We have a group in Atlanta that gets together every month - if it wasn't for them, I don't think I would ever see another shiba out where I live. Several in that meetup are on this forum as well - it's a great way to meet/make friends. You might want to search and see if there are any others close to you - with a city as large as San Fran - I would think it might have several.
I haven't read through all the posts...but I wonder if a larger dog is better with cats. I know, sounds strange. But in 4 years with Akitas and Kitties, never has there been a day when a dog was able to catch a cat. Hell, even come near a running cat. Even when my youngest cat does that cartoon running in place start, she'll be in the bedroom under the bed before the dogs are in the dining room. Of course, I have open space, so it's more difficult to corner a cat. But big hefty dogs aren't nearly as fast as cats. Smaller dogs are quick!
More typically, my cats actually trot away from the dogs. But, this is a household of dogs who do respect the cats in my home - though that doesn't mean they don't enjoy the occasional chase. If Jewel still had claws, the dogs would probably be afraid of her. She'll just walk up to them and smack them in the face, especially when they poke at her with their noses so she'll run and they can chase her. Brittney doesn't know how to use her claws, but she gets along so well with the dogs. They can all be together without incident.
Here's a pic with Brittney and Mika....
I also have a picture with my boy in one dog bed and Brittney in the other, but I can't find it at the moment. No, I'm not suggesting you get an Akita. I'm saying that a dog with a high prey drive and a cat can work. It takes discipline and alot of work - especially with older cats.
PS. As I write this, I have a cat on my chest, a cat cuddled around my head and a dog at my feet...who's about to get kicked off!!!!
I've always heard all dogs and cats are supposed to be enemies, but growing up together, they actually become best friends. I think that will be true of the Shiba growing up in a cat house. Both will learn to respect the boundary of the other, but the cats' boundaries will most likely be the most prevailing and respected.
One of my reasons for choosing the Shiba was also for its cleanliness and lack of dog dander -- hypoallergenic so to speak. My Shiba just doesn't seem to get dirty but isn't afraid of the mud or rain or puddles. Any dirt just seems to slide right off and there's not much of a dog smell. A woman I met at PetStuff last weekend said "he looks like he's just come from the groomer". Ha, it had been well over 2 months since his last bath.
I do believe there are certain breed characteristics but I also believe each dog is an individual with its own temperment and we humans help to develop the qualities they learn and exhibit in life. Along those lines, most Shibas do require a large amount of early socialization, continuing into adulthood, to make them an all around adjusted dog. Socialization helps them get along with other dogs, other animals, children and adult strangers. I don't believe the PetStuff lady would have shown as much interest in learning about the breed had my Shiba been non-responsinve or timid with her. Jake grew up with other dogs, around cats, and around children, and I've tried to continue that socialization at doggie parks, meetups, hiking and neighborhood encounters. In my opinion, this is the most important tool to remember when owning and raising a Shiba.
Oh yea, having patience with them is also a requirement :-)
I'm not sure if anyone else responded to this, I didn't read everything throughly, but the jaws on pitbulls do not "lock".
Again, not sure if this has been covered, but if you are worried about dogs with crazy amounts of energy, then you might want to think about adopting an older dog, Shiba or otherwise. I can't thing of many breeds of dogs that when they are young have higher energy than Shibas. They require a lot of walks, and playing.
On a sidenote, I adopted my Shiba at about 18 months, he is fine with the cats. He does chase, but he has never even come close to hurting one of them.
they are clean. my dogs HATE to walk in the rain, will veer out of the way of a puddle and walk the path at the dog park to avoid dirt. Its hilarious. And it has been well over 2 or 3 months since they've had a bath out of necessity.
But thats not to say they don't enjoy a good dirt romp every now and then, my female is more inclined to get a little dirty and my male thinks anything dirty is beneath him.
yeah thats more of what I read about shibas "avaoiding puddles". That sounds very cute!
About the bigger dog thing.... I was initially more inclined to get a big dog because I've had them in the past (and jeremy didnt care what size since he didnt know what to expect) but that was until we dog sat. Friends of ours went to Hawaii for 2 weeks and we watched their huskey/german shepard mix and 2 MORE cats! It was certainly an animal frenzy. There was LOTS of nails sliding across the (new) hardwood floors. Kinda like sujewel said about the "running in place". We noticed that an indoor big dog will certainly cause more damage through out the home knocking things over and such. We are not oppossed to it, but I think it may be better to start out with something a bit smaller. We will most definitely get anouther dog in the future, and maybe then we can choose a larger breed. I would love to get a golden retriever eventually.... thats my childhood dog : ))
I can give a little info on the big dog vs. little dog thing...
