Why do you have the dogs you own?
You all seem so knowledgeable about dogs and breeding and purpose:
What kind of dogs have you had in the past?
What kind of dogs are in your future?
Why did you pick/come to find the dog type (s) you have now?
(i'm not trying to grill you, I'm starting to realize even if I do rescue and training classes and teach classes, there is still so much I don't know about dog breeds and origin and how people should really think about these things prior to picking a breed, so I just find it all fascinating)
-For me, I've owned a JRT/Pit mix, a beagle/hound mix and the two shibas. I have fostered 2 Boston Terriers, a norwich/cairn mix terrier, a border collie, a fox terrier, an american bulldog and a very, very missed basset hound named Linus.
-I hope to own a Basenji, Kai or Japanese Akita in the next 2-3 yrs or so.
-We researched "Cat Like Dog" and found the shiba, did some fairly extensive research, decided to go to a shiba meet, loved it, and found Tsuki in rescue. Then after 6 months of searching, when Linus was set to be adopted, we adopted Kitsune.
What kind of dogs have you had in the past?
What kind of dogs are in your future?
Why did you pick/come to find the dog type (s) you have now?
(i'm not trying to grill you, I'm starting to realize even if I do rescue and training classes and teach classes, there is still so much I don't know about dog breeds and origin and how people should really think about these things prior to picking a breed, so I just find it all fascinating)
-For me, I've owned a JRT/Pit mix, a beagle/hound mix and the two shibas. I have fostered 2 Boston Terriers, a norwich/cairn mix terrier, a border collie, a fox terrier, an american bulldog and a very, very missed basset hound named Linus.
-I hope to own a Basenji, Kai or Japanese Akita in the next 2-3 yrs or so.
-We researched "Cat Like Dog" and found the shiba, did some fairly extensive research, decided to go to a shiba meet, loved it, and found Tsuki in rescue. Then after 6 months of searching, when Linus was set to be adopted, we adopted Kitsune.
Comments
Over the course of my life, I had lots of different dogs, most were gotten because somebody had a litter and needed to get rid of it. Up until the age of 4, my family lived in Atlanta (Little Five) - for those not familar with Atlanta's layout - you have the city of Atlanta (pretty small) and then the Metro Area of Atlanta (fairly large). After that, we moeved out east to the "country" (at least it was then).
Whne I was born, my family had a boxer named Prince. He was a beauty. One day, he got out of the fence by climbing over it and was killed by a car. My parents then got dauschounds (sp?) - during this time we moved. We had a barn which is where the dogs bedded down. During a freak winterstorm, they got out and died. Next was Smoky, a german shepherd that we got as a puppy when someone left her in our driveway in a box. She was a beautiful dog that we had for several years - her pups went on to be some of the first k9 dogs in our county. Sadly, Smoky was shot during hunting season and died while my brother and I were carrying her out of the woods. Next came Lady and Tramp - a pair of collies given to my family after the death of Smoky. Tramp had a severe case of canine epilepsy that was discovered about 9 months into owning him. He was put down by our vet and buried at the back of the property - Lady died on his grave the next day.
Next came Rascal (an English Bulldog) and Ferrari (German Shepherd/Beagle mix) - Rascal was run over by a car after breaking his outside chain and Ferrari was killed by a pack of wild dogs that attacked the goats and hogs we had on the property. Then, there was Lady Bird, an australian shepherd. She was stolen two weeks after we got her.
Next was Gorky, my Siberian Husky. He was with me for almost 14 years. He died in Spetember 2003. I knew I would eventually get another dog, but I had such a strong bond with my husky - it took a while. I began researching breeds alot more - there was so much more information on dogs available from when I had bought Gorky in 1989. I wanted a dog that would have the personality traits and features of a husky, but in a size that would do well in my house. Since there are kids in and out of the house, I wanted a dog that a 10 year old would be able to walk (wouldn't have happened with Gorky). Last but not least, was a dog that would do well being in a crate or enclosed area while I am at work. One day in 2005, I was at Piedmont Park in Atlanta and I met someone with a shiba - all of my research on other dogs went out the window. I fell in love with the dog and got his information. I went home and started doing research about the breed. I had found the qualities I wanted in the size package I wanted. This was about the time that my mom got sick, so I held off on trying to find a breeder - then my dad got sick and I held off more. After he died in April 2007, I knew I needed to get a dog. I dug out my research and refreshed my memory.
