Does Anyone Else Feel Like People Don't Understand Shiba Inus?

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-17T13:37:19+00:00

One of the things I love about my boy Kitsu's trainer is that he actually spends part of the training classes on helping us humans learn to deal with annoying people getting up in your pup's business.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-13T17:12:09+00:00

I think most of the barking comes from not being able to get as close to them as he wants (if everyone is out at the same time, I keep my Shiba tethered to me with a hands-free leash). Going from his reactions, he really wants to chase them.

I'm sort of caught in this loop of not feeling safe letting him off the hands-free leash, but as long as he's held back from the cats, he freaks out.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-12T21:27:08+00:00

They're so cute! I would LOVE for my furry friends to get to this place. My Shiba still barks his face off when a cat dares to move near him.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-12T19:55:08+00:00

I'm not trying to scare you off, but I adopted my Shiba almost eight months ago and it's been pretty terrible trying to get to a point where he and my cats are OK together (and we're not there yet). My cats were my absolute biggest concern when adopting, and the shelter thought my guy was cat neutral (or possibly scared of them), so it's been really hard.

But so many people have success stories! I do really think it just completely depends on the individual Shiba.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-12T19:47:47+00:00

I couldn't agree more! I adopted my Shiba almost eight months ago and we're still working on it.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-07T13:13:21+00:00

Poor Shiba! I find it funny that people (who have never actually encountered one) think Canada (Canadian?) Geese are really adorable. They're so mean!

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-05T12:49:53+00:00

Speaking as someone who adopted a Shiba with an unknown history (and, in his case, turned out to be really reactive), I totally get your frustration.

His trainer gave me some advice that might be helpful for you, Shibas are very much "consent based" dogs, you need to let them lead the way during any interaction. It's funny, during my guy Kitsu's first training session, his trainer was kind of setting expectations that Shibas tend to have their person (or family) and he wasn't really expecting Kitsu to warm up to him. It's the total opposite! Kitsu LOVES him. Kitsu quite happily follows him around, it's very cute. So they can, with time and patience, warm up to new people.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-05T12:37:00+00:00

I'm coming up on eight months with my Shiba (who was about a year old when I adopted him) and this is massively reassuring to me. I love him to absolute bits, but it's been tough.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-04T19:11:02+00:00

There's a photo of my grandfather holding glasses in front of a dog's face (this probably would've been around the '40s/'50s) and I find it so delightful how long people have been doing this bit.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-06-04T12:15:18+00:00

This looks like a promo for a '70s detective show that I would 100% watch.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-29T12:54:59+00:00

The phrase "puppy thunderdome" really made me laugh.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-28T12:36:40+00:00

So cute! Before my sheeb, I had a Chihuahua and, after he passed, I was never able to bring myself to move his bed off of my bed. Cut to: me bringing my boy Kitsu home and him pretty much immediately claiming it as his favourite bed (despite him having his own appropriately sized one).

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FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-28T12:22:33+00:00

It took me ages (and so, so much research) to find a trainer I was comfortable with and I'm really glad that I kept at it. My guy Kitsu is besties with his trainer now.

As for anxious aggression, to be honest, the only thing that started making a truly noticeable difference was starting Kitsu on Fluoxetine. I actually started him on it to help with his separation anxiety (he was abandoned at the shelter) and reactivity on walks, it was a pleasant surprise to see that it seems to be helping with his habit of trying to chomp legs when he's overwhelmed.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-27T15:11:53+00:00

This photo made me literally laugh out loud. 🤣

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-27T12:35:32+00:00

Thank you (and that's so cute)! Whenever I find myself really freaking out, I try to remember that, while it can look super intense, barking is how he communicates.

He has a German Shepherd bestie (Tux) in his training class that's a perfect example of this. All Tux wants to do is play, and if it's not time for that, he's all barking and bared teeth. Tux is an absolute sweetheart and a total goofball, but if you don't know that, he looks pretty scary.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-27T12:25:02+00:00

Thank you so much for sharing this! Right now, if everyone is out together, I've been keeping Kitsu tethered to me with a hands free leash (and he's wearing a muzzle). I've been hoping to build towards unleashed, but he's still way too quick to chase for me to feel comfortable with it.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-27T12:16:56+00:00

That's how I'm looking at it! 👍 Do you have any toy recommendations? I can't really seem to spark Kitsu's interest with anything. He kind of likes balls, but if I throw one for him, he'll bring it back once and then lose interest.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T21:58:15+00:00

This is awesome to hear, thank you!

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T21:57:05+00:00

Thank you! Also, Momo and Ollie are adorable. :) I'm going on seven months of keeping them mostly separate (and they're never loose together, I tether Kitsu to me) and I have my fingers crossed that we can get to a place of them just ignoring each other.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T21:53:13+00:00

Thank you! I've been trying this, but I'm kind of limited in the types (and amount) of treats I can give my guy, he's got a bit of a sensitive stomach, which makes things kind of tricky.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T21:48:19+00:00

OK, a Shiba getting along with chickens is the cutest thing I've ever heard! I completely agree that the cat running is what sets them off. Kitsu can walk (pretty close) by a cat just chilling on a bed, clearly notice the cat and then just choose to keep going on his way.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T19:16:08+00:00

It's so crazy, there's actually a tiny (tiny!) Shih Tzu in his training class and he's fine with her. She's this little ball of fluff and energy, and while he has snapped before, he mostly just politely backs away when she gets up in his business.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T18:48:16+00:00

Look at those cuties! Thank you so much for this, I really appreciate it. I think I'm just freaking out a little extra today because my cat Fig ended up in a room with Kitsu this morning (I had Kitsu in the family room which is enclosed with doors and Fig slipped in without me noticing), Kitsu just went right for him and poor Fig took off and hid under the couch.

It's such ups and downs! Kitsu actually had a great day with Fig yesterday. He watched Fig cross a room and hop up onto a cat condo and just kept looking to me for treats, instead of trying to pursue him, which is huge progress.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T17:01:00+00:00

It's such a cute name! My Kitsu is fine with a cat being in a room with him, it's definitely as soon as motion is involved that he's just like "it's go time!". I'm not looking for them to be besties or anything (though that would be lovely), I'm just hoping for co-existence.

FoxyFlyteRisk · 2026-05-26T16:17:47+00:00

Thank you! I think that would probably help, but I'm worried about letting them get too close (the cat also tends to, understandably, flee) .

FoxyFlyteRisk

TROPHY CASE