The Misadventures of a Shiba Inu

Mouse

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 14:06:00 +0000

Last night, I noticed that Loki had a small spot of blood on his face in between his eyes. I asked Yun, did Loki and Juju get into a fight? I didn't remember hearing any screaming. Yun also replied in the negative. And why would he be bleeding on his face between the eyes if he got into a fight with Juju? It's such a weird spot.

So what happened to Loki?

This morning I found my answer in the form of a dead mouse in our backyard. EWWW! Gross! Yucky! Waaa! Yun doesn't know it yet, but he's going to be the one removing that thing.

***EDIT***
Actually, Yun informs me that it was a chipmunk. Poor little guy.

Juju ate a spoon

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 01:56:00 +0000

Um... that used to be a spoon. Really! Baby threw it on the ground after dinner, and I neglected to pick it up right away. By the time I found it again, the head of the spoon was gone. Uh-oh... At least it's BPA free.

Advice for a shy shiba

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 23:09:00 +0000

From time to time, I get emails from blog readers asking for advice. Last week, I got an email from Kelly and her pup Anubis. She wrote

I got him under unfortunate circumstances because his previous owner abused him badly. Upon first getting him he was extremely hand shy, but that seems to be getting better day by day. Also, he has scars from what looks to be cigarette burn marks on his hips. I took him in knowing Shiba Inus can sometimes be difficult to handle if not trained properly since I have had experienced with my pitbull (Harley) who was also badly abused and poorly trained. As far as behavioral issues go surprisingly, that's not an problem.

He is really shy and timid because of it being abused. It took him a good couple of months before he was able to fully trust that I would never lay a hand on him. I'm coming to you, an experienced Shiba owner, in hopes you can give me some pointers on how to help him socialize. Other animals are fine (he gets along with my moms pitbull like they've known each other their whole lives). However, when anyone comes into my house its under the bed he goes (his safe spot) while growling and barking and I don't want to force him to be social. My mom and roommate are the only two other people Anubis will go up to. I personally feels as though he wants to be social he's just scared because as long as 'mommy' holds him other people are fine to pet him.

My response to her was:

I am not a dog expert. I am just a dog owner who happens to blog from time to time. I'm not a vet, not a trainer, not a behaviorist.
With the above disclaimer said, I think that you can help by not forcing socialization onto your dog. Use lots of treats when someone comes over. If Anubis goes under the bed, just drop treats along the floor just outside of the bed. And just leave him alone. Don't force him out. Be calm and don't pay too much attention to him. And most definitely, have your friend ignore the dog completely. If you have the time and energy and friends available to devote to training, then I suggest you do this A LOT. So, friend comes over means that treats are dropped all over the ground (and the friend does not interact with the dog). I'd say, do this everyday, but few of us have that kind of time and that many willing friends to help out. So, maybe once a week? Obviously, the more the better.

When your dog stops retreating under the bed, I then suggest moving it up a notch. If your dog comes up to sniff your friend, have your friend continue to ignore the dog. Just let the dog explore the new smells without having to worry about being looked at or being petted. You can drop the treats on the ground near your friend.

When your dog feels safe with approaching your friends, I then suggest that you have your friends offer treats. I think it's easy to think of this step first, but I think of it more as one of the later steps, after you've gotten your dog more comfortable with the idea of your friend in the house.

I also do not recommend that you hold your dog and then let your friends pet your dog. I am positive that your dog is uncomfortable with this situation. If on his own will, he wants to crawl under the bed, then there is no way that he is comfortable with being restricted and forced to socialize.

I do agree that your dog probably does want to socialize, but he is afraid. And fear is extremely powerful. You have to go slow and on his terms to show him that there is nothing to be afraid of. It takes time to build that new positive association.

And even after you've done a lot of work with him, please keep your expectations realistic. He might never be a very social dog. It is possible that the best he'll do is tolerate your friends. It's possible that he will take to certain friends and not others. We humans don't always get along with every other human. Some we like better than others. Your dog may also be selective about whom he trusts, and that is fine. I think a resonable goal at the moment for you is to get him to not retreat under the bed and bark, and to get him to a point where he will at least tolerate your friends, even if he doesn't necessarily socialize.

So what do you think? Do you have any other tips or advice for Kelly?

