Anakin doesn't like puppies...
Despite our many attempts to socialize Anakin, he picks and chooses the animals that he's willing to make friends with. Sadly, he doesn't seem to like puppies at all.
Still, that didn't stop us from trying to introduce him (and his playmates) to the litter of ten puppies that recently joined our extended family. Nikita accepted the puppies and even seemed to enjoy them. Anakin, however, was less enthusiastic. We allowed him to sniff the puppies. He did quite a bit of sniffing. ...And then he nipped a puppy's ear. And the puppy's mother promptly chased him out of the room. He began barking his head off. We put him outside to cool down. Then, we brought him in and tried to re-introduce him to the puppies. No luck. We repeated this several times without any sign of victory.
I'm at my wit's end. I'm desperate for another animal, but Anakin doesn't seem to accept any young dog that we add to the family. Fully-grown animals receive two or three days of hostility and small spats, but then he's fine. Young animals receive an unwelcome introduction....over and over again.... no matter how many times we introduce the animal or how long we allow him to spend with the pup.
Just a side note: Anakin is the same way with babies. He loves small children and older children... but he doesn't like babies. Basically, he doesn't like any young person/animal that cannot care for itself. Toddlers that can walk around and play are fine, but he doesn't like little babies.
My husband suggests that we simply get a puppy and force him to like/accept it. Basically, just throw them together and let them learn to live with it. I hesitate because I don't want a young, sweet, innocent puppy hurt. Anakin is spoiled, admittedly. And jealous. I'm regretting pampering him so much when he was young. Then again, six years ago I didn't think that I'd be wanting a puppy and needing to socialize him. And he had/has so many health problems that I thought he needed that much special attention and care... I know that I was in the wrong. And that it will be hard to change his behavior now.
Puppies and babies... How to get a Shiba to accept them??
Comments
Our male Shiba, Maui, has a similar life story - only his came from being attacked by a dog and us not handling the fears that came from that correctly.
Since Maui's issues have progressed we have introduced him to several puppies, most of which have gone not so great. Maui absolutely hated Ahi when he met her, but he has grown to be best buddies with her.
What Jen and I have figured out, in Maui's case, he is just not ok with un-socialized dogs - any age. Puppies are very un-socialized, that is why dogs need to correct them so much. Puppies learn how to interact with adults via those corrections. So Maui just doesn't like puppies because they are not very well socialized.
Anyway, the way we integrate new dogs into our pack now is to just exclude Maui from contact with the pup till we feel the new pup feels comfortable in his/her new home. Once that is done we will let Maui come out into the area where the new pup is but we always keep them separated - we use a baby gate or a pen. We trade off time, Maui stays in the pen while the puppy is out, then switch and let the puppy out. We do this for a month or so, till we feel the anxiety of adding the new pup has died down for Maui. Then we will let them hang out together but only under extreme supervision. We will never leave a puppy alone with any of our dogs till we know for sure they all will get along. For example, Hilo our 7 month old Akita, has never been left out with our dogs unsupervised. We will usually restrict our dogs (crate them when we are not around) till they are 2 years old.
Another thing we do is walk Maui with the new pup together, obviously they are separated while we do this (Jen has one and I have the other). I think this helps them to adjust to each other while they are ‘working'. It gets the focus off each other and onto the same goal - walking as a pack.
As for the baby thing - I have no idea what that is about. Obviously I would keep him away from babies.
Shibamom--
From my expierence and by doing lots of research on shiba inus, that is the nature of their breed. You are not alone when it comes down to your shiba not liking children or puppies. When I first did research on Shibas, every website said "not good with children" so its not a really big suprise. Shibas can have their feelings hurt easy and they remember if a child is picking them up wrong or pulling their ears and such, they are very smart and hold grudges. Shibas are very dominate especially when they feel threatened that their "spot" may be jepordized by another dog or a baby. Shibas are just like little kids, you need to baby proof the house at all times and just as a 1st born child getting jealous of a a new baby in the household. I first got my shiba (who is a female) and immediately took her to puppy class to begin the socialization process because I had read that was EXTREMELY important for this breed, then after a few months my husband and I decided we wanted another shiba. I contacted a few breeders and they all had mixed emotions about us getting another shiba. They said that if I wanted another Shiba to get the opposite sex and to make sure they wernt extremly far apart in age because this would happen. They also said even when you have a male and female shiba they still tend to want to be the "alpha" and she suggested I get a different breed. I decided to look up research on Japanese Kai Kens since I loved the nature of the Japanese breeds and I found out that the opposite sex is much better with a shiba because as we all know shibas are smart and reguardless they know if another dog is a shiba or not. One of the breeders I contacted told me that Kai Kens have the personality of a lab or golden retrever and arent so up tight like shibas are. My shiba will beat the crap out of my Kai and he just lets her. She likes to tell the world that she is queen of the household and she doesnt care who listens. He is a few months younger than her but I am extremely glad I stuck with my choice.
