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.
Thank you so much. 🙂 I’ll read it thoroughly before making any decisions!
-Anonymous from before.
I’m considering getting a shiba inu in about a years time, since i’m moving away from my home city, and gonna live on my own. I’ve been around animals my whole life, and i’ve taken care of dogs before and had up to 6 cat at once, in a small home, so i’m used to trash being digged through or clothes pulled out of the closet, if i haven’t closed the door properly, and much more. I have however never actually owned a dog. I am completely in love with Shiba dogs, and i do have the money to look after it, if it where to get sick. I know everywhere says that you should not get a Shiba as a first dog, but i am completely head over heels for it. I know where to get dog training, and i live in a country with alot of country side, and dogparks were the can exersize. I have some questions though, I hope its not too much trouble. >.< Do you have other articles or do you know other blogs i could read to prepare? Do you think it would be better to get a female or a male?
I have a bunch of Shiba articles here.
The National Shiba Club of America is a good place to visit.
http://shibas.org/
The Shiba Inu forum also has a lot of information from veteran Shiba owners.
There are also many blogs out there on Shibas. One popular one is The Misanthropic Shiba.
The best friend I ever had was my extremely large Rottweiler when we lived on our farm in the USA. Adorable as a puppy but quite destructive. They are a vicious breed and definitely a one person dog. As soon as he knew that I was the Alpha and neutering, he was very easily trained but only by me. Now we live and are retired in Taiwan and will be getting our shiba in a few days. After reading about the problems associated with shibas, it doesn’t sound too bad after raising my rotty. Sounds like most of the problems can be controlled by letting them know who is boss. By the way, I couldn’t bring my rotty to Taiwan for several reasons and had to have him put down. I fell in love with the shiba breed primarily because of its independent nature and believe me, that type of personality, if controlled, makes for the best dog you could ever hope for.
I have met some really friendly Rotties and some not so friendly ones. Part of a dog’s behavior is dependent on nature (genetics and breeding) and part of it is dependent on nurture (training, socialization, past experiences, routine, context, and more).
It is true that Rotties are bred to have a stronger guard instinct, but that can be put under control with careful socialization, training, and structured outlets for activity.
Hello,
I wanted to ask some question about getting a shiba inu in Taiwan. May I ask you of the process you needed to go through in order to be able to adopt one… I am interested in adopting one but since I will be moving to Taiwan I am not very sure how that process work, would you be of any help.
And congratulation on you puppy!
I’ve had my shiba inu pup for about 2 months and he cries whenever I leave the room leave him with someone else to babysit or anything like that. He will scream over and over and rushes to me the next time I see him. Idk how to break the crying behavior 🙁 how would I get nobunaga (nobu for short) to be a tad more independent?
Two things helped with Sephy-
1. I slowly desensitized him to alone time.
2. I socialized him to other people, and slowly got him to trust other people. Sephy is a very loyal dog, so it also takes time and effort to earn his trust.
http://shibashake.com/dog/shiba-inu-personality-good-bad-traits/comment-page-6#comment-100348
I have a 6yr old shiba inu, hes amazing! Im getting a puppy here in a few days, but hes been attacking my friends puppy and im a little worried. How do I get him to behave himself?
Some things that help with my Shiba-
1. I set up clear dog-to-dog interaction rules which I slowly teach to all of my dogs. For example, there is no bullying, no correcting each other, no stealing, and no humping.
2. I supervise them very closely especially during play-time and eating time. I use leads, baby gates, enclosures, etc. as necessary to keep things safe. If there are any conflicts, I deal with it in a fair and consistent manner.
3. I set up a fixed routine and a consistent set of rules for puppy.
4. I make sure my adult dogs can rest and relax away from puppy when they have had enough of puppy playfulness. Puppies are full of energy and want to play all the time – which can become annoying when an adult dog wants his own space or wants to just rest.
5. I create as many positive experiences for my adult dogs and my new puppy as possible. This helps them to view puppy as a big plus to their lifestyle, rather than an annoying pest or a competitor for their resources.