I was in a similar boat as you, wanted a big dog but was not sure if I had the space. We got Maui, our first Shiba, and he was CRAZY as a puppy... he did a fair amount of damage to our condo [looking back tho we could have prevented a lot of this if we knew then what we know now].
Now we have a house full of dogs, all sizes, and I can tell you for sure [from our experience] that the pups that are the calmest indoors are our Kai-Ken and our Akita Inu.
Even still, at age 5 & 6, our Shibas can get crazy in the house. Our Shikas [our Shikoku-Ken girls] too, they get extra crazy.
Also, Akita Inu and Kai-Ken are kinda dominant and show a "hardheadedness" that can be frustrating, but when it comes to actually challenging our leadership our Shiba did this a lot more than our other breeds. Granted a Shiba is a little less intimidating than an Akita, but they can still pack a punch. lol.
Our Akita just sleep when they are inside - Hilo will actually correct Ahi when she starts to get to crazy in the house... its like they understand that you don't play rough in the house. lol. Our Akita are also the cleanest of all our dogs... except at the water bowl, the are sloppy drinkers.
So if you wanted a big dog, and are up for taking on a Shiba Inu attitude, I would consider an Akita or Kai.
I'm sure that didn't help - probably made it a harder decision... I just wanted to give my $0.02. )
thats a good thought. nice to know they are calmer in the home. do they have a big prey drive? should I have to worry more about an akita with cats than a shiba? I think someone talked about this earlier.....
thats a good point. our shibas are INSANE in the home, even after hours of playing at the dog park, running multiple 'shiba 500's'. I think its kinda fun having a dog with that much energy though. And as long as you have the toys and amusements (filled kongs, tennis balls..), they aren't the most destructive dogs ever, although some parts of my carpet have the bald markings of 'shiba pup was here', as does one part of my drywall. But in her defense, she was teething at that point.
Were Kona (kai) & Hilo (akita) always the epitome of calm in your house though, Brad, even through puppydom and teething??
ok so after re-reading the akita discription on one of the dog info sites, I remember why I passed them up. Listed below are the attributes on the page that scared me away. please tell me if you have encountered any of these:
They are particularly aggressive toward other dogs and pets.
They do not do well if left alone for extended periods of time. For this reason, they are not well suited for a two career family. They require an inordinate amount of attention. Akitas are not recommended for the novice dog owner, or owners who are placid and submissive.
they will become bored and destructive if left alone for extended periods of time either inside or outside.
Yes, Kona and Hilo/Lani are/were pretty mellow as pups inside the house.
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As for the comments above, the first one [about dog aggression] can apply to any of the Japanese spitz breeds [except for a well bred Kai-Ken].
As for the staying at home thing, that's true - especially as pups - Akita are social and need to be with their owners, same applies to the Kai-Ken. They are also a independent working breed. The Japanese type Akita tend to have less of the working drive as the America, also keep in mind they are great guard dogs, so that can be their job as the mature you just need to give them the run of the whole house [once they are allowed to be left out, like 1+ years]... but Rui can probably speak more clearly to this point, he currently has an Akita pup and has a day job.
Having said that, Maui [our Shiba boy] chewed a large hole in our wall and chewed our cabinets when we left him at home for more than 8 hours during the day. We prevented this by going home and walking him at lunch [dunno if that's an option for you].
Can either of you take a pup to work? Akita are mellow and will just chill w/ you at work. I'm not trying to convince you either way tho, I just wanted to point out [and reiterate what Brandon said] that Akita are way less active that Shiba in a house.
unfortunately no, we work for a bank office building so pets are off limits. What a thought tho! I would LOVE that! : )
well, its always worth looking into. luckily we are planners so we have givin ourselves time to do all the planning and research we need. I mean, this is only the breed decision portion. just wait until we get into all of the breeder research! ok, sometimes we're weird. lol. Im just extremely indecisive and he is a data analyst . (thats why all the research)
a lot of people on here have one shiba who's entire world revolves around the other who work a long day and still have a good dog at the end of the day! I'm sure you'll figure out whats best for you!
