The Shiba Inu is a very beautiful dog. However, behind that foxy face, is a dominant, stubborn, intelligent, and extremely mischievous personality. This can make them a challenge to care for.
Indeed Shiba Inus are not for the faint-hearted, and they are not recommended for first-time dog owners.
Despite this warning, my heart was already set on a Shiba Inu puppy. I had a lot of free time then, so I thought I would be able to handle one little dog. After all, how difficult can a small puppy be?
Little did I know, a Shiba Inu can be a major pain in the ass!
Even dog veterans have problems with their first Shiba. In fact, many experienced trainers were unable to handle my Shiba Sephy.
Here are the Shiba Inu training secrets that helped me turn my devil dog into a model citizen. Well, maybe not a model citizen, but a fun citizen that I truly enjoy living with.
1. There are No Miracle Cures
When I first got Shiba Sephy, he was a big challenge.
Some of his favorite daily activities include biting my hands, running crazily around the house, biting on curtains, vicious leash biting, jumping on me and others, humping my leg, and much more.
I was desperate to get him under control, and did a lot of research online and off-line. I read a lot of online articles and bulletin boards. I called local dog trainers, watched all the dog training shows on television, and read a lot of dog training books.
During this time, I found something that looked like a miracle … a 10 minute Shiba online training program. According to this advertisement, there were some special “Shiba words” that will magically turn a Shiba into a Lassie. Yeah right!
Luckily, I did not succumb to my desperation, and did not buy this product.
The fact is, there are NO “miracle cures” for training a Shiba Inu.
The secret of Shiba training, is simply to exercise extreme patience, and find humor in our Shiba’s antics. Use reward obedience training, and always be firm but fair.
A Shiba will probably never be a Lassie, or perfect dog. However, if you are looking for a dog with a big personality, who will always make you laugh with his sneaky and roguish ways, then the Shiba Inu is for you.
2. Use Passive Resistance
The best way to deal with Shiba Inu misbehavior is through passive resistance.
Shibas get bored easily and do not like being ignored. They really enjoy their freedom, and also like being close to their human pack. We can control a Shiba best by controlling these most desired resources: our attention, and his freedom.
If we actively try to stop our Shiba either through physical punishment (e.g. alpha rolls, leash jerk) or active restraint, he will fight back. This encourages him to practice rough play, and biting on people.
If we back away, or become fearful of our Shiba, he will learn that he “wins” by showing dog aggression.
If we over-correct our Shiba by exerting too much physical force, or by correcting him too frequently, we will lose his trust, and it is difficult to regain a Shiba Inu’s trust.
What works best with a Shiba is NOT to engage in a physical competition, but rather to engage in a mental one.
There are certain resources that Sephy really enjoys including walks, treats, toys, and his freedom.
When I want to take him on his walk, I go to the door with his lead, and call him to me. Initially, he would dally and not really want to come, because he wants to go walking on his own schedule. I count to three. If he does not come, I leave and go about my own business.
After a short time, Sephy will amble over, and pester me to take him on his walk. This is done through begging, and whining. I ignore all this bad dog behavior. When I have a break in my schedule again, I repeat the above exercise.
A Shiba will quickly learn that to get the resources that he wants most (e.g. go on walks), he has to do it according to our rules, and our schedule. It is important to practice the Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF) program with a Shiba.
Set a Shiba Inu up for success, so that we can reward him frequently, and keep him interested in doing what we want.
Another Shiba favorite is to steal something he is not supposed to, and then run away with it, thereby engaging a fun chase game.
A Shiba Inu is very agile, and it will be difficult for us to catch him. I always try to keep an eye out for my sneaky Shiba, and stop him before he steals an object. I also put a drag lead on him, so that I can easily catch him by stepping on the lead.
Note: Use a regular flat collar with the drag lead, and not an aversive collar. Aversive collars such as prong collars or choke chains, should only be used during supervised training sessions. Cut the loop on the drag-lead, so that it does not catch on anything in the house.
