In 10 years....

jmaxwell · August 2008

Just a food for thought, but I was thinking that most of us on here that have nihonken are pretty much pups, or are less than 3-4 years of age or so. So I was wondering what do you think the population and popularity of the nihonken will be like in 10 years and would you get that same type of breed again and why?

I personally don't think I could ever not have a Kai-Ken. After owning the Nihonken I will probably always have to have at least one thanks to Brad and Jen =) I gotta say I wouldn't mind having a Hilo some day tho =)

dlroberts · August 2008

Unfortunately, I think Shibas will continue to grow in popularity over the next 10 years and beyond. They are already being exploited for their unbelievable cuteness as puppies. If we're lucky, the others will remain off the radar. I think that's entirely feasible for the next 10 years. Beyond that, who knows?

As for my pack, I know my next dog will be (assuming all goes according to plan) another nihon ken, but after that I plan to branch out a little. I really want to own a breed I can train to be off leash in remote areas (supervised of course) and I know that I won't get that from a nihon ken. There are a few other non-nihon ken that I really want to own, but I don't know where that will fit into my long term pack plans. 10 years from now, however, I fully expect to still have my little rug rats as well as the next one I get. :-)

JessicaRabbit · August 2008

That is a really interesting question to pose.

I am hesitant to answer because I know how the universe works, and anything I say "never" to will inevitably occur and in probably LESS than 10 years no less. As it stands now, I hope to not get a breeder dog again and to only rescue. So ideally I would not have ANY Nihon Ken in my future because there would be none to rescue.

However as reality is sadly more cruel and harsh than that I could very likely have more Nihon Ken in my future. I will always have a pitbull. There is no question about that. You have never truly been loved until you have rescued a pit bull. I would love to continue to have Shikoku but I hope to NEVER see one in a shelter, so unless Brad calls me out of the blue and tells me he needs to place a Shikoku or Akita that needed to be re-homed from their program (which knowing how selective Brad and Jen will be in their placement of pups, will be highly unlikely), Miko will likely be my only Shikoku.

I will probably have an Akita at some point but I really only want to rescue. I also REALLY want a Dogue de Bordeaux.

I am very much a fly by the seat of my pants girl so only time will tell I guess.

Looking forward to reading other peoples answers.

BradA1878 · August 2008

I have no idea what the future of the breeds will be, so I'm not gonna try to guess.

I can say this, the Shiba really seems to be going a sad directions and the quality of the Kai-Ken is becoming poorer and poorer in the states. Lets hope that the Shikoku community continues to stay as tight as it is so we can prevent the same thing from happening to them.

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If Jen and I had it to do again we would not have any Shiba. I love Kaia [she is my soulmate] and Maui, but little high maintenance dogs are just not my speed anymore.

We were just chatting about this the other day and we came to the decision that, if we didn't have our current plans and could do it all over again, we would have a male/female pair of Akita and a Shikoku.

When we are super old we plan to just have 1 or 2 Akita.

I love all our Nihon-Ken, they all have there own special traits that make them hard to imagine life with out, but for us the Akita and Shikoku are our favs.

I love Kona, he is really cool, but he kinda drives us crazy. :oT

If I was an avid hunter I would mos def have a pack of Kai.

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LOL - I just asked Jen, she said a male/female pair of Akita and a male/female pair of Shikoku.

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MommyofNiko · August 2008

I am personally concerned about this topic. There is that movie coming out with Richard Gere and the Akita Inu so I know that will lead to the 101 dalmatian craze, but I pray it wont.
Now I have to agree with Jess about the pit rescue love. There is no bond like that which I have ever experienced. If we get any american dogs in our future it will only be a rescue pit.

kekti · August 2008

what is this movie that is coming out.

sujewel · August 2008

I think I will have an Akita in my life forever!

Although, I with Brad. It would be really amazing to be able to walk with a dog off leash.

Kaddy · August 2008

Perhaps this deserves it's own post, but... in answer to your question -

The movie is called Hachiko - I''ll let people who know more about it give opinions.

I only know about the movie because the breeder Keiko came from had adopted the Shiba that was used as the 'Akita puppy' in the movie. He's a very adorable red male (that she named Hachiko after the movie he was in.) She told us that they chose to use the Shiba puppy because it was lighter in the backpack and had cuter features (or something to that regard). I can't imagine people not thinking every puppy they see is cute honestly.