I then started calling breeders and rescues. I brought Jazz home on Sept 29, 2007.
When I turned 18, I decided I needed to get a dog after working at the vet. So I looked through a dog breed book and came across the Shiba, and decided it was quite possibly the cutest thing on earth, looked like a living stuffed animal and it's personality and energy seemed to suit me. Everyone at my work said "Are you crazy? Those dogs are aggressive and really hard to deal with...blah blah." Didn't phase me and I got Taj and love every minute of her craziness.
I became obsessed with the Japanese dog breeds and that's how I came across the Kai. I got Kohji because I wanted a larger dog with the primitive Japanese nature.
News came to me as a fluke, his breeder/owner couldn't handle his vocal personality and didn't have enough time for him, so instead of keeping him, she gave him to me. I had really really wanted a working dog to do sports with and just adored Dutchies after meeting News's father at training classes. His father is one of the most intense, intelligent, strong dogs I have ever seen, so when I heard of the chance to get a male puppy from him, I jumped at the chance.
I would loooovvveee to own another female Dutchie in the future or perhaps a female Malinois for working and sporting purposes. I would also love to own a Staffordshire Bull Terrier/Border Collie mix that my trainer breeds specifically for flyball for sporting too. I would love to own a Shikoku but I think it might be too much of a challenge to intregrate one with Kohji's personality.
From then I really didn't like dogs that much, just didn't consider myself a dog person, tho i never really tried. I was more of a cat person at that time.
Then, one day, about 8 years ago, I just realized I wanted a dog - totally out of the blue... it actually surprised me.
So I started doing research, I spent two years learning about breeds and visiting breeders / owners / shows... I found the Shikoku-Ken first and was instantly in love, but they were not being bred at that time and I was not sure I could provide for them the way they require (yard, etc.) due to the fact we lived in a small condo at the time. Never the less I added myself to Katja's wait list with the understanding that when the time came we (Katja, Jen and I) would decide if a Shikoku-Ken was right for us.
I wanted a dog that was aloof, small, and smart - I also wanted a "big dog in a little dog body".
Two years later I had it narrowed down to:
Shiba Inu
French Bulldog <- They crack me up!
Schipperke
Finish Spitz
We decided on the Shiba Inu and got Maui and was hooked. Four months later we added Kaia - that was a long drawn to process and we learned a lot - they really put us through the wringer before they allowed us to adopt Kaia - it was great.
So, then we had our two little Shibas for 3 years or so, we were really busy keeping up with all Maui's issues... Then I got an email from Katja saying it was time and wanted to know if we were still interested.
That changed everything!
We did some serious soul searching and decided we just could not pass up the opportunity - 6 months later we got Ahi. From that point on our lives have changed drastically. Ahi kinda put us through boot camp... She growled at us from the moment we got her home... she was just really hectic.
From that point on we knew our lives would be full of dogs, Jen left her career as an SEO and went to work at a dog daycare where she could go to work and bring Ahi. When Ahi was kicked out of day care Jen stayed at home with her, walking her and making sure she was happy. [while working at the dog daycare Jen fell in love with Akita Inu - she was the only one allowed to bath them because she did so well with them]
We had always planned to move back out west from Atlanta but had always figured it would be San Fran or something... but as we got more involved with rescues and behaviorist we knew we needed to move to an area where we could have open space to have our dogs and not bother others.
Six months ago we moved from ATL to Taos, NM (population 9k)... we haven't looked back yet.
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I'm not gonna list the reasons for getting the rest of our dogs since this post is long enough.
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As for future dogs, we have a male Akita coming from France later this year - Our new male and Lani is the start of our Akita Inu breeding program (Hilo was supposed to be but he is not breed-able due to health).
Also, Jen and I have already started purchasing land (12 acres) close the CO/NM border between the border and the suburbs of Colorado Springs, we plan to build an off-grid home/farm on that land in 2 - 4 years. Because of this, and the area we live now, we will be adding some type of protection dog to our pack to help protect us and our pups from Coyote & Mountain Lion threats.