3. Rules, Rules, Rules
Shiba Inus are naturally dominant. If we do not provide them with rules, that we consistently enforce, they will take over the house.
It is best to enforce those rules as early as possible. This ensures that Shiba does not develop any bad habits later on, that will be more difficult to break.
Some of Shiba Sephy’s rules:
1. No Biting
The most important rule that I place on Sephy, is no biting on people. Shiba Inus are a very mouthy breed. Their instinct is to use their mouth in a wide variety of situations, including when they are excited, frustrated, and fearful.
They also have large teeth, and can accidentally hurt children and seniors. If Sephy starts biting on me or on others, I no-mark the behavior (Ack, ack). If he continues, I put him on a time-out.
It is also important to teach a Shiba bite inhibition. In this way, when he loses control of himself and does bite, he will not cause much harm.
2. No Food Aggression or Resource Guarding
Prevent our Shiba Inu from guarding resources. Shibas have a don’t back down, don’t surrender attitude. Therefore, the best way to teach them not to guard resources, is to use reward training techniques.
Show them that people and other dogs coming near them, while they are eating or playing with their toys, is a good thing. Prevent stealing, and practice exchanging objects. This teaches them that giving up something, does not mean it is gone forever.
If we use physical force to grab a toy away from our Shiba, he will likely become more possessive over his objects. He will also lose trust in us, and may use aggression to protect himself, and his belongings.
3. No Rough Play
I do not play rough with Sephy. He gets to wrestle with my other dogs, but no wrestling is allowed with humans.
I also do not play any dominance games with him, for example, no Tug-of-War. The few times that I did play Tug with Shiba Sephy, he followed very strict rules during the game. However, when I took him out for walks, he would start playing tug with the leash (leash biting).
4. Socialize Our Shiba Inu
Shiba Inus can get aggressive to unfamiliar things including objects, dogs, people, and environments.
They are also naturally stubborn, and may become aggressive when forced to do things that they do not like.
Socialize our young Shiba to many sights, sounds, and smells, and he will be ready to handle new things as a confident, and well-balanced adult. Make sure that new experiences are always positive, and at worst, neutral.
Some things to consider while socializing our Shiba Inu:
1. Shiba Inus have an extreme play style, that many dogs may not like.
When he was young, I used to take Sephy to enclosed dog parks. During this time, his favorite play partners were larger dogs, and young Pit Bulls. Shibas like doing wrestling and rough play, which can easily overwhelm other small dogs.
Choose our Shiba’s play-mates carefully, so that a fun time can be had by all.
2. Shiba Inus dislike handling.
Socialize a Shiba to touching and grooming, as early as possible. Pair the touch and groom sessions with very good treats, so that he will associate handling with positive experiences.
Do not use physical force to do any grooming. This will make it into an unpleasant experience, and our Shiba will fight us every step of the way.
Instead, groom gently, and make it short, fun, and rewarding.
3. Shiba Inus do not generally like people petting them from above.
Petting from above can be seen as a dominance move by dogs, and Shibas may see this as a threat.
We can slowly desensitize our Shiba to this move, by pairing head petting with good food rewards. At the same time, instruct people to approach from under our dog’s head, and scratch his chest.
5. Control Our Own Energy
An important thing to remember while interacting with our Shiba, is to control our own energy.
Shiba Inus are especially sensitive to the energy of their owners, and the people around them.
When I first got puppy Sephy, he was extremely mouthy. In particular, he would resort to biting when I stopped him from doing something unacceptable.
This made me become afraid of him.
The more afraid I became, the worse Sephy behaved. As soon as I got fearful, he would start to hump my leg, grab my clothes, jump on me, or bite my hands, arms, and legs.
Anger and frustration will also elicit extreme Shiba behaviors.
In the early days, I had a dog walker take Sephy out for group walks at the park. When the walker tried to stop Sephy from doing something disruptive, he would object, and try out one of his Shiba moves, including alligator rolls, leash biting, hand biting, and of course the Shiba scream.