More Barking

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 01:54:00 +0000

Between Loki and Jujube, Loki has always been our resident guard dog. He'll let us know whether we have visitors, whether the neighbors are checking their mail, whether children are playing in the street, and whether a leaf is blowing in the wrong direction. Luckily for us, Baby doesn't wake up from Loki's barking. But just because it doesn't bother Baby doesn't mean it doesn't bother our neighbors. Yeah, nowadays, every time we let him out into our backyard, we hope and pray that he doesn't bark, lest our neighbors complain... again. We brought up the issue of barking with our dog behaviorist.

"Has Loki barked more since Baby was born?" she asked us.

"Huh, I don't know. I never really thought about it in relation to Baby's arrival." I thought about it for a minute or two and then assented, "I guess so."

"Sometimes dogs bark more with the arrival of a new baby because there is now an additional person in the household. A new baby to protect."

Huh, weird. So Loki barks more to protect our baby and yet things like this happen? Huh, okay. That's kind of interesting.

To help with the barking, the behaviorist recommended that we let Loki bark for a couple seconds, then go to the window and check out whatever is going on, reply to him with "oh, it's only the neighbors," and then tell him to stop. The idea is that it's Loki's job to alert us, but then our job to actually take care of any potential harm. So we should acknowledge that he's done his part and then we do our part.

I imagine that if we ignored his barking and told him to immediately stop, then his anxiety would escalate and he would think, "But no! Really! Listen to me! You have to come look! There's a man with a machete and a ski mask running down the street towards us! We are all in mortal danger! You have to listen to me! You have to listen to me!!!" So, you actually have to check out what's going on in order to calm him down. Now, this rationale may or may not be true. I've just made it up. But it makes sense in my head that the more you ignore, the louder the alerting barks will be.

Have any of you had a similar experience? If you have had a new baby join your (dog) household, have you found that your dog barked more?

Side by side

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 20:09:00 +0000

Signs of improvement

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 19:55:00 +0000

We're seeing some signs of improvement in Loki's behavior as it relates to Baby (who is more of a toddler at this point, but let's still call him Baby). In general, Loki moves away when Baby approaches him. The other night, Baby got too close to the dogs while they were eating their dinner (we were right there, don't worry). In response, Loki backed up without having finished his dinner and just moved away. Unfortunately, Juju took the chance to be opportunistic and gobbled up his food. We scolded her and then gave some more food to Loki. I'm not sure if I buy all of the dominance/submissive theories of dogs, but if there is any truth to that, then I think that Loki walking away from his food is a sign of submission to Baby. Also, it seems that Loki has gotten better as Baby started to walk. Baby now stands taller than the dogs. Not much taller, but still taller.

Our approach has included all of the following:

Identifying triggers, namely, the couch. We no longer let the dogs on the couch at all. When we are away, we just block off all access to couches.
More management. We bought a few more baby gates. That way, we can section off entire rooms to separate the dogs and Baby when we can't actively watch all of them. The dog behaviorist had suggested a crate or a dog pen, but Yun thought that such a small space would make Loki guard that particular space more and potentially become even more aggressive about his crate or his pen. An alternative solution that we agreed on was to use baby gates to section off entire rooms. The space is larger, and if we constantly mix it up, then Loki isn't likely to regard one space as his own to guard. Still, we try to minimize separation. We want the dogs and Baby to mix as much as possible; we just make sure to watch closely when they do.
Positive reinforcement. When mixing dogs and Baby (which we try to do as much as possible), we offer Loki treats. We try to make it as positive of an experience as possible. We also do some training with him, so that his focus is not on Baby. Like I said, Loki has been consistently moving out of Baby's way these days
More exercise. This one is self-explanatory. More exercise is always good.
More training. We are doing more training with both dogs. It helps Loki because it gives him focus and direction, which reduces his overall anxiety. It helps Juju, because she's a stubborn dog who doesn't like to listen to anyone.

Why is Juju in the bathtub?

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:05:00 +0000

Recently, Juju has been hiding in the mornings. Where does she hide? In the bathtub.

Yun tells me that she goes there after I've left for work in the mornings and after he's gotten out of bed. Why does she go hide in the bathtub? Or is she trying to tell us that she needs a bath? Any ideas?

Any advice for housetraining?

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 02:01:00 +0000

A couple weeks ago, I received a comment on a very old post on housetraining.

Hi, we are also having trouble with our 8 week old Shiba. We live in an Apt in New York City, and can't take him out until he's vaccinated. What is happening is that when he has to go to the bathroom (and this is after he is holding is for a long time), he get's so frustrated/anxious that he runs around the apartment biting us! Finally after 10 minutes of this he'll finally just go on the floor.