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I've always been fascinated by animals. Growing up, we were never really allowed pets in my house. My family liked to travel and pets, especially dogs, didn't fit that lifestyle. We had goldfish on occasion that we'd get from the dentist for "being so brave" and at one point my sister managed to convince my parents to get her two guinea pigs "marshmallow and brownie." I ended up spending more time with them than my sister did, although she would get pissed off because they were kept in her room. They died after two years (I think). Marshmallow first because her teeth got too long and she stopped eating. She died in my dad's hands while he was feeding her with a medicine dropper. I cried for hours. Brownie died a few days later, I think his heart was broken. Both are buried in my parent's back yard.
After that, we didn't have anymore pets. But, my love for dogs stayed with me. Every chance I got I would meet neighborhood dogs or even try to hang out at friends houses who had dogs. I knew I would own a dog some day. Then college hit. Going to a small school with required on campus housing that doesn't allow pets, I knew a dog would be out of the question. Then I got to grad school and immediately the fire started burning again. I decided to hold of on getting a dog until I settled in to life down here but I started my research.
Whenever it was time to take a break or daydream, I would read about how to care for a dog or read about different breeds online. I had originally settled on a toy fox terrier because I thought they would fit my lifestyle but I kept on doing research. One day I found the Akita and I knew immediately that I had found the breed for me. The more I read, the more I knew I wanted an Akita, but never having owned a dog before, I was a bit uncomfortable starting off with such a large and potentially aggressive breed. So, I decided to get an Akita in a little package, the Shiba! :-) I am a sucker for a challenge and owning a Shiba seemed like it would be just the challenge for me.
Shortly after making that decision, I dog sat for my friend's Greater Swiss Mountain dog. I love Thea to death, she's one of the sweetest dogs I've ever met. But the constant peeing in the house and soreness I experienced from walking her three times a day made me think twice about owning a dog. I put the idea on hold for about a year and then ended up dog sitting for my friend's JR. Brodie was comparatively low maintenance and as soon as he went home, I thought to myself, I can do this. I started doing breed research again with renewed vigor. I knew, again, that some day I would own a dog.
Then, last summer, shortly after breaking up with my girlfriend and shortly before my birthday, I made the realization that if I kept telling myself "some day I'll own a dog" that day would never come. So I sent a few emails to rescues and breeders on a Sunday, when to visit one or two during the week, met Lucy on Saturday and brought her home on Sunday. And that's my story.
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Brad: Congrats on the land purchase!!!!! I bet that's just an amazing area. The "off grid" think is somewhat amusing to me since my friends and I sometimes use that term as a joke. Are you back on the male Akita now? I thought you were thinking of another female for a little while.
I jokingly said I was gonna cancel the male and get a KBD instead - but you guys did a good job convincing me otherwise. lol.
Thanx!
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My impatientness grew, and I wanted a dog in my life as soon as I could get it. Someone backed out on a deposit on a puppy, I noticed they changed the website and called the second his picture came up on the screen. We went up an hour later and met Toby for the 2nd time ( the first time, he wasn't ours, but we got to see him when he was a week old )! The moment I held him and he licked my face, I knew he was the right one. So, we waited a good few weeks for him to grow and then he came home on Valentine's Day ( a few weeks before my 18th birthday ). And, thats all, I guess.
In the future, I would like to get more Shiba Inu and possibly Shikoku Ken. I'd like to do a ton more research and gain more knowledge, but i'd like to become a breeder of both breeds. I also plan in the future to get into companion events, possibly agility.
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The first dog in my life I do not remember. It was a sort of Australian Shepard-looking dog named Bingo (Seen through pictures). It was my Dad's dog from when he was a teenager. By the time I was born I believe he was quite old.
Then the real first dog was a poodle (yikes); she lived with us until I was about 8 years old; she was a nipper and did not like us kids near Mom. Then came a shepard/collie mix when I was about 10-years-old. By the time I was 14 years old I ran away from home. It was a terrible time for me. I was given custody to a woman who ran an animal rehab center. She had 9 housecats (I really will not let cats near me since then), and a silver and black german shepard. The shepard was about 14 and aged beyond her years when I met her so she was not much fun. I did go and visit the shepard collie mix at my parents house often because that was part of my "conditions" based on an agreement of my parents and the State of Texas. A condition of visitation which I spent entirely with the dog. I would go home and walk in, say hi, and then leash the dog (her name was Sandy) and we would go out for 4-5 hours and I would return in time to leave. Sandy did not live a long life. I think my parents killed dogs with human food. She lived to be 12. They later had 3 or 4 dogs after that (all poodles), all short-lived.
