discovering their nose

dlrobertsdlroberts
edited August 2008 in Shiba Inu (柴犬)
Joey turned 7 months old about a week ago and in the past two weeks or so he seems to have "discovered his nose." What I mean by that is that he is now much more interested in smells. When we go out for potty breaks, he'll put his nose down like a hound and follow it along for minutes at a time, stopping to check things out along the way. He never used to do this. I got Lucy at exactly the same age that Joey is now and she was like that from day one.

Have other people experienced this too?

Comments

  • kojichankojichan
    edited November -1
    I can relate. Koji will turn 7 months in a about another week. I'd say starting about two weeks ago, his need to smell while out on walks has definitely increased, much like you describe. I have to keep him on a short leash and make a point to keep moving. Otherwise, I swear we would spend the whole time in one small spot, and his nose would be the only thing that gets any exercise. So I balance it out by choosing when and where to stop, and how long to let him sniff around.
  • SangmortSangmort
    edited November -1
    Maybe he's catching the scent of animals that had gone by! I bet his "hunting instincts" are kicking in :D

    How cute :)~
  • sujewelsujewel
    edited November -1
    Mika was never a huge sniffer, only where she pees over other scents. Keigo was always a sniffer, but I got him at 9 months.
  • cas12cas12
    edited November -1
    Ozzy is like a hound dog nose down following different sents he is only 14 weeks old and loves to stop and smell as well. missy does but not as much
  • tsukitsunetsukitsune
    edited November -1
    The only shiba that does this is Hachi, so i'm not much help as she's already about 2 years old.
    We've had Tsuki since she was 3 months old and she has never been interested in tracking so much as attacking bugs and leaves.
  • LeonbergerLeonberger
    edited November -1
    Kuma stops to smell a lot. If we are walking fast he'll stop less, but sometimes he does and does so with no warning, so it's kind of a jolt for both of us. :-)
  • tobyshibatobyshiba
    edited November -1
    Everytime Toby goes outside, he runs the line of the flower garden and 'hunts' for rabbits. :0 He's 8 months old, now. He's actually pretty good at finding them. He'll dig into the bushes in the back of the yard and practically search for them in it.
  • dlrobertsdlroberts
    edited November -1
    I wonder if I should try to find a tracking class for him?
  • lindsaytlindsayt
    edited November -1
    I heard somebody say that Shibas are like Japanese Beagles, and while I cringe at the comparison, I do pause and wonder if it isn't a little true whenever I see Beebe hot on the tracks of a squirrel.
  • brandon_wbrandon_w
    edited November -1
    Shibas are scent hounds, just non-dopey looking ones.
  • SangmortSangmort
    edited November -1
    Brandon - Shibas are scent hounds, just non-dopey looking ones that drool all over the place. ;p


    Dave - You so should! He sound slike he's a natural already ;p Doesn't Katja track with her shibas?~
  • lindsaytlindsayt
    edited November -1
    I think Shibas should be placed in the hound group with the other scenting/sight dogs (and drooley beagles).

    UKC lists dogs of similar traits to shibas like Pariah dogs, Canaan dogs, Basenji as sight hounds, while all the Japanese breeds are catagorized as Northern Breeds. And good old AKC places Shibas in the "non-sporting" group with the bostons and bichons which are clearly not used for hunting.

    I think AKC should graduate them to "Hound group", or make a Northern Breed category given their sighting and scenting ability.
  • TaaarsTaaars
    edited November -1
    Same here, Sol and Luna are sniffers, and it seems they can smell another animal from a mile away...they dont bark (thank god) but they pull hard and point in the direction when something has caught their scent.

    Now, if I can just perfect this so they can sniff out loose cash on the ground I would be set......
This discussion has been closed.

© Vanilla Keystone Theme 2024