Here is more on what I do when introducing a new dog.
When in doubt, I consult with a professional trainer-
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
Hi ShibaShake,
It seems it has been a while since anyone has commented on this page; so I was wondering if you are still active on this page?
I just got my 9-week-old Shiba Inu puppy, Hachi (yes, I named his after the famous Akita, Hachiko) three days ago and I love him! This being said, he is a handful and fits the stereotype of being a relatively difficult dog to train. I know it is still early on but I am so glad I found this website because it is helping both me and Hachi with our confidence together and helping me to train him.
The reward reinforcement system is definitely a great way to go with Hachi as he loves his treats! I’m just awaiting the days he gets smart enough to get what he wants and then goes off and does his own thing 🙁 haha.
He had a little bit of separation anxiety from his mother and siblings the first few days we had him but he seems to be improving and taking a liking to me and my girlfriend (we live together). He is still not potty trained however so I am starting him on a strict routine like you mentioned in your articles with Sephy and Lara and we’ll see how that works. My only problem is Hachi has not had his second set of shots yet so I do not want to take him outside for obvious reasons. So this confines us to our little apartment to teach him where to go potty. Any specific suggestions on how to potty train our Hachi using puppy pads inside our apartment? Anything helps, and thank you so much for your articles about your journey with your Shiba and Husky! It really helps first time dog owners like me out!
Hachi
Congratulations on your new bundle of joy!
In terms of potty training, I had a backup potty space inside the house. I put up a puppy enclosure (on tile) and put the puppy pads in there. When my puppy needs to go, and I am unable to let her outside, I put her in her backup potty space (temporarily). If I need to step away to the bathroom or kitchen for a very short break, and cannot supervise, I will also put my puppy in there. In this way, she can’t get into trouble, and has a place to go if she needs to.
I will praise her after she does her potty on the pads and then let her out when she is done.
I replace the pads after each potty. I noticed that my puppy does not like going on pads that have already been soiled.
Big hugs to Hachi! Share a picture link with us when you can. 😀
Hi All, I’m looking for the helpful tips that can make my Roxy Shiba Inu better, I just adopted her about 4 weeks ago, and she is 2 yrs old will be 3 this September, I’m the first time dog owner and admit that I didn’t really any research about her, all I want to adopt becos of her cuteness and faithful personality.
Anyway, first of all she is very jumpy even a really low noise can make her jump, second I’d say she plays well with other same size or smaller dogs then her but not the bigger one; like my neighbors boxer and bull dog, she is so scared of them, I can tell she likes the boxer by the way she sniff him but when he tried to play with her, she screamed the hell out of her, I dont know what to do… Please help me. Third, she won’t listen to me and won’t play any games like usual dogs do, which I understand but is there a way that I can train her to at least listen to my command? I know this is very hard for me but I love her so much bcos sometimes she will listen to me bcos she just wanna go outside… I’m so upset the way she is, it makes me more sad bcos I can’t do anything to help her better. Oh last thing before I forget, we me and husband we live in an apartment and we go to work almost every afternoon but I’m home around 730pm and from 1-7p she is alone by herself in the kitchen and she keeps whining and screaming… 🙁 my neighbors think it is somebody/dog are in pain and asking for help… I appreciate any helps tips that could make her better and I do have trust in her that she can do it! Thank you.
and a lilttle bit about her ex-owner, I don’t know her very well but she is very attached to her ex-owner so I dont think she would have any abuse when she was with them that makes her jumpy all the time…
1. Stress and Anxiety
Roxy sounds like a really sweet girl who is maybe a little fearful of unfamiliar things that seem threatening – e.g. loud noises, large dogs, etc. My Husky Shania is also uncertain about loud noises, e.g. garbage truck, and about large dogs.
Desensitization exercises have been very helpful in terms of helping her cope with her fear, helping her gain confidence, and helping her to reassociate previously scary stimuli with positive rewards and experiences. Here are some articles on how I desensitize my dog to other dogs, and how I desensitize my dog to loud noises.