As for the animal rehab center. That was interesting to say the least. Hawks, owls, bobcats, monkeys, you name it and I most likely helped care for it. Most were injured due to shotguns or vehicles, but definitely man-related. By the time I was 17 and graduating from High School I could care less about the human race and really felt that one day I would live in the mountains alone. (almost there) I left the rehab center upon graduation and moved from city to city on my own.
My own first dog was long after I began bringing birds into my life. I have always had an affinity for birds. His name was Woodie. His mother was a White Spitz. His father was a Pomeranian. He looked like a Pom on steriods. LOL. He lived 18 years and passed away one year and four months ago. I swore I would not get another dog.
But time has a way of healing the soul and I flirted with the idea of another dog for some time. I found myself scanning the Petfinder.com often. I would read profile after profile until just this past November I ran into an ad for this White Shiba Inu. She was 4-years-old. The only problem, even though I was almost determined to go get her, was that they could not say enough about how much she is a "bolter". No amount of security could keep her in. They even recommended a kennel environment. As much as her smiling pictures begged me to go see her I just could not jump because I knew I would be looking at a problem child and I do not have the most secure yard. So I immediately started reading about Shibas and looking at breeder sites. It took me less than a month to find a breeder that I felt comfortable with (especially about the socializing) and Rudi was picked out.
I have not regretted a moment with Rudi. He is far and beyond everything I could hope for in a dog. I think he is very much like my previous dog except he won't listen LOL. But hey, who needs to listen to me anyways. LOL I love him with all my heart and nothing will separate us. I would even live on the streets before I give him up.
I have learned to tolerate people. I have even formed some relationships; but I do have that "fight or flight" instinct myself and I guess I was a Shiba myself in a previous life.
Ron
On that note, I feel the need to highlight a phrase from Brad's post which I think some older forum members will find themselves all twisted up over..."I was more of a cat person at that time." That's right folks, you read it here...Brad Anderson has admitted to being a cat person! :-P
I've always wanted to own a dog, sice I was a child. When I was 11 years old my parents help me to find it. I wanted an alaskan malamute, but it was too big to live in an apartement. One day in a magazine specialized in animals I've found the advertising of a shiba breeder. I've always wanted a "wolf-like" dog so I fell in love with such a wolf-bear little dog. Now I'm the proud owner of a 13years old shiba named Miky (short for Mikado). I don't think I'll have another dog after him, maybe not too soon. I've the childish wish to keep him with me foerever...
I begged my mother for another dog. I ended up with Bacon, my chihuahua/dachshund mix. My neighbor's friend's daughter's dogs had puppies before she had a chance to speuter them. He's turning 7 this July and lives with my brothers. I couldn't take him even if I wanted to because my brothers would be crushed. He's more their dog than mine.
Between Gen and Bacon I had Lady and Sammy. They were more my father's dogs than mine but I considered them mine anyway. They would play hide and seek with me in my father's backyard and comfort me at night. It was the first time I was away from my grandma and I was unnerved. Lady got hit by a car one day. We were playing hide and seek and she decided to hide somewhere on the other side of the fence. I blamed myself for the longest time. Sammy incidentally died by getting hit by a car also but this time it was not an accident. A man was trying to hurt my father by killing his dog. Ended up with my father getting shot in the knee and the man going to jail.
I have and had cats, rats, hamsters and rabbits in my life but it just isn't complete without a dog or 2 or 5 in it. Why do I love nihon kens? Because I am Japanese and I have never considered myself American for a day in my life. Genetically I am 50% but personally I see myself as complete. I treasure my origin and my culture. I am proud of everything Japanese, I take my country with the good and bad. The characteristics of the nihon kens remind me of myself. I can handle them because I never underestimate them. I never lie to myself about understanding them completely. They will always surprise me and I will never be an expert no matter how long they've been in my life.
I don't know if anything I just said makes any sense. But oh wells.