With all that being said here are my personal suggestions:
1. If you like the Shiba Inu and want another japanese breed, I highly suggest not getting another Shiba unless its at least 2 and socialized and perferably a female since you have a male. You could also get a different japanese breed such as the Kai or Shikoku. I dont know much about the Shikokus personality but having own a Kai I am more than happy to help with any questions if you want more information on them. Here is the breeder I got my Kai from and a Kai website.
www.classykennel.com
http://www.kai-ken.org/
2. You could start taking him to obetiance classes if you arent already just to get him socialized with differnt breeds, sizes and ages especially since he was rescued he might have had a bad expierence but I have herd that you can get shibas socialized even at 6 years old. When I took Keira (my shiba) to puppy class, there was this dog that was about 2 years old that was a mixed breed that was rescued, and had no socialization at all so he started at the puppy level. That might help to get him to be more social with puppies and other dogs. After the 8 week puppy class that mix was a totally differnt dog, you wouldnt have thought he was the same one. The trainers deal with that stuff every day and that is what they are there for so I believe it is never too late.
3. You could do what brad says and get a puppy anyways and start the socialization process slow. Any older dog, no matter if its a shiba or not, is going to feel threatened with another dog coming into the house and taking over. As long as you monitor them and cage them when your gone they should be fine and adventually do well together.
Good luck and let us know what you decide to do.
Nemo does not like puppies either, as Brad pointed out, puppies are not socialized in the doggy ways, and Nemo does not appreciate that. His corrections are often far to strong, I will never get a puppy as long as I own him. I just deal with the fact that I will have to adopt an older dog, or purchase an older dog from a breeder. It will just be safer for the new dog. It will still take careful supervision though, as Nemo has some dog aggression issues these days.
If the problem is only puppies, think about an older dog.
As for babies, they are unpredictable, that is what Anakin probably does not like. They also flail around in a manner that is much different from any human that is walking upright and coordinated. Nemo got used to the only baby he knows by spending time with him near the height chair. Babies drop a lot of food, and wave their food covered hands over the sides of their chair. Nemo was more than happy to play vacuum and to lick hands, and trays, as the baby was eating. Sounds like an odd way to bond, but it associated weird little beings with special treats.
Thanks for the advice.
I knew that Shibas weren't usually friendly with other dogs, but since Anakin is fine with older dogs (and his many playmates) I guessed that he would be fine with puppies, too, and was wrong. I wish that Anakin would enjoy the company of puppies as much as he enjoys the company of older dogs.
I'm in love with Japanese breeds. My husband wants a female Shiba, while I want a Shikoku. Apparently, I'm going to win that argument. The only thing is... I want a male. Obviously, that might not be a good idea, since Anakin will become more territorial. He would probably learn to like a female better.
Many people advise me to wait until Anakin is no longer with us, and then purchase the dogs that my husband and I want. Of course, I hate even thinking of that day, since Anakin is the love of my life. I might just have to enjoy him - and only him - for the time being...
As far as babies go.... My husband and I are beginning to think about planning a family within the next two or three years, and I suppose we'll just have to keep the dog away from any babies until the babies grow past the "annoying Anakin" stage... Or spend a lot of time socializing him. I'll look into some classes in my area.
After reading this, I am convinced I have the weirdest shiba inu ever. He LOVES puppies and babies. He even tries to comfort crying babies by licking their feet, and shares his toys with puppies.
I am going to go count my blessings right now. It sounds like the gang is giving really sound advice.
We've given up on trying to introduce Anakin to the puppies. He seemed quite pleased that he got one of them to squeak - by nipping - and we had to scold him. I finally decided to take him to our apartment across town where he could be alone with me while the other dogs spent time with the puppies.
Looks as though Ani wins this battle. He's an only child.... for now...
Don't feel to bad about Ani, making a pup squeak is not that out of line. Ani is just trying to make sure the puppy knows he is boss.