The dog walker naturally got embarrassed when Sephy screamed like he was about to die. There were other people around, and some of them thought that she was mistreating the poor dog. Sephy easily sensed her embarrassment and frustration. From then on, the Shiba scream was his favorite weapon to use against her.
With a Shiba Inu, it is important to stay calm at all times.
If we lose our cool, Shiba will sense it and continue to use this weakness against us.
The best way to handle a misbehaving Shiba, is to stay calm, and remove him to a quiet, lower stimulus area, as soon as possible. If he continues with his bad behavior, he gets his freedoms revoked with a time-out. Remember that fear, anger, frustration, and other extreme emotions will only make the problem worse.
Once I was able to control my fear and remain calm, things improved significantly with my Shiba.
Sephy will never be a model-citizen, but nowadays, he is actually very fun to be with. He is goofy, he is funny, and he usually stays out of serious trouble.
Shibas can be a big challenge to live with, but they are well worth the effort. They have a great personality, and they are always up to something that will make us laugh.
I love my Shiba Inu.
He is one of my best buddies, and whenever I see him, I just have to smile.
Hi,
My fiance and I just got out 13 month old Shiba about a month ago. We got him off of craigslist and don’t have much history (but we DO have his vet records). As far as we know, we are his 3rd home. But we have had a couple issues and want to pick your brain. The first one is that he just doesn’t get excited to see us ever. We can be gone for 5 hours, come home and he just saunters up to the door and doesn’t even really wag his tail or anything. We are very loving to him and take good care of him so we are getting really discouraged over that. BUT when a visitor comes in, he is sooooo excited to see them. We don’t get it.
Also, the other bigger issue happened the other day. Tucker had trashed the bathroom trash and my fiance went up to him, said, “bad boy” and went to go for his collar (to bring him in time-out) and that’s when all hell broke loose. Tucker violently attacked my fiance. When I say violent, I mean, VIOLENT (basically it was like Tucker wanted to kill him – snarling, growling, lunging with his teeth, etc). The only way it stopped was my fiance had to grab a broom to whack him off of him and finally he got him into his crate. We were so upset about it that we considered getting rid of him, or even worse, putting him down – that’s how violent it was. However after the incident, Tucker was all nice and loving again and we went to the vet and they suggested a trainer (he has never been to obedience school ever) so we decided to give him another chance (we started training this week). We are still nervous it will happen again though and are having second thoughts about keeping him. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Megan and Jim
Hello Megan and Jim,
Congratulations on your new Shiba!
In terms of greeting strangers, Sephy is also more excited with new people. He is very curious about new things, so he is most excited with new food, new toys, and new people. This does not mean he loves them more or trusts them more, just that they are more interesting because they are new and different.
In the beginning, Sephy was very sensitive about being handled, grabbed, or collar grabbed. Many dogs can get sensitive to collar grabs because they have learned that it is usually a precursor to some punishment. Sephy was sensitive to handling right-off, whether on his person or on his collar. Initially, I found a drag-lead to be very helpful. I only use it with a flat collar and only when I am home to supervise, but it gives me much better control and I do not have to lay hands on him.
I had a lot of issues with Sephy when he was young. He would jump on me, mouth my hands and arms, do leash biting, and do kill-moves on my jacket sleeve. As a result, I got really fearful of him. However, the more fearful I got, the worse his behavior became. Here is a bit more on our early experiences-
http://shibashake.com/dog/afraid-of-your-dog
With Sephy, I discovered that it is best not to have a physical confrontation with him. It is much better to manage him, use passive resistance, and set him up for success.
http://shibashake.com/dog/shiba-inu-training-secrets
How is training going? Are you doing private lessons? I found that to be most useful with Sephy. Group classes are good for socialization, but I did not learn much, if anything, from those. What sort of exercises is the trainer suggesting?