Here is a general article on dog anxiety.
When there are large changes in a dog’s life (changes in environment, changes in family members), they will likely feel stress and may become anxious. Roxy has had to go through a lot of big changes lately, so it is natural that there would be stress and anxiety. When we moved houses, I helped to reduce my Shiba’s stress by –
1. Setting up a fixed routine right away.
2. Setting up a consistent set of rules and a consistent way of communicating with him.
3. Giving him more exercise in quiet areas that he is comfortable with.
When there are large changes, certainty helps to reduce stress. Therefore, I try to create as much certainty for my Shiba as I can, I carefully manage him and protect him from situations that he cannot handle, and I properly socialize him to new experiences but only in a positive way.
2. Training
I motivate my dogs to follow my commands by following the Nothing in Life is Free program.
Here are a few more articles on training and my related experiences –
– How I trained my dog on some simple commands.
– How I trained my Husky.
– How dogs learn.
3. Crying when alone
As for crying when alone, it could be because of separation anxiety or confinement anxiety.
I am a first time owners of a Shiba and only had German Shepherds prior to owning sassy a 11 month old female Shiba. I know she is smart and to the point she knows she is not listening and to her that is fun time cause it is means i am going to try catch her. I think overall she has been a great pup and yes on the spectrum of dogs and to go from a Shepherd to Her wow she is off the charts for the time you will have to train compared to many other breeds so for the 1st time dog owner please do yourself and the dog a favor go to a real easy trainable breed and safe yourself some grey hair take care and have a safe day all.
This was a great well-informed article for potential Shiba owners. Wish I did my reasearch 7 yrs ago about breeds before I got Rocky as I was a first-time dog owner. I wet completely on looks was limited to a dog size, living in an apartment. I wanted a dog that looked like a big dog but ok for an apartment.
A lot of this article expresses what We went through with our Shiba…I was fortunate to find a trainer who had experience with Akita’s and Shibas…she was incredible and did a lot of work with him.
They never will be the model canine, no one can believe mine is almost 7 cuz he still acts like a pup. I accept it and enjoy him! He’s my best little man.
Hello was just wondering where you got your shiba trained ? Cause mine doesnt listen at all , any advice ?
Thanks alot !
I am going to be getting a shiba this June and I had one question. I know you have to be patient and persistent when training your Shiba but how long will it take to teach her all the basic commands so that she will behave? (sit, off, down, come, no) I just don’t want to teach her in the summer, not finish and go to school with a naughty dog at my house. Please help, Thanks!
Hello Ella,
Sephy picked up commands really quickly. He already knew how to do Sits when we got him (10 weeks old), and he picked up down, look, and others very quickly. Learning commands is only one part of the equation though. Sephy is very independent, and the more tricky part is motivating him to do the commands, and redirecting his energy into positive activities.
He was also very reactive, especially to other dogs. He would get over excited, and go a bit nuts, so I also had to do a lot of work in terms of socializing him to other dogs, and doing dog-to-dog desensitization exercises.
I set up a fixed set of rules for him, and a fixed routine. He picked up the rules pretty quickly but motivating him to follow rules is the greater challenge. For example, Sephy was very mouthy so we did a lot of bite inhibition exercises, and also bite redirection exercises. He also needed a lot of structured activities so that he has a positive place to put his puppy energy. His behavior is also very dependent on how I react to him, and my own energy. I need to be very calm, consistent, and have a good plan.
I noticed a big improvement in Sephy’s behavior at around 6 months, and then even more after 1 year. However, I made a lot of mistakes with Sephy in the beginning, primarily with using aversive training techniques. If I had started with more research and training knowledge, things probably would have improved sooner. Still, stubbornness is a common Shiba trait, and that is one of the more difficult parts of training a Shiba.
Here is a bit more on the “No-mark” and how I train a new puppy today.