Possession

I don't know if it is the same for other Shiba parents out there, but Pepper doesn't ever want a toy or treat unless she thinks another dog wants it. I don't know why she can be so possessive, and yet give her toys (or whatever will fit through the fence) away to the neighboring dogs. I have a feeling that she doesn't intentionally want to give her toys away, but that she tries to play tug-of-war with the other dogs through the fence and loses. She was just lonely. But now that we have another dog at the house, all her toys can only be touched first by her. If she gets bored with it after that, it's free for the other dog. She's even possessive over me. I try not to let her be, but I can't help but feel that it's cute when she actually has to try to fight for my attention... as long as she's not growling too much.

Marking Territory

Why do dogs like to mark everything? They mess up our carpets, couches, our plants, even areas in the yard. Well, it's because they are being territorial... and I've learned that Shiba Inus, despite their small size, are very territorial. Even the females.

Every morning when I walk Pepper, she marks nearly every ten feet. But the odd thing is that she'll pick up her leg to mark stuff. I always thought this was weird for a female, but I soon realized that she does it in an attempt to reach the top of the bush, pole, trash bag, ant hill, or whatever she felt she wanted her scent on. Of course, after she marks, she loves to kick up every piece of grass around the area... and she'll kick in circles, too!

It's just a funny-looking little habit that she has... she can't help it. And she LOVES it! Also, being territorial is actually what makes Shibas good watch dogs. So, every habit that she has is for a reason.

NOT a Basenji!

You know, every time I go out to the dog park, or take Pepper somewhere, someone asks if she's a basenji. What? Shibas don't really look anything like a basenji... they look like foxes. Basenjis have much shorter hair, like a chihuahua; Shibas have longer, coarser hair. Also, their ears are a little bigger (compared to their heads), like a German Shepherd, whereas Shiba ears seem a little more proportionate to me. But I realize that this simple mistake is because a lot of people know nothing about Shibas, much less that their breed even exists. I don't think I've seen any other Shiba in the area - not at the parks, or driving around. I've only seen one other at a Pet Fest, whose owner was Asian. And I think that we need to get the word out to people about them: Shiba inus are intelligent, active, loyal, and beautiful dogs. And they are the perfect size! They hardly bark at all, yet are super cautious, and they can adapt extremely well to any environment. They are not basejis. So I take Pepper out even more now and encourage people to look up the breed and see if Shibas are a good fit for them.

For anyone interested, you can check out the shiba inu forum.

Also, here is a picture of a basenji (top), courtesy of www.justdogbreeds.com and a picture of Pepper, Shiba/Husky mix (bottom):

Basenji

Pepper

Walks Are Important...

I was walking Pepper this morning and it dawned on me how important walks are for dogs. Usually, we just take her to a nearby dog park and let her have her fun. But we haven't really had much time this past week, and it really shows. When she's at home and we don't have time to take her anywhere, it is very obvious to me that she is unhappy. She mopes around the house whining and staring at me until she falls asleep. And she had been sleeping a LOT. So I thought "Well, why not get up a little earlier and walk her for half an hour before work?" And so began our routine. The funny thing is that she knew it was going to be a routine from day one... and now expects it.

At first, I didn't know why she liked walking so much, but I figured that since she was an escape artist anyway, she might as well learn about her surroundings so she doesn't get lost. However, when I took her out, she led me wherever she wanted to go... I had little say in the matter. So, walks are important because it allows you to leash-train your dog. It allows you to control where you want your dog to go. We walked for almost an hour around our neighborhood, with Pepper's nose at every mailbox and tall patch of grass. I thought it was okay because I found out from Cesar Milan (the "Dog Whisperer") that letting your dog concentrate on smelling stuff helps use up its energy. And I needed her to use up as much energy as she could before I went to work. So I let her sniff whatever she liked - as long as she stays within the boundaries of her leash, of course.

While walking, I noticed that Pepper liked to mark things: stop signs, mailboxes, grass, etc. And she does the grass-kicking thing afterwards, too, but she kicks in a circle and usually misses the spot she marked. IT'S HILARIOUS! And the only way to describe the look on her face while she's kicking is pure joy! She smiles and her tongue falls to the side and she just looks so happy! It's the main reason why I like taking her for walks.

And when we get back, she eats, which is great because we have a hard time getting her to eat her food. Afterwards, even before I can get ready for work, she starts to fall asleep. And as I pull out of the driveway, I can see her laying down in the yard, sleeping. Aren't they all so cute when they're sleeping?


All in all, walking your dog for at least an hour a day (or running for half an hour) can affect several things: it allows for better behavior, more use of energy outside (so that it isn't used for tearing up stuff inside), and a better appetite, among other things. I saw results from day one!

Can't Catch Me!

If you adopt a puppy, make sure you have LOTS of energy because they love to run around... and that includes Pepper. She loves it when we chase her... and I think it's because she thinks we can't catch her, even when she was 12 weeks old.

Of course, it's nearly impossible to catch her now that she's full grown; even other dogs have trouble keeping up.

Pepper Stays Home...

Lately, I've been working a lot... and Pepper's just been stuck at home. But I've noticed that she's adapted very well to all of my circumstances. When I'm here, she's happy and doing her own thing... when I'm away at work, she finds things to do outside. I'm not too surprised seeing as how she's little miss independent and all, but I still miss my baby. And I feel so guilty because she's so full of energy, but doesn't get enough playtime to unleash it. Instead, she'll just sleep all day, staring out of the window, lost in the outside world.



So when I can, I love spending time with her, and sometimes I'll even take her out for rides. She REALLY enjoys those! And if she's been really good, or if it's been too long, I'll treat her with a 2-hour trip to the dog park where she has a few acres to run, play with other dogs, and even swim. (She actually learned to swim at this dog park.)

The Hunter

Shiba inus were originally bred to hunt small game, birds, etc. It is in their blood. With that being said, Pepper killed her first squirrel today.

As per our daily ritual, Pepper woke me (never my boyfriend) up at 9:30AM to let her out. Zoey, the Collie-Aussie mix was already outside. I usually leave them out there for about an hour so that they get tired from playing, then they come inside to sleep. It was the morning ritual.

However, a half hour later, I started awake from the constant barking of Zoey, the herding dog. It usually stops after a few minutes, but this time there was almost a panicky twinge to her bark. I've heard this bark before: DANGER! (The last time Zoey barked like this, there was a 3 1/2-foot snake in our yard!... not too uncommon in South Carolina.)

I rushed downstairs only to find Pepper and Zoey fighting over the carcass of a poor very-much-dead little squirrel. I WAS HORRIFIED! I yelled at them and they dropped it immediately. The body was limp and wet from the freshly rained-on grass. I almost cried as I quickly disposed of it. Because there was no blood, I am guessing that they played with it to death, as they'd done with several bugs before.

Honestly, I don't think there was really anything I could do at that moment. Pepper has just gotten so fast! The squirrels used to be able to outrun her, but I guess not anymore. I don't think she'll do it anymore because  she now knows that it's bad. Even so, I've just kept her inside all day, just in case she might get tempted. So far, she's killed (I don't know for certain that she was the one which killed; however, she is the faster of the two --the Collie mix likes to lay down a lot -- so it is most likely that she was the one that caught, then tried to play with the animals.) a rat and a squirrel, and caught the 3 1/2 foot snake. I don't know what to do. My sweet little Pepper is a born hunter and a killer, but I can't help loving her.