I went to many private training lessons with Sephy when he was young. Many trainers did not have the chops to handle a Shiba, so I had to try out several of them before finding a good trainer that used positive training techniques, and truly understood behavioral psychology.
I also did a lot of my own research, and learned a lot from visiting Shiba Inu message boards. The Shiba Inu Forum is a pretty good message board, with a fair number of Shiba veterans.
http://www.shibainuforum.org/forum/
Hello! Thanks for the awesome article! My fiancee and I are picking up our newly adopted Shiba this afternoon. He is a 1 year old pup that has been crate trained, but has some other concerns. His foster allowed him to counter surf, jump on the coffee table and be in full control. I have experience with training and living with a full bread border collie, so I understand a dog with wittiness and high energy. We are planning on bringing him to a 6 week/1 hour per week training session. Hopefully we will be able to earn his trust and make this relationship work. Any suggestions on how to stop the counter surfing? Also, should we leave him in his crate during the day when we are at work or should we let him roam free in a room or two and allow him to have access to his crate when he wants to use it? And one last question: would you recommend a harness or a collar? He enjoys pulling while on a leash.
Thanks!
Hello Jim,
Congratulations on your new family member! How are things going in the first few days?
1. Counter surfing
In terms of counter surfing, I usually just supervise Shiba Sephy and no-mark him (ack-ack). If he does not listen, then he loses his freedom in the house and has to go on a short timeout. Initially, I also make sure to counter-proof the house, i.e., I don’t put anything on the counter that Shiba wants. In this way, he never gets rewarded with anything even if he gets up there.
Here is more on counter surfing-
http://www.clickertraining.com/node/1034
Some people suggest using sonic/sound scat-mats, but that is an aversive technique, and has some risks associated with it, as outlined in the article above. The electric/shock scat-mats are especially risky, so I would personally stay away from those.
2. Crating
I let Sephy roam free in the house when I am not around. However, this is very much based on the dog and our current relationship with him.
In the beginning, I crated Sephy when he was home alone. But this was only for a very short duration (1 hour or so). Once he got older, and I noticed that he was more calm, I let him roam free. At first, I started with a very short alone duration, just as a test. Then, I slowly lengthened his alone time – similar to the beginnings of crate training. I also make sure to dog-proof the areas where he has access to, so that he doesn’t hurt himself.
3. Harness or Collar?
This also depends a lot on the dog. Shiba Sephy really hates wearing anything on his body. We had to slowly condition him to putting on a collar, and now he is ok with that. He never liked having a harness on, so we are currently using a collar during walks. Sephy is trained not to pull, so a collar works well at this point. When he was a puppy, we used a harness during leash training.
However, if Shiba does not mind a harness, then that is probably preferable. A Shiba Inu has a short trachea, and may choke more easily when pressure is applied to the neck. Here is more on harnesses and collars.
Big Kudos to you for adopting a Shiba in need!
Hi,
I have 2 male Shiba Inus, one is 9 months and the other is nearly 3. They are both neutered and they have become very vicious towards each other. The younger one starts vicious fights which has drawn blood on a few occasions. It use to only be over food or treats now its just anytime during the day. The 3 year old is only here 5 days a week and the 9 month old is he all the time. When the fights happen we put the one that starts it in the laundry, its usually the 9 month old that growls first. We are thinking its a dominance thing but we just the fights to stop happening, but we don’t no what or how to do it. Is punishing it making it better or worse?
Hello Jo,
Family dogs usually get into conflicts with each other over resources. The most noticeable is when they show aggression over food and toys, however, they can also have conflicts over other resources such as access to people or to space.
For my own dogs, I keep the peace by doing the following-
1. Having very clear rules for resources and for interactions. No stealing is allowed and I hand out all resources. Each dog understands what belongs to whom.
2. When there are resource conflicts, I step in and resolve it by telling each of them what to do. In this way they do not need to resolve it themselves. Note – this is only possible if the dogs are not people aggressive in any way. I also step in early, *before* there is any aggression. Once a fight has begun, it is too late and the dog is too hyped up to understand what the punishment is for.
