This little Japanese breed is all over the internet with its cute face and happy vibes. Think “doge”…that dog. I’ve owned them before they were cool, and still own two, and know of another 5 in my local area. Hopefully, I can give you some insights on this beloved pet.
Some background: Japanese culture tends to leave things alone and not fiddle with it. There’s probably a word for this too, but in essence, this breed has remained largely unchanged since day 1. There was a small period after ww2 where they had to go find some good examples in the mountains and recreate what remained of the population, but from a dna perspective, this doggo retains the most wolf dna of any breed in the modern world. Its also a Japanese National Treasure…it is illegal to cross breed this dog in Japan etc etc. It’s a basal breed of the spitz variety. Curly tail etc.
Fact 1:
Sometimes referred to as dog hardware running cat software.
The Shiba is aloof, and independent. They can run feral in the mountains of Japan and can feed themselves. They know this. They know we know this. Whether they “need” a human around is up for debate. They certainly don’t act like you are their entire world. There will be times, well, its almost always, where they won’t even acknowledge your entry to a room, ignore their name, pretend they can’t walk on a leash and turn their backs to you. If you’re looking for a difficult dog that rewards you very seldom, but when it does you feel very special, you’ve found it. Honestly, get a Labrador if you want a dog. The fact that I can make one out of my two dogs sit, occasionally, on command is an achievement.
Fact 2:
They’re extremely agile, yet lazy.
Shiba can climb fences, jump around 4 or 5 feet from a sitting position and run like hell with rapid changes of direction. They do this when catching birds, squirrels, mice, rats…thats what they do. But they only do this when the red mist comes down. The rest of the day they WILL sleep. I can go to work and come back 5 hours later and they would not have moved a muscle. I attribute this to their feeding in the wild…if you don’t know where your next meal comes from you conserve energy. You’ll notice this with their utter lack of recall. Its not just minor…its al almost 100% disregard for coming to you on command. You’ll see them walking on harnesses mostly, as they can escape a collar, and letting them off lead is a good way to lose them forever. Their favourite game is “you cant catch me” and facebook is full of folks saying “my shiba has escaped, do not try catch, just tell me if you have seen them”. They’ll run away, go hide in a forest and live off rats and mice and totally ignore the fact that you’re crying your heart out.
Fact 3:
They’re uneconomical to breed.
Contentious topic…but they have between 2 and 5 puppies..normally 3. If you’re thinking of breeding them remember a few things.
You’re not going to make money out of this. Litter too small once costs are factored in.
Half the dogs will come back as the owners will lose their minds once the cuteness wears off.
Fact 4:
They should not really be your first-time dog owner experience.
This dog is hard work. Really hard work. For very little reward. Its a pretty animal, stunning in some aspects. But you get almost zero out of what you put in. I mentioned earlier that after 5 years of ownership of the one female, she “may” sit, around 60% of the time, only if I have a treat, and only if I show it to her first. And the look on her face is purely “You DO bloody know my grandad was a ninja? My uncle was a kamikaze fighter pilot? I’m bloody japanese royalty!!!”
Conversely, my other younger male is food driven…I can get him to do anything for food..yet he will do nothing without the prospect of food. He knows sit, stay, paw, high five, twirl etc…but the only time he will do anything is it food is an option. Otherwise, it seems he’s waiting for a translator to interpret what you’re asking. I did say they were hard work.
Fact 5:
UK breed standards…USA breed standards…and Japanese breed standards…don’t really align Remember above how I mentioned that the Japanese leave things alone and celebrate how they are, not how they want them to be? Well, Shiba judging in Japan has a large element based on the dogs personality. Is it aloof, it is confident..is it…Shiba?
USA and UK seem to go after looks. “Oh how fluffy their neck is!!!” …so we breed them with even fluffier necks…rinse repeat. The Shiba’s you seen on Instagram with fluff everywhere are not really how they are. They’re fluffy..but not that fluffy.
Fact 6:
Shedding.
The dogs shed’s twice a year..it has a thick, thick undercoat which means it happily runs around in the snow in the freezing cold in the middle of the arctic and doesn’t care less. Think “husky”.