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I've always loved dogs. I never feared dogs for a second in my life, not even as a small kid. Always wanted one, but living in a small house with my parents and being an asthmatic kid with some sever episode made it impossible. So I would go nuts when I saw dogs on the street and ran to them and hug them and stuff like that. My mom had to pull me back sometimes because I didn't even care if the dog was huge and possibly not friendly. I was lucky with all my approaches and that kept my relations with the dog very healthy. I got books when I grew up, I read about every breed I could find, I found breeds no one else knew and I started getting a bit of a reputation for being the dog encyclopedia among my friends. I even perfected my bark, lol (I can make a whole village of dogs answer me in the middle of the night. I know, Dave, I still have to post a video. I'm a bit embarassed to do it, hehehe).
But it was all a bit too theoretical and the only dogs in my life were the ones that weren't mine. At the place I would spend my Summer breaks I had the chance to live with 2 great dogs, a mutt that still is probably the best dog I've ever known called Malhadinho (because he had large patches of black over white) and a GSD/mutt mix called Piloto (that's your basic portuguese dog name- means pilot) that was a puppy until he died at 13. This guy LOVED me and he only saw me for like 2 months a year, if that much. When I'd get there and he heard me, he would bark and howl until I got to him to let the kissing fest begin. Those two were my dogs, even if they weren't. They would follow me everywhere during those summer breaks, first one then the other. I was the one who rolled around with them and played until we were both tired, I was the one that would take them exploring the country side. They were my companions. They taught me a lot and I still remember them fondly and will always. I knew many dogs before and after that, but those two are special to me. I remember Billy, the small mutt that had an under developed front leg, was mean as h#ll to everyone, but would just lay down in front of me so I could give him belly rubs. He did the most amazing balancing act trying to pee on just two legs.
Anyway, the dog crush continued, which made me want to be a vet since age 6 (I'm not), and I knew I would have at least one of my own. And since I'm a big guy and I love large breeds, I knew it would have to be a large dog. After getting all the knowledge about loads of breeds, and thinking about my lifestyle and the time i spend home and all of that, I chose the Akita. That choice was made 5 years ago, when I went to see a breeder here. When I finally made up my mind on getting a dog, since I moved to a bigger place, I found out that that breeder quit his breeding, so I got left with 2 other "breeders". After visiting one of them, I knew I wouldn't want my dog to come form him, so I broaden the search, and that led me to Kuma, in Spain.
I don't know if will ever be able to have more than one dog at the same time, but I'm loving the experience of having one. I think I always knew I would.
The Tipi is still in the plans... we have several years before we go anywhere.
I would have already got my Tipi if it wasn't for the ridiculous winds around here lately.
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^Let me know if I'm getting too nosy
When I was 12 we moved to another city and a family friend had poodle/mix puppies. We got one and we named her Maruko. A couple years later she went missing. I posted signs everywhere looking for her, but no luck. I went searching behind our backyard (we lived on a hill, so past our backyard fence it went downhill). I found her collar in shreds..I knew a coyote had gotten her. I ran back crying to my dad and showed him her collar, he reassured me and said that he saw one of our neighbors with her and that she was living with them now. I didn't believe him, but it helped me get over her. Til this day he still stands up to his word about the neighbor stealing her from us and that she wasn't eaten by a coyote.
After that, we moved again (about 1 year later) same city, different house. I wanted a dog again, I missed the presence of having a dog. So I made a bet with my mom...She said if I made Varsity B-ball my freshman year in high school, we would go to the pound and rescue a dog. Well, I made varsity and that late afternoon we went to the local pound and we got Hanako, our Jindo. She was 2 years old when we rescued her. She was MY first dog that was all mine. A few months later, my sister came home with a baby chihuahua we named Kilo. Hanako and Kilo got along great. But a year or so later we came home and he was gone. (When we left the house, we would put the dogs in the backyard).
A couple months after that, my sisters boyfriend bought my sister a pomeranian for her birthday. He brought him home and was going to surprise her when she came home. He decided that he wanted to introduce Hanako to the puppy. This time, when he opened the door, she ran in and bit the puppy and ran out. My sister came home 5 minutes later and they rushed him to the vet. The vet said that he had been bitten through the heart and there was nothing they could do. They put him to sleep right away so he wouldn't have to feel anymore pain. We were shocked to hear that Hanako had killed another dog. The only reason we could think was that she didn't know my sisters boyfriend very well and was protecting her territory. My sister was crushed.