3. I reward them well for being calm together and for working cooperatively together for me. This teaches them that they get more stuff by working together rather than by competing with each other.
Here is more on what I do with my dogs-
http://shibashake.com/dog/second-dog-introducing-a-second-dog
If the fights are bad or getting worse, it may be very helpful to get a professional trainer to observe the dogs, identify the aggression triggers, and come up with a good plan to desensitize them to those triggers.
Hi i have a shibia inu and i am only 11 yrs.old i need to train him what do i do?
Hello Seanee,
I would do training together with your parents. Here are some things that helped me with my Shiba when he was a puppy-
http://shibashake.com/dog/puppy-obedience-training
http://shibashake.com/dog/how-i-trained-my-husky-puppy
Going to puppy class can also be fun and helpful for socializing a Shiba puppy to other dogs. I took my Shiba to many classes when he was a puppy and he had a lot of fun. I had fun too and also learned some useful training tips.
Your tips are very solid– and a Shiba isn’t right for everyone. I still play rough with mine because he enjoys it so much, and I do let him get away with launching sneak attacks from behind where he bites the back of my shirt, or buckles my knee from behind– he does know the difference between play and fighting. He’s very good with other dogs and knows when to be submissive. Shiba are funny, sometimes he just wants to be alone, and sometimes he wants a lot of attention, but he is always My Best Friend. The food guarding can be a serious issue and has to be dealt with carefully. He is mostly trustworthy off the leash– but I don’t advise it anywhere there is any danger– and not after until after a few years of building trust.
Very good points!
Thanks for sharing your Shiba experiences with us.
I have a Shiba Inu that is 11 months old. I’ve had him since he was 3 months. I am at wits end and thinking I need to get rid of him. Anytime someone visits, including family members, he barks and carries on and will not be friendly with them even after they have been here for awhile. He bit my niece soon after I first got him and I don’t trust him around kids. He is great when it’s just me and my son at home and has certain people he is fine with but for the most part is just not a nice, friendly dog. My sister insists that he is dangerous and that I get rid of him (she’s the mom of my niece whom he bit) but I don’t know what to do. Do you think this type of behavior can be fixed with a professional trainer? I had contacted a Shibi Rescue place several months ago and they told me I should get rid of him because their Shibi’s greet people at the gates and are very friendly and that Harley’s behavior is not normal! I love my dog and I’m very sad at the thought of getting rid of him but I can’t take the stress and worry that he might really hurt someone. Please give me your advice! Thank you,
In my experience, professional trainers can be helpful. They can observe a dog’s body language, and identify what are the key triggers for his aggression.
With Sephy, I did private training sessions with several professional trainers, did a lot of my own research, and followed up with supervision, management, desensitization exercises, and retraining. It took a lot of time and effort, but it was well worth the effort.
Here is the story of our difficult beginning.
Here is one way to desensitize dogs to people.
Shibas are naturally stubborn, and like doing things in their own way. They are also independent, and as a result, training can be more challenging. Here are more of my experiences on Shibas-
Why Are Shiba Inus One of the Most Difficult Breeds to Train.
Shiba Inu Information
Hello ShibaShake! I’m a big fan of your site and I was hoping you could give me some help because I’ve just about tried everything I’ve learned via your site and Cesar and I’m out of ideas ☹
I have a 2-year-old shiba inu who I got from a friend. She gave him to me because she said she didn’t have time for him after her dad died (who was his main handler). He was pretty overweight (~45 lb) and according to my friend “depressed”. Even though he was lethargic he was otherwise friendly. She didn’t tell me a lot about him, but I ran into a couple of mutual friends a month later who told me they knew him as a puppy/young adult. Apparently he was a nuisance, and you couldn’t leave anything on the floor before leaving the room- otherwise he would pick it up and run off. He also liked to “intimidate people” by growling.
