls and shows his teeth…I haven’t seen him bite any other dogs yet, but he does alot of snapping at other dogs. What do I do?…I have tried some of the dog whisperers tactics but they don’t seem to be working with him…HE IS RELENTLESS…His manners with people also leave something to be desired…he doesn’t bite people, but it seems that no matter how much exercise he gets…he is still an endless supply of energy. he goes for long walks and he walks on a treadmill several times a day but he is still always bouncing around…PLEASE HELP!…I want desparately to fulfill his needs but he just seems to be soo hyper all the time….I would very much appreciate some new ideas…One of the great things about him though is that he is extremely mentally challenging and I can’t imagine life without him…and no matter how obnoxious he is I can’t be mad at him. He is the most adorable dog, but he is driving me nuts.

Hi Jason,

You are also pretty amazing for bringing-up such a well-adjusted Shiba.

Yeah they are so extremely smart. I just wish mine would use his smarts for Good rather than for Chaos

Nice website. I’ve had my male Shiba for 7 months now and he is the best puppy I ever had. Loves to lick you, sleep with you, and is very friendly with everyone including other dogs. I’ve done the socialization from day one and put him in the fetal(on the back) position anytime he acts up. I do recommend a puppy training class for new owners. Worked like a charm. He basically learned all the simple commands after 3 weeks! Very smart dogs! I am amazing. btw, the Shiba 500 is the funniest thing ever! lol

If i very get snowed in we can all share the chicken, rice and veg packs

LOL! Sounds yummy! One time CNBC was highlighting the dog food industry and they had the Wellness CEO come on for an interview. He ate his own dog food during the interview – always remembered that! He offered it to the news anchor but was declined

As for food I give both my dogs Innova EVO kibble mixed with some boiled chicken or cheese. I like using kibble because I can use them with the interactive toys. Both of them can get a bit picky about the kibble, but they will work for it and eat it when they are hungry.

They will always mooch for the good stuff, but they know that they have to finish the kibble before they get more of the good stuff

After the first night when she slept really well we had a copy where she cry/howled from 11pm till 5am.

lol – I remember those nights! You have some really good advice –
1. Be a good neighbor!
2. Leave a radio playing.
3. Soft teddy with calming ticking sound.

One thing that really helped with my Shiba is to put his crate in the bedroom. He is a lot more calm when he can keep an eye on his people I think

How goes the walking?

I am so amazed at how much a Shiba can say to you with just a look, unlike any dog I have ever had before.

lol – my Shiba is especially communicative when he wants something from me or when he is unhappy about something. It is tough to resist him when he is doing his best begging positions He is a very good moocher.

But I know what you mean. I was just commenting on another page that Shibas have a large repertoire of looks, poses, and moves. Many of them are very funny and entertaining. That is how a Shiba earns his/her room and board

Glad to hear that Dusty is settling in so well. Sephy usually just gives me the “talk to the butt” move.

Let me know how the walks go. Sounds like she will be fine now – and will be pulling you around in no time

YAY Meg!! I was ecstatic when my Shiba’s stitches came off! Hurrah to you and your Shiba

As for the biting what worked best for me are -
1. Redirection – non-mark (ack ack) for the bite and redirect him onto a sanctioned toy. If he redirects, praise him, play with him and maybe put some food on the toy so that he will play with it.

2. Time-out – There will be times when Shiba does not redirect and will keep wanting to mouth on you. If he does not stop after you non-mark him and does not want to redirect, then say time-out in a stern voice, and put him in timeout briefly. Ask him for a command before letting him out of timeout. If he goes back to biting, put him back in timeout.

3. Bite inhibition – Shibas are naturally very mouthy, so bite inhibition is a very useful thing to train them on.

Here are more details on the techniques for puppy biting.

What are the differences in personality with a male that is not neutered compared to one that is.

Hi Kathy,
I don’t breed dogs so I don’t have first hand experience with this. From what I have read and heard from breeders, unfixed dogs can be more dominant and can trigger aggression in other fixed dogs. They also tend to want to roam more, especially if there are unfixed females around.

My neutered Shiba is already enough of a challenge for me

One thing you can do is call up the accredited Shiba breeders near you and ask them for advice. My Shiba breeder was just starting out when I got Sephy from her, and what she did was attach herself to a more established breeder so that she could get help on breeding and showing her dogs.

I contacted many of the Shiba breeders around my area when I was having troubles with Sephy and they were very helpful and supportive. I even visited a few of them and got to see how they set up their kennels.

Hi Cayla,
It can be difficult to tell how dogs will get along. When I got Shania (my Siberian) I got her for a trial period of 2 weeks. I wanted to use that time to see if my Shiba got along well with her, and whether we were the right home for her.

It turned out really well.

Before I got her, I looked into adopting a dog, and brought my Shiba to meet several rescue Siberians. That didn’t go as well because my Shiba tended to spook the rescue dogs and they got aggressive with him.

It is best to meet the dogs first, or bring the dog/puppy home for a trial period. Then evaluate if getting a new dog will enhance the quality of life for everyone in the family.

Hi All

Well today was the big day and after 8 weeks of reading and thinking about it and waiting we brought home our shiba. she is a red 11 week old and is wonderful. We have already run into the first difficulty which we would welcome advice on. We put her lead on today as we wanted to walk her around the block so she could have a smell and were treated to the shiba scream (ohhh it really did make my blood run cold). is there something we could do to her her get used to the lead? she has been sulking for about an hour and is only now starting to even look at me

thanks.

yeah i have a shiba who is almost 2 years old and he always gives me the shiba look
i caught him eating my one thousand doller phone i would normally be so pissed he looked at me with those eyes i couldn’t resist them so i gave him a hug and praised him LOL bad thing to do i know but his adorable

Hi Meg – Hang in there My Shiba drove me CRAZY during this period as well.

Chew toys could keep him occupied for some time – especially if you stick pieces of cheese onto it. Do you have the Nylabone Rhino ball? Sometimes I stick sardines into the holes of the ball and my Shiba really loves that. Here are more food toy ideas –

My Shiba also loves shredding up cardboard. As long as your Shiba does not show an inclination towards eating cardboard, this could be another interesting activity. Just don’t let him eat the cardboard as that could lead to digestive issues.

The e-collar will probably get in the way of some of these activities, so make sure to only give him challenges that he can solve with the e-collar on, or with some help from you.

I am not usually a proponent of using sedatives – but this is a special one time case where limited use of sedatives could be helpful. It is best to talk to your vet about this option.

Hi Meg,
The hardest part of the neutering will be to keep your active Shiba fairly sedate for at least 7-10 days. No jumping or running around.

Mine totally hated the e-collar and tried getting out of it. He half succeeded one time, and got minor cuts on his lip as a result.

Some things that helped -
1. First day he will be pretty out of it – so I just left mine alone.
2. Frozen Kongs to keep Shiba somewhat entertained. I held it for him because of the e-collar.
3. Make sure the e-collar is on properly. Initially, they only put his collar through 2 of the e-collar tabs and that was how my Shiba half got it off.
4. E-collar was a must for my Shiba because as soon as it goes off, he was trying to get at his stitches.
5. Make sure you don’t give Shiba too much free reign – no Shiba running during this time. I had a long drag lead on mine, and had him in the kitchen with a baby door when I could not supervise. If he still wants to run and jump, you could also consider using a tie-down.
6. Figure out new ways to challenge Shiba mentally – he will have a lot of pent up energy because he can’t do his usual physical things. Put cheese in rubber toys to get him interested in chewing, etc.
7. I was very happy when the stitches and e-collar came out Probably happier than my Shiba!