When shedding season starts, you’ll just have one thought: “where DID all this fur come from, why is it still coming, when does it stop”. Nothing, and I mean nothing, can prepare you for how much fur this dog will shed. You’ll pull tufts out of it as if you’re plucking a duck. You’ll do this for days, and the fur will still be everywhere. Be prepared. All while this is happening, the dog ignores you and pretends it doesn’t understand English and is plotting an escape and will happily never see you again. Its hard work.
Fact 7:
You don’t have to wash them much, if any…they do not smell like “dog”, even when wet, their fur is waterproof so they don’t stay wet for more than a few minutes, and they’re EXTREMELY clean. Fastidiously clean. They’ll spend as much time as a cat grooming themselves. If you have more than one, they’ll then groom each other. Its a 24/7 cleaning machine. They house train themselves, they do not want to wee or poo anywhere near their living spaces as the big bad wolf will find them.
Taken to the extreme, my pair categorically do not poo or wee in the garden. They refuse. I have to harness them up and take them to the park, but not just “the park”…the corner of the park furthest from the house. That’s the spot. They can hold in a wee or a poo much longer than you can look at them and think you can win this. You’ll give in and take them for a walk. To them, its a matter of survival.
Fact 8:
They hunt.
They’ll hunt your cat, the birds, the neighbours cat, mice, rats..any squirrel. And when they do its a switch that’s been activated and they switch modes into ancient hunter red mist. At that stage, they don’t hear you, don’t see anything besides what they’re focused on and will do feats you’ve never seen them do, but they’ve planned it in advance. Like jumping off the seat onto the tree branch and over the fence, goodbye! “I was chasing a squirrel”. You have to look at your garden, think the impossible, then make it Shiba proof. They can dig at a rate that is difficult to describe. They don’t normally dig though. No reason to. Until they want out. Then you’ll have a 1 foot deep hole in the time it takes to roll a cigarette.
Fact 9:
They’re utterly gorgeous. A photo is one thing, but to see them in real life is a treat. The longer you stare at them, the more you notice. The nose upturns ever so slightly at the end..its the only breed that has thing. They have flair, bling, in their coat markings (which is part of the breed standard). White sections of fur which they wear denoting their provenance to the entire world. The curly tail, bush through its entire length. The hair, which only has the coat colour on the tips. Its all just mesmerising. I realise this is massively subjective and you can see a picture and go “yeah, shit dog”…but spend 10 minutes with a Shiba and they just stand out as something…well..different.
Fact 10:
The screaming.
I was first attracted to this breed when searching for dogs that don’t bark, much.
And true to form, they don’t bark, much. Oh they’ll go off at the food delivery guys etc, but on an ordinary peaceful day, no noise whatsoever. When chasing animals for hunting…no noise whatsoever. You just hear the legs running on the grass..
But then they’re upset, they scream. And I do mean scream. Its not a cute husky song, or a wailing bay at moon noise. This is a petulant child who got his way once and now uses this as a weapon scream. Its again, the only dog that does this. The most high-pitched one tone scream that’ll mess with your eardrums if you’re in an enclosed area (think: accidentally standing on their foot in the kitchen when they’ve hovering while cooking food). If you don’t upset the dog, they don’t scream. Vet? Nail clippers? Yeah….thats scream worthy.
I’ve heard from some owners their dogs scream when happy. I pity them.
So theres a few paragraphs, and Ive actually tried to put anybody off this breed. Its insta-worthy-beautiful, and if that’s why you’re interested go have a good think about what you’re committing 16 years to. Shiba rescues are overrun with these dogs and their bad habits, tantrums, untrainable nature and impulse driven actions. Unless you’re going into this eyes wide open and like your dog to ignore you for a few years at a time while shedding everywhere and screaming its head off, do NOT get a Shiba.
If, however, you’re not looking for a lap dog to follow you around and dote on every fart you make and have a mental breakdown everytime you leave the house for two minutes, AND you’ve read the above and agree to the terms and conditions, then keep an eye out for this lovable little creature that’s as close to an ancient wolf as you can get, and has not been modified by human nature to mess with something that’s already perfect.
Shiba: translated to either “red”, or “brushwood”…nobody knows really.
Inu: Japanese word for dog.
Ergo, you can’t have a shiba inu dog. That’s a dog dog.
Closest cousin looks wise: Akita Inu, but Shiba is about a third of the size, just nobody has told them this yet.
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