I’ve had him for 3 months now. He’s lost a significant amount of weight and has tons more energy At first, it was tough trying to gain his companionship. Right off the bat he was more responsive towards males (most likely due to previous handler), but I was able to circumvent that by teaching him I was his owner (e.g. training him daily, feeding him with my hands, teaching him not to start eating until I say release word “Ok,” and just spending time with him). I could tell early on that he had trouble with dominance. Tsubi is a very strong-willed dog and even though he would perform tricks, maintain eye contact and come when being called inside the house- whether it’s his prey drive or own will- he won’t walk on a leash for a long duration outdoors. There’s always a narrow timeframe where he will let you lead him. After ~10 minutes he’ll stop following and sit if you’re going in a different direction than where he wants. To help enforce that he’s supposed to follow and act more omega ranked, I’ve tried positive reinforcement (with food and praise). In addition, I’ve tried controlling the environment by taking him to quiet places, shortening the walks and just doing it more frequently. Some days it’s good and some days I’ll have to carry him back (bad I know!). Overall I don’t think we’ve made very good progress.
Unfortunately, now that he has more energy I feel that his bad habits are becoming more prominent. The biggest problem I’m faced with is that he’s started to bite. He’s bitten my roommates and I think he’s exhibiting possessiveness and fixation. For example, my roommate was trying to move a cardboard box, and when she bent down he came up and bit her. The same thing happened to my friend’s mom. She was trying to move a laundry basket and he rushed over to see what was going on. When she tried to move it he bit her hand. He doesn’t even growl; he just bites! He’s like that with me to some extent when I try to move his bedding – it’ll catch his attention and he’ll stare at what my hands are doing intently. One of the times he’s actually bitten me was when a small ball rolled out from under the couch. I didn’t want him to swallow it so I told him “NO” plus a sharp “tsch.” When I used body block to make him move back so I could pick it up, he growled at me and bit my hand. That was when I learned the hard way that he does not know bite inhibition. If he’s trying to communicate to you with his mouth, he will bite down, HARD. It makes me a little afraid to try and correct his behavior should he do something like that again ☹. I’ve tried to assert dominance in the home like never moving aside for him. I’ve also tried to move his bed and toys while giving him treats. He doesn’t go in or out of doors unless I do first. Before we leave the house, I give the commands “Sit, look at me and stay.” I slowly open the door and won’t let him move until I give the release word.
I’d like him to listen to people more, and understand that they are his superior. I’d also like to be able to take walks and maybe even run with him one day. Is there anything you know that I should try with my dog? Thanks, I appreciate your help greatly :3
Hello Konny,
I also had a lot of problems with Sephy in the beginning. He is a stubborn dog that likes doing things his own way. I think Shibas tend to be more stubborn, and set in their ways.
When Sephy was young, I took a fair number of private training sessions with several professional trainers. Finding a good trainer took some work, and can be expensive, but it helped me with Sephy a fair bit.
Sephy is also a very sensitive dog and he reacts very strongly to my emotional state. In the beginning, I was quite fearful of him, and the more fearful I was, the worse his behavior became. I suspect he sensed my nervousness and became nervous himself. After I was able to control my own energy, his behavior improved significantly.
Another thing that never worked with Sephy is that he never reacts well to challenges. The more I challenged him, and engaged with him physically, the more he fought back. This was why aversive techniques did not work well with him. Instead, passive resistance, management, and controlling his resources work best.
Dogs will repeat behaviors that get them good results, and stop behaviors that get them bad results. If a dog gets rewarded for aggression, for example, by getting people to back away and gain ownership of the box or laundry basket, he will keep repeating his aggressive behavior. The key, I found, is not to engage Sephy is a “fight” for the box or whatever object, but to carefully manage him so that he is not exposed to situations where he is likely to show aggression.
Instead, I carefully desensitize him to his aggression triggers in a controlled environment. I try to maximize the number of successful events, and minimize the number of events where he uses aggression.