WOW...I have no idea how I missed the locking jaw comment. As a pit bull owner and a shiba owner, and a shikoku too. Brandon is right, the locking jaw is false. Pit bulls until this past century were the american family pet. Think Petey from the little rascals. Helen Keller had 2 and she was blind and deaf and trusted hers competely.
My shiba instigates almost all of my dog conflict issues out side of the house. He is the territorial little bugger who loves to start stuff knowing he has a 50lb pit bull behind him.
I would say perhaps adopting an adult dog would be best since you guys are out of the house so much. Miko (our shikoku) is 13 weeks old and she needs to be taken out every four or five hours. She can hold it all night but as soon as my husband comes downstairs she gets so excited she pees right there. Adult dogs typically are already house broken. Piglet, my pit, has never had an accident. We adopted Moto at 6 months and he had his share of accidents early on.
Sounds like you guys are planners. I am sure you will make a well thought out decision. But you need to do MUCH more research on pit bulls because it sounds like you have been very misinformed.
I'm not necessarily suggesting this...just throwing it out there for comment...but have you have you considered getting two dogs? If you're gone for so long during the day having two dogs would enable them to keep each other company. You may avoid some of the potential destructive behaviors that occur due to boredom or looniness.
ok, i feel I need to correct myself over a previous comment. The locking jaw comment was stated without full knowledge. after the 1st response I went and read up on it since I had only been going off of others comments I had heard in the past. My general understanding of it now is they have immense pressure of pounds per inch and are able to sustain this pressure for a greater amount of time. much more than most other dogs. But I can tell you I do know quite a bit about pit bulls. I volunteer at the local shelter as an animal socialization volunteer, which basically means I get to spend all of my time playing with, walking, and showing shelter dogs. 90% of the dogs in shelters around this area are pits. Also, ALL of our friends own multiple pits which we interact with on a regular basis. For a long time we were considering a pit. I know they get a bad rep, and they are very sweet dogs. But I have also seen first hand the mannerisms of a bully breed. They play very rough and do tend to have more aggression toward other dogs, including their own breed. even if raised with them since puppy hood. From the scuffles I have seen, even for a small everyday kinda dog scuffle, they cause more damage. Through the shelter I have been in communication with many pit fosters which have explained to me what it takes to own a bully breed. They are a great dog, just not the one for us. If a offended any pit owners, I apologize. The locking jaw comment was said out of ignorance, but I am knowledgeable on the breed.
No worries... I think Pit people are a little defensive due to the bad wrap their pups get. I don't think you offended anyone and I don't think you should take offense either. I think pit owners just need to set the record straight for their breed whenever they have a chance - I don't blame them... I do the same for Akita [and pits, and roties, and dobes, and lots of others - even sharks]. )
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Anyway, have you considered Miko? Seems like a good fit, maybe. [I dunno about the location being a good fit tho]
Great suggestion Brad! He might fit your home well, he is mature and seems to need a home with no children and would do well with a single person or couple. Might be something to consider. Although he is located in Los Angeles, CA. Im sure that you would be able to work something out regarding transport, Heck - I wouldn't mind helping with transportation to give this guy a great new home.
Although it seems that the Akita ship has sailed in this discussion, let me just say that one of the reasons I got an Akita is because the info I had is that they handled loneliness way better than most other breeds. So far I can see it being true, and my Akita is only 4 months old. He hasn't anything at home, apart from one door stop that had a removable rubber cover.He was actually the one that found out that was a removable cover,I had never even thought of it. Apart from that, he only destroyed a few newspapers that we leave for him as a toilet spot, or the pee pads that do the same function. But then again the longest he's been on his own has been 7/8 hours, cause when Nat can't go home during the day, I ask my dad to go check on him and walk him. I consider that a 3/4 month old puppy that can handle loneliness during 7/8 hours without going crazy and chewing everything is a puppy that handles loneliness well. (all of this during teething) Let's see how it goes in the future.
Ah, I forgot! He also chewed the vinyl that lines the floor of his pen, at the corners.
In my building there are more dogs that stay alone and almost all of them do worse than Kuma, and they're all adults.
"My general understanding of it now is they have immense pressure of pounds per inch and are able to sustain this pressure for a greater amount of time. much more than most other dogs" Just to let you know, there is no documented study on this either. It is also a myth. The few bite studies have shown that Rots, akitas and shepherds bite as hard if not harder.
