When did you finally understand that "Bond"
I used to think my Shiba puppy Katsu was very needy and way too mindful of me for a Shiba. She has never been very confident, and I feel like she didn't know what to do with her uneasiness.
She's matured a lot at 8 months and now I feel like I have the real, actual "bond" with Katsu. I gotta say it's nothing like any other bond I've had with a dog before. She's only been with me 5 months, but I guess we got real close real fast because I work from home and she's around me constantly.
When we have her on the 100ft lead in the nearby field, she now will excitedly come to check in every 5 minutes or so and sticks around for a few minutes to sit by me before sniffing off again. I love using that time to excitedly talk to her about the birds and bugs she saw, ask if the grass tastes good, and thank her for visiting... Even if she can't understand it
) I don't talk talk to her very often, so it really did increase how often she would check in on me.
It's also very clear to me that she trusts me to make decisions for things she's unsure or insecure about. Even for things she knows a solution for, she will still wait for me to make the "better" one (which usually involves my presence)
She really does NOT like being dismissed or redirected, so I started thanking her for barking when she notices a "stranger" in the house. She picked up on that the very first time I tried it. Now she visibly eases up when I get her attention with a "Thank you, I see them!" and within a minute she's rolling over for belly rubs from them.
I think this is probably the most impressive for me since something so simple was able to reassure her.
She doesn't seem so "dependent" anymore. She still prefers to be around me, but it feels like her choice to be near me out of wanting to be close to me, rather than anxiety about what to do when I'm not around or the "need" for me to be there.
It is so different than having dog who depends on you and loves you only because of that dependence. I really like that it's more of a careful consideration like "Well what do you think I should do?" instead of a "dad help what do I do about this?!"
I've never had a dog that truly analyzes all of my reactions before and it really makes me wonder how people can think Shibas are unaware of their owners... Katsu is always and has always been watching and analyzing what I do, from the moment I picked her up. Every interaction we have shows that she can read me like an open book now.
It's incredible to me that even all the many ways I make mistakes with her and all the bad days, she still decides that I will do the best for her and she makes the choice to trust me despite my flaws. I really like feeling like we're eachothers companions, Rather than her just being mine. The loyalty of a nihon ken cannot be beat, I feel special!
I feel like I rambled on a lot with this, but I really would like to hear you guy's experience too. When did you and your dogs bond finally "click" with you?
She's matured a lot at 8 months and now I feel like I have the real, actual "bond" with Katsu. I gotta say it's nothing like any other bond I've had with a dog before. She's only been with me 5 months, but I guess we got real close real fast because I work from home and she's around me constantly.
When we have her on the 100ft lead in the nearby field, she now will excitedly come to check in every 5 minutes or so and sticks around for a few minutes to sit by me before sniffing off again. I love using that time to excitedly talk to her about the birds and bugs she saw, ask if the grass tastes good, and thank her for visiting... Even if she can't understand it
) I don't talk talk to her very often, so it really did increase how often she would check in on me. It's also very clear to me that she trusts me to make decisions for things she's unsure or insecure about. Even for things she knows a solution for, she will still wait for me to make the "better" one (which usually involves my presence)
She really does NOT like being dismissed or redirected, so I started thanking her for barking when she notices a "stranger" in the house. She picked up on that the very first time I tried it. Now she visibly eases up when I get her attention with a "Thank you, I see them!" and within a minute she's rolling over for belly rubs from them.
I think this is probably the most impressive for me since something so simple was able to reassure her.
She doesn't seem so "dependent" anymore. She still prefers to be around me, but it feels like her choice to be near me out of wanting to be close to me, rather than anxiety about what to do when I'm not around or the "need" for me to be there.
It is so different than having dog who depends on you and loves you only because of that dependence. I really like that it's more of a careful consideration like "Well what do you think I should do?" instead of a "dad help what do I do about this?!"
I've never had a dog that truly analyzes all of my reactions before and it really makes me wonder how people can think Shibas are unaware of their owners... Katsu is always and has always been watching and analyzing what I do, from the moment I picked her up. Every interaction we have shows that she can read me like an open book now.
It's incredible to me that even all the many ways I make mistakes with her and all the bad days, she still decides that I will do the best for her and she makes the choice to trust me despite my flaws. I really like feeling like we're eachothers companions, Rather than her just being mine. The loyalty of a nihon ken cannot be beat, I feel special!
I feel like I rambled on a lot with this, but I really would like to hear you guy's experience too. When did you and your dogs bond finally "click" with you?