Timing and consistency are very important with Sephy, as well as reading his body language. These were the things that a professional trainer helped me with. What techniques work well, is also very dependent on context, and the emotional state of everyone involved.
Dominance theory is discussed a lot lately, but with Sephy, it was frequently not an issue of dominance but something else. Sometimes he just did not understand what was expected of him, sometimes it was redirected aggression, sometimes he just learned the wrong thing because my timing was off or I did not use the right response.
In the beginning, I had a lot of issues with Sephy. Therefore, I started dealing with just one problem at a time. In other instances, I carefully managed him so that he did not keep practicing his bad behaviors. I.e., I kept his environment as calm and quiet as I can, and set up a very fixed routine where both of us knew exactly what to expect. His biting and humping were the first things I addressed. In terms of guarding objects, this was what I did to address resource guarding behavior. However, each dog is different because his breeding and upbringing are different. For example, Sephy had good bite inhibition because we did a lot of exercises since he was a puppy.
This is why it helps to have a professional trainer observe the dog, and interpret his actions based on his body language, surrounding context, and real-time interaction. Then we can come up with a specific plan to suit our dog’s particular temperament, style, and environment.
What a wonderful recourse this blog is for my happy family! My wife and I just adopted our first Shiba. She is a beautiful 3 year old rescue black and tan and is the sweetest girl in the world. We both have been raised with dogs and are experienced owners, but being that this is our first of this breed, I have some questions. She lacks many of the “typical” Shiba traits I’ve been warned of. She is very affectionate, loves children, adults, and other dogs/cats, has zero food or toy aggression, and is rarely as aloof as we were expecting. My only concern has been walking her on her leash. She is wonderful with my wife, and was great with me the first walk or two we went on. We bought a harness that is balanced and seems more comfortable and connects to the leash on her upper back (rather than neck). However, the past couple of days I’ve went to walk her she simply stops. She refuses to go anywhere and seems distraught. At times I can get her moving and she’ll stop to chew on grass and smell things, and instead of her moving on after a good long pause, she’ll stop again and show no interest of going any direction. Often it’s been long enough between outside trips that I’m certain she must need to relieve herself, but she is adamant that she wants to go absolutely nowhere. This morning to get her to the car I had to partially drag her along, which makes me feel terrible. Once she see’s the car door open she’s all wags and excited for the car ride. I’m wondering if she’s decided my wife is the alpha and I’m the play cuddle daddy (she’s more affectionate with me), and doesn’t have trust in me for walks. Any help or insight on how to correct or work around this issue would be greatly appreciated.
Hello Jake,
Shiba Sephy will also sometimes stop and not want to move. Most of the time he just wants to sit and watch people or traffic. Other times, he is startled by something new and wants to take he time observing, before approaching the new object. This sometimes happens during Halloween season, especially for those “wraith-like” things that move with the wind. Even I get startled by those sometimes! 😀
How I deal with his stopping will depend on why he has stopped, and how he is acting when we are stopped.
If Sephy stops just to look at people, then, when I want to go, I just go. Usually I start at a faster pace (jog) and he will usually come along. I only let him lie down when I am prepared to stop for a longer duration.
Playing the Find-It game also helps to motivate him to move along.
On the other hand, if Sephy is startled by something he sees, then I will let him take his time to observe the new object. I allow him to do this as long as he is relatively calm. Then when he is ready to move forward and examine the object, we will move forward.
When my Sibe puppy Lara was young, she would get really afraid of certain things and want to bolt (e.g. people on skateboards). In this situation, I try to move away from the trigger object at a measured pace. Once we get far enough away, I sometimes stop and let her observe from afar. I also started practicing desensitization exercises with her at home.
Another thing that may help to do regular fun obedience training commands with Shiba. Sephy sometimes enjoys doing Spins and standing Up on his hind legs. He is not as great with Recalls, but I do those with him as well. Doing regular obedience commands gets Shiba into the routine of working for his food, and following what we say. I follow the NILIF program with all of my dogs. Doing these fun commands during walks also makes the outing more interesting.