Any tips on how to get him to use a pee pad, calmly?

We were actually never very successful about potty training Loki until after he finished his vaccinations. Once, he could to on the grass and trees and bushes, he was good to go. Before that, we were getting accidents at the rate of maybe one a week or one every two weeks. After he was done with his shots, he became very reliably potty trained. So, given our poor track record, I'm not sure if I am qualified to offer tips.

My advice would be to always praise and treat when your dog goes on the correct spot. Throw a potty party! Never scold your dog for going in the wrong spot.

Use crate training. The dog goes in the crate (with toys and treats and maybe a kong) whenever you aren't able to watch his every move. Or you can tether the dog to you, so that you'll know if and when he feels like eliminating.

I think the rule of thumb is that a dog can hold his pee for as many hours as he is old. So a 2 month old dog should be given the opportunity to eliminate every two hours. If I recall correctly, Loki was able to do more than that. I think I added on an additional hour to his age in months. When he was 2 months old, he could hold it for 3 hours. Etc. I think by 5 or 6 months old, he could hold it for 8 hours. And generally, even now, I don't ask them to hold it for more than 8-9 hours, even though they probably can.

At one point, I used to give out the advice of picking your dog up. That worked well for us. If I caught Loki peeing in the wrong spot, I immediately raced over and picked him up mid-pee. He would stop peeing and then he's finish after I placed him down at the correct spot. Unfortunately, I've heard that this advice doesn't work for everyone, and for some people, pee just got everywhere. So, you can try it, but it might not work for you.

Anyone else have tips to offer?

Happy Birthday Jujube!

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 12:58:00 +0000

Happy birthday, Juju. She turns 6 today. Gasp! I can't believe she's already six. The time sure flies.

Loki and Juju: Opposites

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 03:48:00 +0000

Despite the fact that Loki is our problem dog, he is really easy to train. It sounds strange to say, but he's actually a really good dog ... aside from the fact that he bites. But, no really, he is! I'm not entirely sure why, but he is so easy to train. He's willing to please. He's willing to listen. He just gets it faster. I even think that he really enjoys training. He loves it that we tell him what to do. He feels more secure when we do. And that is exactly what we want -- for him to feel secure and safe.

Juju, on the other hand, is incredibly difficult to train. We've been working on "down" with her all week long, and I still don't think she gets it.

So, we have one dog who is really easy to train and is very well-mannered, but has a bite history. And a second dog who is frustratingly hard to train, has no manners, but is a complete sweetheart. A baby and a vet can do anything and everything to this girl, and she won't complain. But don't try asking her to give you a "down" or to "come" or anything else for that matter. She is one stubborn dog. She wants to do what she wants to do and no one can convince her otherwise. Or she's stupid, but I don't think so. A stupid dog wouldn't do this or that. She just doesn't like anyone to be the boss of her.

Two dogs as opposite as opposite could be.

A Dog Trainer

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:02:00 +0000

We recently decided to hire a dog trainer to help us with Loki, and well, Juju could use some training too. We didn't agree about the dog behaviorist. I thought the dog behaviorist was fine, but Yun didn't care for her and moreover, felt that she was way too expensive for what she provided. It was hundreds of dollars for a consultation. From what I had gathered her services and fees were market price for a dog behaviorist.

Anyways, given that obedience training is always suggested as a way to help an aggressive dog, we thought a trainer might be a good alternative solution. This time, I let Yun do the research and pick one out. He found someone to do a set of private lessons for us at a reasonable price.

Today was our first session. She was a tall, mild-mannered lady. (We're short people, so everyone seems tall to us.) Actually, she sort of reminded me of our dog walker. She went over some basic commands, like come, sit, down, focus, and settle. We signed on for a set of seven sessions in total. It's not so much that we don't know how to train our dogs, but rather that having the structure will help ensure that we keep up with the training. Also, she'll help us do exercises outdoors where there are more distractions.

The source of Loki's problems is anxiety. He is a very anxious and insecure dog. I'm hoping that the obedience training will give him more confidence and trust in us. Surely, it won't hurt. And as an added bonus, Juju will get some training too. We never taught her anything other than her name, come (which isn't reliable), and sit.

Loki is one very lucky dog in that we have the resources to hire all these specialists for him.

Why do dogs rub against smelly scents?