Anyway, I don't think I'll be seeing the movie - mostly because I don't enjoy movies, and a few other personal reasons

/

kekti · August 2008

ok.....well thats wrong trying to potray a shiba as an akita puppy.

Romi · August 2008

I agree, I think the Shiba are being horribly bred. I know there are some good breeders out there, but it seems that I keep seeing more and more in pet stores. It's pretty sad. And the Kai Ken thing, most of you know my experience with Hanzo and his breeder. I even talked to Marion about it and she was pretty shocked. I think Roberta is also breeding her Kai a little too frequently. Well - Hanzo's breeder stopped breeding Kai Ken because she said they were too hard to place or find homes for since they are a rather rare breed. It's sad to see so many Kai Ken in shelters now though. I think the shikoku breeder's out there are more selective with placing their pups and I hope that they never become like how the Shiba and Kai are now. But only time will tell.

I think we will always have a boxer. Portia is just a doll and such an awesome companion (especially to john) I don't think we will ever not have a boxer. As for nihon ken - I don't think I would get another shiba - I love Ninja, but it seems that Shiba's are really being poorly bred these days. I was talking to another behaviorist about Ninja and asked her if she's worked with Shiba's and if these behavioral issues were common. And she replied "sadly to say, yes. I have worked with A LOT of shiba's most of them with fear issues and some with dog aggression and separation anxiety" She went on to tell me some stories - but ill save that for later. I would also love to own a Shikoku, Akita and Kai Ken.

As for the movie - Hachiko - If they're making a movie about an Akita - they should use Akita's in the movie. Akita Puppies and Shiba puppies do not look alike and it's misleading to the public. The whole movie is going to be misleading to the public. Yeah sure, in the movie this Akita is an amazing companion and dog - but that's not how it is in real life. I hope Akita puppies don't start popping up in pet stores, that would be tragic. If it does get popular, im sure we will all see more akita's starting to pop up in shelters. How many breeds does America have to ruin - seriously?

TheWalrus · August 2008

It's global Romi... I'd daresay over half the breeders I've seen here in Japan would be classified as puppy mills. Every year there's a new breed 'in style' and the pet magazines go nuts and everyone gets one. Golden Retrievers were the fad a couple years back, and it's just sad seeing the amount with hip dysplasia. Was Dachsunds for a few years and now there's tons in rescue.

To get back to the original post, I hope the Nihonken don't get too popular over there... they're not the pet for everyone, and limited breeding stock is only going to cause more heartache. I think I'm in the same boat as Brad, I'd definitely have an Akita or two. Love their laid back attitude, and I'd have a few already if my place was big enough for it.

Leonberger · August 2008

I tend to agree with the previous opinions. Shiba are going down a very sad road over there, not so much here in Portugal as Nihon ken here are pretty much total strangers (and I'm glad about it, in a way). People here seem to know 6 breeds of dogs, other than some Portuguese ones, sometimes not even that. The danger about that is that any breed that becomes a little popular will get exploited. So, like Rachel I'm dreading the Richard Gere film. I don't think that any other Nihon ken will get known here, let alone popular. If my sister holds on to it (she's 15, and we know how strong teen convictions are) she'll probably have the only(or one of the very few) Shikoku in the country.

As for my "pack", it will all depend on my financial health, but I'm not sure I'll always have a Nihon ken. There are too many breeds I love and am curious to share my life with. I love Kuma, and I would have another Akita in a heart beat, but I don't know if I could get an Akita and an Irish Wolfhound in the same house (just an example of a breed I'd love to have) or a Leonberger. Any way, in 10 years I hope Kuma will still be around here with us now being more of my "brother" or "father" instead of my "son". I'd love to get him a new dog to "teach" before that, but who knows?

Ideally I would win the lottery, move to that private island in Sweden, hehehe, and get about 40 or 60 dogs of 20 or 30 different breeds :-) Oh and resume that old dream of becoming a vet.

tsukitsune · August 2008

I almost dread where the shiba & akita are headed in ten years, in part because of notoriety from nintendogs and films like the richard gere one. Recently I was told that a texas woman got her 4 year old a shiba b/c he loved them from the nintendogs game but after 6 months he lost interest and she put an ad on craigslist to dump the dog.
And I know of a breeder who will thrive on marketing her shibas as either the new toy shiba or the Hachiko perpetual puppy. I know she will. She has just enough evil to do it too.
But I think as time goes on, I will see more and more of this.
That, in part, is driving me to stick with my convictions of doing shiba shelter/mass fostering/sanctuary. Truth be told, sometimes my husband and I joke about our 'fantasy dog house' where we have one dog envy and that one dog is a shikoku or Kishu and we finally have a "calm" household

