Breed Characteristics

Shiba means ‘small’ in Japanese but the Shiba does not behave like a typical small dog.   Shibas are not  lap dogs and have no fear of large dogs.  The Shiba will not normally pick a fight but will not back down from a challenge.  In Japan, the Shiba is the most popular dog with more than 1 million registered.  Shibas are extremely intelligent, active small dogs. Sometimes they are described as a ‘large dog’ in a ‘small dogs’ body.  The Shiba believes that it can take on the world no matter how big the task.  

They have a life span of between 10-15 years.  They are slightly aloof at the first introduction and are very loyal to their owners.  A Shiba puppy must establish trust with humans at a very young age, as it is much more difficult to socialize an adult.  To gain the trust of an adult unsocialized Shiba may take up to a year.  Our Shibas do have unique and separate personalities.  One is quite cautious in most ways.  She has an almost intuitive nature.  Another is terribly outgoing and always looking for ‘cookies’.   They are extremely loyal to our family.  They all do love to play, and play hard.  They love chasing balls.

The Shiba is a primitive “original’ dog who has kept it’s ancient characteristics more than many other breeds.  The Japanese use three words to describe the Shiba temperament “Kan-i” which means bravery and boldness combined with composure and mental strength.  The opposite is “ryosei” which means good nature with a gentle disposition.   One trait cannot exist without the other.   Shibas respond well to positive reinforcement and verbal reprimands.  By being firm and consistent, a Shiba will learn that they must respect your wishes.  A Shiba will lose all respect for his owner if they are physically reprimanded.  Shibas are a very proud intelligent breed and do not like being teased or embarrassed.  Shibas have very strong wills and very easily learn tricks etc. although sometimes they choose not to perform. 

Originally the Shiba was bred to hunt small game.  For this reason, the Shiba cannot be trusted ‘off-leash’.  When chasing something they tend to forget you exist no matter how much obedience training they have had.  NEVER let your Shiba off leash, or you will put the health of your family pet at risk.   

When raised with children (who respect pets), or cats, Shibas do very well with them.  Introducing an older Shiba to the same may be difficult.  They are also very predictable dogs and have a very stable temperament, unlike many small breeds of dog (do not fear bite).  NEVER leave a young child alone with ANY dog regardless of the breed you choose.

Shibas do possess many cat-like features.  They are very clean and often groom themselves as a cat would.  Their front paws are often used as a cat would to bat toys and to clean their faces.  Some Shibas climb as well as a cat although mine do not.

They like to sit up high to look outside as a cat would. House training is done naturally; the Shiba cannot stand to have any excrement nearby so learn quickly (5wks) where ‘outside’ is.  They also naturally allocate one area of the yard as the bathroom.  A pup will have an odd accident but are completely reliable in the house by 5 months.   

Shibas are very athletic and well muscled.  They can climb steep hills and are at home on mountain slopes.  The Shiba can even pull a small sled (best if you have two).  They do enjoy hunting mice, birds and any other small game available.  Our dogs recently caught a pigeon that happened to fly over the yard.  They generally do not consume what they catch, thank goodness.  A Shiba in Banff, Alberta fought off a cougar that tried to attack while out for a walk.  Shibas are very brave dogs.  Shibas also enjoy chewing, especially when they are young.  Beef sticks are recommended over rawhide (rawhide is not digestible).  Be careful what they chew because they may consume some of it, especially when they are puppies.   

Young Shiba puppies hate a leash as much as a cat would.  They will scream and the whole neighborhood will think they are being killed.  The pup will grow out of this quickly and actually enjoy going for walks.  Shibas generally dislike nail trimming so this should be a regular routine.  We find using a dremmel tool much less stressful although using this method can take two people.

Shiba-Inu are from the Japanese Spitz family of dogs.  They do resemble the local Spitz group except for one large difference.  They are not noisy yippy dogs.  Our dog’s bark when the doorbell rings, or someone, who should not be, is outside.  I have heard some advertise mentioning “Shiba’s don’t bark”.  All or mine are quite capable of barking but only if there is a good reason.  They are excellent watchdogs!  The Shiba may not get along with other dogs, especially if the dog is the same sex as itself.  Socializing a puppy at an early age is very important.