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Hi to all, I'm a new member in the forum. I have a one year old shiba inu named Yûki. We live in Madrid, Spain. There aren't shibas around here so it's been really hard to get advise and find information about them. My boyfriend is Japanese and it was him who introduced me to this amazing breed. But neither of us had had a dog before. I think we're doing quite well with Yûki though he has stated to growl to other dogs in the past few weeks. I've read that they tend to be aggressive towards other dogs but when I scolded him and told him not to do it he growled to me too and that worries me the most. He gets so nervous when a male dog is around that he even growls to bitches. I now try to avoid other dogs when we go for a walk. Now we never go the dog park and it's pity he can not play with other dogs anymore. What do you think I should do?
Thank you.
Thank you.
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Hi Yuki, welcome to the forum!
Is there any reason his behavior has turned aggressive towards other dogs in the past few weeks? Did something bad or traumatizing happen to him with another dog? Is he neutered?
Im actually in the same boat as you. I've learned that my Shiba does not react to physical corrections or yelling very well. If I don't get his attention and he is still in a excited/agressive state of mind and I try to touch him or move him, he will growl at me and nip at my hands. Now, I just clap my hands together very loud to get his attention and then I redirect his attention to something else or I remove him from the scene. I think the best thing to do is try to contact a behaviorist in your area that would be able to come out to your home and help you deal with Yuki's behavior. Its hard to find a good one though, I've been hunting around for one for the past 2 months and I finally think I might have found one.
I hope that helps, and please post pics of your boy!
Hello Yuki, how lovely it must be to live in Spain. One of the places that I want to visit before I get too old.
I'm a new Shiba owner, I've had King since the first week in January, so not very long and he is just a little over a year old. I've learned a lot on this forum and have gotten some really great advice. I've also found that clapping will get his attention and also a little poke with my finger on his upper thigh near his tail. I don't think he likes that very much so it tends to get his attention very quickly. My Shiba was brought up in a rescue home with other Shiba's of both sexes, so he did have some socialization skills by the time I got him, I just have to keep working on them though. I want him to not be dog/animal/people aggressive at all. So far so good.
There are some very knowledgable people on here that will be able to give you awesome advice about what has worked for them. Good luck and do post pictures, i'ld love to see them too.
Romi, I had a question for you. I have a harness on my dog, but do you suggest another collar for when I take him out walking. I believe he is an escape artist, so I will keep the harness on him, but I would like to use something else for the actual training part of the walking and heeling? thanks
Hi Yuki! Welcome to the forum!
Did you get your Shiba from Kensha? How old is he?
Kevin, Well there are a lot of training collars/harnesses out there, but here are a few of the more popular ones that i've heard of and what most of the other forum members use as well.
Premier Pet, a lot of forum members recommended this to me when I was shopping for a training collar while walking. (Ninja likes to always be in front of me when walking) This harness is good if you're trying to train your dog to walk next to you and not in front of you. They have 2 types of collars, the Easy Walk Harness and the Gentle Leader Head Collar. Here are some pics, so you can get an idea. Since you are already using a harness, the Easy Walk Harness might be a good match for you.
Easy Walk Harness
Gentle Leader Head Collar
I also came across a collar that Cesar Millan and his wife designed called the "Illusion Collar". Basically it is like a choke collar, but nylon and if you know how to use a choke collar correctly, it should always be at the top of the neck. A lot of times the collar slides down the neck when it's loose. So they invented this collar which keeps the choke collar at the top of the neck at all times.
Illusion Collar
And last but not least, there is the Martingale Collar. This collar is like a choke chain/standard collar combo. They make them with Nylon & Chain or just all No-Slip Nylon. This collar would be good for training and has the same effect as a choke chain, but not too much since it only allows a certain amount of slip. I was debating between this and the Easy Walk harness, but I think im leaning towards this one more, I like that it is more like a standard collar, but can also be used for training.
Martingale Collar with Nylon & Chain
Martingale Collar with No-Slip Nylon
All of these collars and harnesses should be available at your local petco or petsmart. Im sure you can find a better deal online. I hope this helps!
Romi-I don't think anything unusual happened in the past few weeks but he had some bad experiences with a a couple of dogs when he was four o five months, one dog almost bite him or it kind of did twice and then some months later another one jumped at him but this time he wasn't that scared anymore, he showed him his teeth too. But then everything was normal and now, i guess he's a grown up, he doesn't want any dog to come close. He is not neutered, we'd like to have his children one day.
I'll try the clapping too.
Yes Brada, I got it from kensha, he has just turned one year old.
Hi Yuki! Bienvenida!!
Welcome to the pack! I just got an Akita from Shun'you Kensha too, his name is Kuma and he's just turned 2months old. I live in Portugal, so we're not that far!
Thank you, I think he is really good looking but what can I say? I'm his father....
One year old is the right time for a Shiba to start developing any "aggression" issues, our Shibas both became more skeptical of other dogs around 1 year old. I would recommend just keeping up with his socialization. Maybe get him into some obedience classes, that helps to create a "working" environment where your pup is rewarded for being "good" while other dogs are around. That would help a lot, even if he has already been through the classes.
Our Akita's father is from Kensha too!
i get chain loop martingales for my shibas. they work marvelously. I
have them in cotton prints for funsies and nylon for longer walks.
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