Does your wife spend more time with Shiba? Does she feed Shiba all of her meals? Usually, I try to get everyone into the habit of feeding the dogs some of their food. In this way, the dogs bond to everyone in the family.
Congratulations on your new Shiba and four paws up for helping a Shiba in need.
In my opinion, the reason she stops moving is probably because she’s not happy with the feeling of having the harness on & it’s her way of pouting (Shibas are drama-queens). But, don’t give up; she will probably get used the harness.
Sometimes my dog will actually fall over (funny) when I try to put on her harness (& leash). I just pick her up & set back on her feet & walk toward the door. Once the inside door is opened, she will come running to me to go out for a walk (the reward).
Recently, I tried a sherpa/faux suede dog jacket on her (at home on the couch) & she just fell over & refused to move. (too funny)
My Shiba is 4 months old.
Hi!
My family is considering getting a dog and we want a Shiba. We’re first timers on having a dog, but my mother is set on having a Shiba. What she wants to know is, can we have our Shiba in our backyard? It’s big enough for the Shiba to run around in, but I think the Shiba can wiggle through the fences or dig out. We live in China, so its either really hot or freezing. We plan to bring the Shiba in during winters, but we need help on training it to not ‘attack’ things like the sofa.
Thanks!
PS. How long can a Shiba be left alone each day?
Hello Kathy,
Shibas tend to be escape artists so if the backyard is not well secured, and he is bored, he will likely dig out or jump out to find adventure outside.
I also got a Shiba as my first dog, and it was a big challenge. Shiba Sephy and I had a really rocky start, here is our story.
Luckily, I was retired and had a lot of time to spend with Sephy. I had to supervise him a lot, and also spent a lot of time observing him and learning how to train him effectively. Shibas tend to be very stubborn dogs, therefore they are more difficult to train than most other breeds.
Here are a couple of articles on things that helped with Sephy when he was a puppy-
http://shibashake.com/dog/puppy-obedience-training
http://shibashake.com/dog/how-i-trained-my-husky-puppy
Here are some of my experiences on stopping dog escapes.
That depends on a lot of things. Puppies are a lot more energetic and need to be potty trained and supervised. Therefore, they require much more people time. Adult Shibas need daily walks and exercise, but are more independent and can be left alone for longer periods of time. I have left adult Sephy alone for a maximum time of about 5 hours, but that happens pretty infrequently.
Sephy likes being inside the house and he does not need much direct attention from me. However, he *does* like having me around the house. We take him on a morning walk of over 1 hour every day, and he is usually good for the rest of the time. He also has several rigorous play sessions with my other dogs, and works for all of his food from interactive toys.
I recently adopted a 5 year old rescue Shiba named Kiari. She is a smaller Shiba, about 16lbs and really good with people and kids. She loves her toys and going on walks. The only thing she seems to be not too fond of is other dogs. When we are on walks and she sees other dogs she always tries to go towards them and occasionally barks. I have her on a harness instead of a collar and she’ll pull to the point where her front paws are off the ground. I haven’t let her get in reach of any dogs yet so I’m not sure what will happen if she gets near one. Any tips on getting her to be more social?
Thanks
With my Shiba, I started by first getting him to ignore other dogs. Every time we see dogs during our walk, I would just create some space (e.g. by crossing the road), and keep on walking at a measured pace. I also ignore the other dog, so that everything stays calm and nothing happens. The more neutral experiences we had, the more calm Sephy became when he saw other dogs.
Together with neutral experiences, I also did dog-to-dog desensitization exercises with Sephy. This helps him learn how to greet other dogs in a calm and very structured setting.
http://shibashake.com/dog/dog-to-dog-aggression#desensitize
Big hugs to Kiari! She sounds like a very awesome Shiba girl!