Jen-Locking jaw isn't a concern because it DOESN'T exist. The tooth fairy is more real.
Jen I'm not quite sure I understand. You say locking jaw is a real concern like picking a dog that will attack you is common enough to be concerned about. Especially if your definition of "locking jaw" is a bite that they wont let go of. If I was at the shelter adopting an adult dog I would ask if it's aggressive to anything but I wont think to ask "does he/she lock it's jaws when they attack you?"
No, Rina, i'm not saying when considering adopting a dog, because I think most shelters do not consider dangerous or history of serious biting dogs adoptable - I'm saying considering for arguments sake that some adult dogs that have the potential to be harmful with their jaws -
Here: I do not think that any breed's jaw mechanism is any different than the next breed - I believe that is a myth. Nor do I believe any breed of dog has the potential to have a stronger jaw than the next, nor is the PSI of a certain breed higher than the next. To gauge that, all 500+ breeds would have to be considered and I don't know of a study that extensive. I do believe some dogs (to be considered in a discussion) are in existence from either an abusive situation, poor or negative training or just abnormal that have the potential to bite hard with great, unyielding and continuous pressure and not let go for anything - and if that were on my person, I'd call that locking. In fact locally there was a german shephard and dalmation in the news that attacked a woman and put her in the ICU, needing surgery after the dogs locked on her until tranquilized and caused great injury.
Ok, so my obsessive logic side is compelling me to point a few things out.
First, to be able to make the claim that certain breeds have a greater ability to bite with more force would not require all 500+ breeds to be tested. It would only require two. The tests would need to be conducted with a sufficiently large sample so the claims would be statistically significant (e.g. 30 specimens of each breed).
Second, veterinarians widely acknowledge that there is no anatomical affordance for a "locking jaw" mechanism in *any* breed of dog; however, it is the case that some breeds can exert more bite pressure than others. That is a function of jaw size and shape as well as the amount of muscle. Undoubtedly, a GSD can exert more bite pressure than a Chihuahua.
And now that this thread has been sufficiently hijacked, we return to our regularly scheduled programming.
To add further cmts on dogs and cats. I have owned 5 Siberians and now 1 Shikoku and they all LEARNED to live quite well with cats. But they did have quite a high prey drive and had to be taught not to chase or hurt the cats. (see attached photo)
Also, in response to Brad's cmts about energy inside the house. I have found that my Shikoku is actually very quiet in the house and basically sleeps or plays quietly. But he is an only dog (outside of our cats) and therefore, in Brad's case, the Shikoku might be more energetic in his house because they have other dogs to play with...
So in your situation Andrea, they may be quieter in the house because there are not any other dogs to play with.
You might also want to check out the Shikoku as they don't get super large (about 40 lb) and are generally thought to be less independent than Shibas and a bit easier to train. I know that mine is super obedient and really seems to enjoy learning obedience. Shibas in general (like Siberians) are not usually as motivated because they are more independent by nature.
Comments
I haven't read through all the posts...but I wonder if a larger dog is better with cats. I know, sounds strange. But in 4 years with Akitas and Kitties, never has there been a day when a dog was able to catch a cat. Hell, even come near a running cat. Even when my youngest cat does that cartoon running in place start, she'll be in the bedroom under the bed before the dogs are in the dining room. Of course, I have open space, so it's more difficult to corner a cat. But big hefty dogs aren't nearly as fast as cats. Smaller dogs are quick!
More typically, my cats actually trot away from the dogs. But, this is a household of dogs who do respect the cats in my home - though that doesn't mean they don't enjoy the occasional chase. If Jewel still had claws, the dogs would probably be afraid of her. She'll just walk up to them and smack them in the face, especially when they poke at her with their noses so she'll run and they can chase her. Brittney doesn't know how to use her claws, but she gets along so well with the dogs. They can all be together without incident.
Here's a pic with Brittney and Mika....
I also have a picture with my boy in one dog bed and Brittney in the other, but I can't find it at the moment. No, I'm not suggesting you get an Akita. I'm saying that a dog with a high prey drive and a cat can work. It takes discipline and alot of work - especially with older cats.
PS. As I write this, I have a cat on my chest, a cat cuddled around my head and a dog at my feet...who's about to get kicked off!!!!