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 02:17:00 +0000

Both of my dogs love to rub their whole bodies against random smelly scents. At least it seems random to me. Why do they do it? The explanation that I've always been given was that dogs are trying to hide their own scent. But is that the real answer?

Slate reports something different. I thought their explanation was pretty compelling, and certainly much more convincing than "hiding their own scent". What do you think?

Sigh... another fight

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 02:48:00 +0000

That there is Juju. She's hiding in the corner behind my glider. She is sporting a pink bandage on her front paw and the cone of shame.

The pups got into a fight this morning. It's been a while since their last fight. The two of them were outside in the backyard, and I think they were chasing a chipmunk or something like that. It must have been running around inside the gutters. Anyways, the two of them would make a horrible pack in the wild. They don't cooperate to get prey; they compete against each other.

Her paw was bleeding and we took her to the vet. It's a good thing that she is so well-mannered with people, so that she could be checked out and treated. Loki is also sporting some damage to his face. But his cuts weren't as severe as Juju's, so we left him alone. And well, if we really had to take him to the vet after a fight, we'd have to crate him to be transported and then he'd probably have to be sedated just for the vet to check him out.

To say I'm frustrated with Loki is an understatement. I was frustrated two years ago. I'm way past frustration now. I feel like I'm just surviving with him. Trying to make it through the day with him, one day at a time.

Baby Playing with Jujube

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 01:24:00 +0000

Jujube is a such a sweetheart. She puts up with Baby wonderfully. I caught the two of them playing under our dining room table. She tolerates his clumsiness so well. At least I have one dog that I don't have to worry about.

Different Parenting Styles

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 01:19:00 +0000

Do opposites attract? Well, the science may say no, but when it comes to doggie parenting styles, it seems like Yun and I are as opposite as can be. Perhaps we aren't that different, but in these past few days, it feels like we're miles apart.

We had our consultation with the pet behaviorist a few days ago. I desperately wish I could say that it all went wonderfully well, that we have a clear game plan ahead, and that we are optimistic about our future with Loki. But I can't. How well it all went depends on whom you ask. I thought it went very well, but Yun thought otherwise. After the behaviorist left, he said that he didn't like her, that he didn't like her after the first time, and that he had apparently forgotten that he didn't like her.

When we initially picked out a pet behaviorist, I did the research and I picked her out. Therefore, her philosophy was more in line with mine, and not at all in line with Yun's. I've always been much more inclined towards positive reinforcement, and through the years I've become even more so. Yun thinks that positive reinforcement certainly has its place in training, but you can't do everything with just positives and no negatives. Yun and I just don't see eye to eye on this. We never have, and I don't think we ever will. The way I see it is that Loki is an extremely sensitive and anxious dog, and anything negative is detrimental to his well-being. Another difference is that I tend to be in favor of more management (similar to the behaviorist) whereas Yun tends to dislike management. Our disagreements are more nuanced than just this, but anyways this gives you an idea about our differences.

We both love Loki and are trying to find some common ground. We're trying to pick and choose from the behaviorists suggestions to find something that is acceptable for both of us. I think if it were up to me, I would have implemented all of her suggestions. But Yun feels strongly against some of them. And so, we are left trying to piece together a solution that can work for both of us. We definitely are trying to work towards a common goal. I just wish it weren't so hard.

Jujube escaping again

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:48:00 +0000

Juju decided that my life was too boring. Everyday, she woke up next to me and saw that I went through the exact same routine. Hit the snooze, get out of bed, wash up, check on baby, feed her (and Loki too), and walk her (and Loki too). How boring!

To bring some excitement into my dull life and get my heart pumping, she decided to slip out of her collar (it's even a Martingale collar!!) this morning and run around the neighborhood. Boy did she RUN. We went behind all sorts of places that we've never gone before. Exploring new smells is tons of fun.

Unfortunately for her the fun stopped when she squatted to pee and I snatched her up.

Baby has forgotten

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:55:00 +0000

For all those who wondered or thought that Baby would be traumatized, he seems to have completely forgotten about the incident. Today, he played with both dogs just as before. He practically trampled Juju this morning. I told her to move, but she didn't want to. She was lying down and didn't want to get up. So she just tolerated him. Interestingly enough, Baby figured out how to maneuver around her, albeit clumsily. She didn't move an inch. Completely non-reactive. I wish Loki were that good.

Baby also seemed to have no fear approaching Loki. We practiced more food sharing between Baby and Loki. Tonight, it was string cheese! Yum, yum.