) but thats only when the shibas drive us nuts. But honestly, if I didn't feel that shiba sanctuary was absolutely going to be needed right now and certainly in 10 years, I would not again own a shiba inu.
Too high maintenance x 3 + ? in sanctuary in the next couple years = one insane couple of primates.
But if need be, I am working on getting training certified and nutrition certified for both small and large breed dogs to open sanctuary/fostering/shelter to any spitz/nihon ken that I will come across needing rescue in the sanctuary time frame. But I hope to God I am wrong about needing it in 10 years time.

but if I were dreaming, in 10 years I would own 200+ acres of prarie land - or an island - and do a complete animal rescue system with farm animals and all types of dogs or even cats (although I am allergic so I'd need a hired cat person). And live in a yurt. With alpacas. Fun! Or a wolf sanctuary...

But I'd safely assume that the nihon ken in my future are kind that are needin' rescuin'.

tobyshiba · August 2008

I'm also afraid for how the Shibas are going. I think this movie is really going to ruin and reveal our beloved Nihon Ken in a very wrong image. I wish that people would keep away from animal movies like this. It will most likely turn into a 101 dalmations thing again. Akita already have an aggressive reputation. Now they'll become interbred and shoved into puppy mills simply because everyone wants one. The Nihon Ken are not for everyone, and lazy ass people need to read between the lines and understand just how these dogs act and behave, and how to raise them properly. I'm disgusted that people buy dogs simply for how cute they are. Sure, I loved how the Shiba looked, but I also researched a lot into the breed before going out and buying one. I waited a few months for my puppy.

I don't see a bright future for -any- rare dog breed that hits the states. If its appealing, then you can be sure people will pay big money to have it and show off and be horrible owners. And breed it carelessly. That's just how humans are. The greed of money is worth more to some than the warm friendship of a loving dog.

baanton · August 2008

Well, as for 10 years from now: I imagine we will still have Josephine and be enjoying her later in life years. I can't say enough about her good traits --- it seems she has become very obedient and attentive to us as she gets a bit older, has a zest for life and shows it in her interaction with every human, dog, cat or other creature she encounters. Much of "negative" I mentioned in another post was experienced through (and early) in her first year I would encourage you all who have very young dogs (seems the vast majority of frequent posters are dealing with dogs under 3 years of age) to consider the question again as your doggies get to be 5-7 years of age --- you may have a whole different perspective on the breed.

If we should be so misfortunate as to lose Josephine to disease or accident in the next 10 years, I would expect my hubbie's penchant for finding a puppy in the wilderness that would die without him might kick in again --- who knows what kind of dog breed we'd encounter then! I'm sure he would want to rescue such a puppy, though!

MommyofNiko · August 2008

The Hachiko story is an amazing one, and I think one to be appreciated by those that love and KNOW the breed. There is NO denying the devotion the Nihon ken come with, but with that you get all the other personality traits. As soon as I saw the article and tv clip on this movie my heart filled with dread. It truely scares me that this amazing and complex family of animals is going to be a victim of the US short lived and non-committal dog frenzy. The reason that American Akita's have such a bad rap is because of in-breeding as it is from when they were brought over here. It got out of control and in-breeding led to a lot of the negative personality quirks, if I recall correctly.
I too fell in love with the shiba by its look but Chad and I did SO much research before getting Niko. We wanted a dog that was right for our family based on their traits and not looks. (Unfortunately we did not do the same with looking for a breeder).
Now I know there are amazing Akita breeders out there as it is, but where this is a demand, there will be more breeders, without the ethics that Brad & Jen, and Miisan have.
This movie is going to show all the amazing heart tugging qualities of the Akita, and NONE of the challenges.
Along the same lines...Juno came out and many teens are all about having a baby young...Dont ever doubt the strength and power of the media.
UGH!

diggah · August 2008

Ten years from now my pups will still have at least another 7-8 years left in them and I'll be 4 years from retirement (and my daughter's PHD). When I get to be a truely old fut I'll have a tough choice to make because I don't know if I'll have another 20 years in me. I may just work in the shelter at that point (and probably take home an old dog one day).

In 10 years....

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