One of my reasons for choosing the Shiba was also for its cleanliness and lack of dog dander -- hypoallergenic so to speak. My Shiba just doesn't seem to get dirty but isn't afraid of the mud or rain or puddles. Any dirt just seems to slide right off and there's not much of a dog smell. A woman I met at PetStuff last weekend said "he looks like he's just come from the groomer". Ha, it had been well over 2 months since his last bath.
I do believe there are certain breed characteristics but I also believe each dog is an individual with its own temperment and we humans help to develop the qualities they learn and exhibit in life. Along those lines, most Shibas do require a large amount of early socialization, continuing into adulthood, to make them an all around adjusted dog. Socialization helps them get along with other dogs, other animals, children and adult strangers. I don't believe the PetStuff lady would have shown as much interest in learning about the breed had my Shiba been non-responsinve or timid with her. Jake grew up with other dogs, around cats, and around children, and I've tried to continue that socialization at doggie parks, meetups, hiking and neighborhood encounters. In my opinion, this is the most important tool to remember when owning and raising a Shiba.
Oh yea, having patience with them is also a requirement :-)
Again, not sure if this has been covered, but if you are worried about dogs with crazy amounts of energy, then you might want to think about adopting an older dog, Shiba or otherwise. I can't thing of many breeds of dogs that when they are young have higher energy than Shibas. They require a lot of walks, and playing.
On a sidenote, I adopted my Shiba at about 18 months, he is fine with the cats. He does chase, but he has never even come close to hurting one of them.
Good luck on your search for the right dog.
But thats not to say they don't enjoy a good dirt romp every now and then, my female is more inclined to get a little dirty and my male thinks anything dirty is beneath him.
About the bigger dog thing.... I was initially more inclined to get a big dog because I've had them in the past (and jeremy didnt care what size since he didnt know what to expect) but that was until we dog sat. Friends of ours went to Hawaii for 2 weeks and we watched their huskey/german shepard mix and 2 MORE cats! It was certainly an animal frenzy. There was LOTS of nails sliding across the (new) hardwood floors. Kinda like sujewel said about the "running in place". We noticed that an indoor big dog will certainly cause more damage through out the home knocking things over and such. We are not oppossed to it, but I think it may be better to start out with something a bit smaller. We will most definitely get anouther dog in the future, and maybe then we can choose a larger breed. I would love to get a golden retriever eventually.... thats my childhood dog : ))
I was in a similar boat as you, wanted a big dog but was not sure if I had the space. We got Maui, our first Shiba, and he was CRAZY as a puppy... he did a fair amount of damage to our condo [looking back tho we could have prevented a lot of this if we knew then what we know now].
Now we have a house full of dogs, all sizes, and I can tell you for sure [from our experience] that the pups that are the calmest indoors are our Kai-Ken and our Akita Inu.
Even still, at age 5 & 6, our Shibas can get crazy in the house. Our Shikas [our Shikoku-Ken girls] too, they get extra crazy.
Also, Akita Inu and Kai-Ken are kinda dominant and show a "hardheadedness" that can be frustrating, but when it comes to actually challenging our leadership our Shiba did this a lot more than our other breeds. Granted a Shiba is a little less intimidating than an Akita, but they can still pack a punch. lol.
Our Akita just sleep when they are inside - Hilo will actually correct Ahi when she starts to get to crazy in the house... its like they understand that you don't play rough in the house. lol. Our Akita are also the cleanest of all our dogs... except at the water bowl, the are sloppy drinkers.
So if you wanted a big dog, and are up for taking on a Shiba Inu attitude, I would consider an Akita or Kai.
I'm sure that didn't help - probably made it a harder decision... I just wanted to give my $0.02.
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Were Kona (kai) & Hilo (akita) always the epitome of calm in your house though, Brad, even through puppydom and teething??
They are particularly aggressive toward other dogs and pets.
They do not do well if left alone for extended periods of time. For this reason, they are not well suited for a two career family. They require an inordinate amount of attention. Akitas are not recommended for the novice dog owner, or owners who are placid and submissive.
they will become bored and destructive if left alone for extended periods of time either inside or outside.
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As for the comments above, the first one [about dog aggression] can apply to any of the Japanese spitz breeds [except for a well bred Kai-Ken].