On Commitment

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 22:02:00 +0000

A few years ago, I had a great idea for a blog post. It was going to be a post on commitment. My idea was to write about the one thing that matters above all in getting a dog -- commitment. Whether you get a male or female, where you get the dog from, and what breed you choose is all irrelevant when compared to one's commitment level. Shibas are a terrible breed for first time dog owners. And Loki was not an easy first dog. But, we were committed to making it work. We were willing to do whatever it took to integrate Loki into our household. We were willing to do whatever it took to also integrate Jujube into our household. We weren't going to give up, just because the two of them didn't initially get along. And you know what? Our commitment paid off. The two of them are now fine.

But I never did write that blog post. I didn't because I was unsure about the future. What if I wrote such a post, sounding all high and mighty, but then had to sheepishly go back on my word some years later.

And now I'm glad that I never did write such a post. After many tears and great sadness, I admit that for the first time in Loki's life, I've actually considered not keeping him. I bottled up that thought for a few hours last night, as I felt helpless and powerless. I didn't want to say it out loud. If I voiced it, then it would be true. Unfortunately, it is true.

We're not there yet. We're still going to try and make this work. I'm going to call our pet behaviorist and also our vet. We may try some drugs. We may try some more training. We're going to try everything we can.

Diaper Cream Yum!

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 00:44:00 +0000

After dining out this afternoon, I returned home to this:

With two puncture holes, it looks like a vampire got to the diaper cream. Ah, but I know that they weren't vampire fangs. They were two vicious canine teeth. Two vicious canine teeth that belong to a cute furry animal named Jujube. We're not sure how much she ingested, if any. It's definitely not digestible, but she seems okay. No vomit or diarrhea. And apparently, I'm not the only one.

Note to self: Next time pick up the diaper cream from the floor each and every time Baby throws it. Wait, that might be tiring. Pick up the diaper cream from the floor the last time Baby throws it and before we leave the house.

Baby and Juju

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 22:37:00 +0000

At the age of 15 months, this morning was one of the first times that I’ve seen Baby play with one of our dogs. It was a beautiful sight, full of giggles and tail wags. In the rush of this morning, when we typically race against the clock, time stood still for a few moments. I was facing my closet as I was getting dressed when I heard the clink-clink of Juju’s collar. I turned around to see Baby holding out a stick of cardboard for Juju. It was one of those sticks of cardboard that dry cleaners put on metal hangers for hanging up pants. True to my uptight personality, my first thought was “No! Stop!,” but then I realized that there was no harm in a flimsy piece of cardboard. Baby clumsily poked Juju with it as she bounced all around him. At time she licked the cardboard, which elicited tons of laughter. And at other times she tried to take the cardboard with her mouth. This too was hilarious to my little one. As an adult, I don’t know what was so funny, but I smiled at the two of them, cheerfully playing with each other.

The Letter "E"

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 23:24:00 +0000

The Letter "E" brought to you by Loki

Neglected

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 01:00:00 +0000

This is Loki's "Why are you neglecting me in favor of that little squirmy crawling thing?" face.

Loki and tonight's thunderstorm

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sat, 28 May 2011 02:33:00 +0000

Tonight we had a little thunderstorm. It wasn't even that big or long. But Loki was a wreck. He desperately whined and pawed at the baby gate at the top of the stairs. So, I opened it and let him up. I thought maybe he wanted to be near me. He went straight into his crate. I thought it was because he felt safer in his crate. Then he proceeded to empty his entire bladder in his crate. Loki's always been so good about potty training. He's just progressively getting worse with thunderstorms.

Of all places...

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Sun, 22 May 2011 14:32:00 +0000

Dear Juju,
Of all places to pee this morning, did it have to be in our bed?

And of all places to poop this morning, did it have to be on Baby's play mat? (Well, it could've been Loki, but I know it was Juju who peed on the bed, so she's bearing the brunt of my frustration this morning.)

Baby's play mat, washed, and put out to dry.

Thunderstorms

noreply@blogger.com (Vi) — Thu, 19 May 2011 00:31:00 +0000

Loki has gotten progressively worse with thunderstorms. The first time wasn't too bad. The second time (which I erroneously thought was the first time again) also wasn't too bad. But it's been thunderstorming here for the past week or so. Loki is not happy about that. It's near impossible to get him outside to pee. He barks up a storm, waking Baby up. I thought that more frequent exposure would desensitize him, not stress him out more. Ugh! What a pain!