About 6 months later I got a Pomeranian from a breeder (total impluse buy) and named her Twinkie. They got along very well and it seemed as though Hanako was back to her old self. About a year later, my sisters boyfriend decided to get her another dog, since he saw how well Hanako and Twinkie were doing together. He rescued a maltese/mix we named Buddy. We kept them separated for a while because he was so small and needed extra attention. When he was about 6 months old we started letting them all play together and they did great. So at this point we have 3 dogs.
A few years later, I moved out and all the dogs stayed at my parents house because my mom said I cannot have any pets in her new house that I was renting. I got a phone call a couple months later and my sister said that Hanako had bit buddy. He was ok and recovered from it. My mom didn't feel like it was safe for buddy to stay with us if we kept Hanako, so she made my sister give him away. My sister hated Hanako at this point. My sister got pregnant and told my mom to get rid of Hanako because she would not trust her around her baby. It was really tough for my mom and I. But it was true, it was too much of a risk. So my mom found her a new home by the time my sister was 6 months pregnant. So now they only had Twinkie. Early last year twinkie was attacked by a coyote in the backyard and passed. She was 5 years old.
I got Portia for John for Christmas. He kept saying how much he loved boxers and always wanted one of his own. So I contacted a breeder and fell in love with Portia (who was named "Polly" by the breeder) She was the runt of the litter and the last to go. My mom was PISSED! But once she met Portia, she melted and let us get away with it! I was working from 10am to anywhere between 6pm-8pm and John was working 9am-5pm. We felt really bad for leaving Portia alone for so long all by herself. After quite a bit of researching, we decided that we wanted to get her a friend to play with. I always loved Shiba Inu's. They're look, they're personality, everything. I started talking about them to John more and more and last christmas I got Ninja from John as a christmas present.
In the future - we will definately keep Boxers in the family, we just love em! John and I really like the Kai (probably will be our next dog), I really like the Shikoku (John is 50/50 on them) and maybe an Akita - if we have the space.
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My first dogs were Darby and Heidi, German Shepards. I LOVED them, they LOVED me. When my parent and I left Texas they went to live with my Grandfather. I will forever have a soft spot for GSD's because of them.
I had a mix (probably poodle and something else) growing up named Glory (short for Glorfindel). She was a sweetheart but never really MY dog.
I shared a Rottie named Noel with my cousin. She ruled and one day I would love to have another Rottie.
I regularly fostered pits and other pound puppies from the age of 18 until I met my husband. My last 2 being Lucky a teeny little pit we rescued who had been used as a bait dog. He had his tail nearly torn off as well as one of his ears, all his front teeth were kicked out, and he wasn't 20lbs when got him. $5k and a lot of food later he was all patched up, but lost his mind anytime someone spoke spanish around him. And Bailey an Alaskan Malamute/Pitbull mix. She was 110lbs of love. But all of New York crossed the street when she and I walked by. One of my roommates was moving to a farm in Monticello NY and that certainly was the best life for her.
Jason didn't want pets when we first got together (ha that lasted). After my mom died, I told him I couldn't live without a dog anymore. I NEEDED the unconditional love only a mom or my dog could give me. My girlfriend runs a rescue in NYC. I called her and basically told her if she ran across a dog she thought was a fit, to call me. 3 days later she called me and told me she had a horribly neglected purebred 6 month old shiba inu. I told her she was crazy. I had 4 cats and I knew how high their prey drive was. She told me he was different. (LIES!!!) I took him sight unseen and POOF we had Moto. A few months later I joined this forum and learned about Shikoku. Jason who initially hated Moto (no joke HATED him). Had gotten over his hatred and had fallen in love enough with him that it was HIS idea to get a Shikoku. We sent Katja our contract and deposit check as part of my Birthday celebration. 2 weeks later, my girlfriend told me that there was this wonderful pit bull at Providence Animal Control that was going to get put down next week and this dog deserved a good life. I told her to email me her info and I would see if I could find someone to at least foster her. I got her picture and said "shit" I forwarded the email to Jason hoping he would be my voice of reason and that he would talk me out of it. 5 minutes later he calls me and says lets go get her tomorrow. "WHAT?!?! Who are you and what did you do with my husband" Well he wasn't drunk, and he hadn't been possesed because the next day we went and adopted Piglet. We kicked around cancelling our Shikoku but after the BUnny incident (see earlier threads too heartbreaking to even go there) Jay needed his own dog. So April came and so did Himiko. And here we are.