As for the staying at home thing, that's true - especially as pups - Akita are social and need to be with their owners, same applies to the Kai-Ken. They are also a independent working breed. The Japanese type Akita tend to have less of the working drive as the America, also keep in mind they are great guard dogs, so that can be their job as the mature you just need to give them the run of the whole house [once they are allowed to be left out, like 1+ years]... but Rui can probably speak more clearly to this point, he currently has an Akita pup and has a day job.
Having said that, Maui [our Shiba boy] chewed a large hole in our wall and chewed our cabinets when we left him at home for more than 8 hours during the day. We prevented this by going home and walking him at lunch [dunno if that's an option for you].
Can either of you take a pup to work? Akita are mellow and will just chill w/ you at work. I'm not trying to convince you either way tho, I just wanted to point out [and reiterate what Brandon said] that Akita are way less active that Shiba in a house.
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well, its always worth looking into. luckily we are planners so we have givin ourselves time to do all the planning and research we need. I mean, this is only the breed decision portion. just wait until we get into all of the breeder research! ok, sometimes we're weird. lol. Im just extremely indecisive and he is a data analyst . (thats why all the research)
I'm sure you'll figure out whats best for you!
My shiba instigates almost all of my dog conflict issues out side of the house. He is the territorial little bugger who loves to start stuff knowing he has a 50lb pit bull behind him.
I would say perhaps adopting an adult dog would be best since you guys are out of the house so much. Miko (our shikoku) is 13 weeks old and she needs to be taken out every four or five hours. She can hold it all night but as soon as my husband comes downstairs she gets so excited she pees right there. Adult dogs typically are already house broken. Piglet, my pit, has never had an accident. We adopted Moto at 6 months and he had his share of accidents early on.
Sounds like you guys are planners. I am sure you will make a well thought out decision. But you need to do MUCH more research on pit bulls because it sounds like you have been very misinformed.
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Anyway, have you considered Miko? Seems like a good fit, maybe. [I dunno about the location being a good fit tho]
Miko's Post
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Ah, I forgot! He also chewed the vinyl that lines the floor of his pen, at the corners.
In my building there are more dogs that stay alone and almost all of them do worse than Kuma, and they're all adults.
Jen-Locking jaw isn't a concern because it DOESN'T exist. The tooth fairy is more real.
Brad is right, Miko sounds like a great fit.
Did they say how Miko was around cats? Because he sounds like a sweet dog!!
Here: I do not think that any breed's jaw mechanism is any different than the next breed - I believe that is a myth. Nor do I believe any breed of dog has the potential to have a stronger jaw than the next, nor is the PSI of a certain breed higher than the next. To gauge that, all 500+ breeds would have to be considered and I don't know of a study that extensive. I do believe some dogs (to be considered in a discussion) are in existence from either an abusive situation, poor or negative training or just abnormal that have the potential to bite hard with great, unyielding and continuous pressure and not let go for anything - and if that were on my person, I'd call that locking. In fact locally there was a german shephard and dalmation in the news that attacked a woman and put her in the ICU, needing surgery after the dogs locked on her until tranquilized and caused great injury.
First, to be able to make the claim that certain breeds have a greater ability to bite with more force would not require all 500+ breeds to be tested. It would only require two. The tests would need to be conducted with a sufficiently large sample so the claims would be statistically significant (e.g. 30 specimens of each breed).
Second, veterinarians widely acknowledge that there is no anatomical affordance for a "locking jaw" mechanism in *any* breed of dog; however, it is the case that some breeds can exert more bite pressure than others. That is a function of jaw size and shape as well as the amount of muscle. Undoubtedly, a GSD can exert more bite pressure than a Chihuahua.
And now that this thread has been sufficiently hijacked, we return to our regularly scheduled programming.
Also, in response to Brad's cmts about energy inside the house. I have found that my Shikoku is actually very quiet in the house and basically sleeps or plays quietly. But he is an only dog (outside of our cats) and therefore, in Brad's case, the Shikoku might be more energetic in his house because they have other dogs to play with...
So in your situation Andrea, they may be quieter in the house because there are not any other dogs to play with.
You might also want to check out the Shikoku as they don't get super large (about 40 lb) and are generally thought to be less independent than Shibas and a bit easier to train. I know that mine is super obedient and really seems to enjoy learning obedience. Shibas in general (like Siberians) are not usually as motivated because they are more independent by nature.