Weekly Shibatudes: an update

I will try and post a weekly or so update about our goings on.

Ike: We went to the breeders and I got a very good lesson in ring handling and proper presentaion. Long and short of it, if I am careful with how I move and present him, Ike should be fit enough to officially start doing some shows.

I entered him in the June 6-7th Puyallup cluster, so we will see how it goes! I have a few weeks anyways to iron out the kinks and go buy something suitable to wear for myself.

Beebe: Week 3 of her CGC class has gone by with good progress. She is showing very good focus and attention. She still can't seem to keep the "bark" inside, every once in a while one just slips out. She is doing extremely well with heeling and sitting to be pet. The instructor told me she had way too much obedience training. With shibas, you can never have too much training.

Agility class is likewise, going very well. Beebe has really "turned on" with this type of training and her obedience work has improved 10 fold because it's turned into an awesome game now. Tunnel-okay with that but sometimes she decides to back out of it or jump on top of it, same with the chute. Weaves poles-would rather try and jump over them (I don't know how this works in her brain). Aframe-loves it! Dog walk-my shiba may be a mountain goat. Tire-does ok. Teeter-umm, it moves when she touches it so she would rather it didn't exist.

We may be taking some time this summer to enter some Obedience/agility competitions, and will post dates later.

A little more about us

We live in the Shiba Inu friendly Puget Sound region of Washington state and are fortunate to have several great, reputable breeders in residence who work closely with various breed clubs and Japanese experts in the improvement and preservation of this wonderful breed. Why I chose NOT to utilize one of these breeders in the purchase of my first Shiba, is one of my greatest failures as a dog owner.

It wasn't from lack of education, either. As an experienced dog person who had worked professionally with Shiba Inu before, I had also seen the terrible results of bad breeding first hand. I am terribly disappointed in myself that 1 Shiba bitch puppy, the very first Shiba pup I had ever seen, was able to sway my resolve and cause my hand to pull out my check book on the spot.

2 years later, Beebe has undergone multiple procedures for treatment of allergies, an immune deficiency, demodex, papillomas, and behavior problems. Looking back I realize she is incredibly fortunate to have come into a home that can provide the care she needs and cover the high costs of her medical care.

The second time around, I was gun shy but I did find the right second dog, Ike. Thank you Leslie Engen at San Jo Kennels! I think this boy is my doggy soul mate. It took over a year of interviewing, e-mails and looking at dogs on multiple occasions before I found the best match for us. He was not what I started out looking for, but he is just what I needed.

Stay tuned for updates on Beebe's formal Obedience and Agility training, and Ike's adventures in the show ring.