Murphy is a little lover. Whenever he can, he will get on the couch and curl up nearby. I usually scoop him up and “make” him snuggle with me when I’m watching TV. I say “make” because he only does the “I am Shiba. No want snuggles,” for about 3 seconds (and very half-heartedly at that) and then he settles in for a snuggly nap.

He’s learned really quickly to settle down in his crate and go to sleep at night. The crate is right by my bed. He whimpers a bit, but then he’s fine. When I wake up in the morning, he’s very sweet about waiting till I get out of bed and let him out and then he’s VERY ZOOMY!

I think he’s completely house trained. He hasn’t had an accident in the house since a few days after he got here. During the day, he goes outside every 5 or 6 hours, but at night he’s inside for 10 to 12. When we wake up, he plays, eats breakfast, waits for me to get my coat and THEN goes outside, without any issues.

He’s learning rules really quickly. He takes food VERY nicely. He does NOT beg. He sits for treats, because the other dogs do it, but I haven’t taught him to sit on command yet. He knows he is allowed on the couches, but not on the bed (or the dining room chairs, which he jumped on a couple times the first day or two). He’s learned to take turns with the other dogs when I’m handing out goodies and he’s learning what “wait” and “I’ll be right back” mean!

That’s all of the new news I can think to share about Murphy. Someone adopt him soon. Please!

Snickers and I have our first Midwest Shiba Inu Rescue (MSIR) foster dog!

This is Murphy (in the green collar in the photos). He is eight months old and he’s been with us for four days now. All I know about him is that he was part of a big group of Shibas let go by a puppy mill. It couldn’t have been a typical mill though because he’s pretty human-social. He enjoys being held and petted, doesn’t mind being held upside down (like a baby) and doesn’t mind having his feet handled, so he’s had plenty of human contact.

He clearly hasn’t lived in a house… for example, he walks to the wrong side of the door almost every time I open one and he barked at the television a lot the first couple days! He wouldn’t take any treats from my hand when he first got here; I had to put them on the floor, but he was taking them by yesterday. He learns fast by watching Snickers and Secret. He’s learned to sit for treats, to be quiet and wait when he wants something and he even started lifting his leg today! (He was peeing like a girl when he got here.)

Murphy is learning FAST about living the good life. He’s enjoying lounging around the house and playing in our big yard. He is very snuggly and will let me snuggle him in my lap, upside down like a baby. He follows me from room to room and he gets super excited when T comes home from school. The downside to all this affection though is that he screams and cries in his crate at night. He wants to sleep on the bed with us. Snickers isn’t ready to allow him on the bed though. He’s also teething and chews on everything, so he has to be watched. Poor Murphy. Tonight his crate will be in the laundry room so he doesn’t keep me awake.

He’s a great little boy and is going to make someone VERY happy. (And I hope we find them soon before we all get too attached to each other!!!)

I promise I’ll be posting more about Murphy soon.

One thing that took me by surprise when I founded NYC Shiba Rescue, was how often people would ask me "What’s wrong with Shibas? Why do they need to be rescued?" At every event Snickers and I attended representing NYCSR, numerous people would ask this!

What’s wrong with them? I didn’t even understand the question at first, but I soon realized that many people don’t realize there is any such thing as purebred rescue. Often, when a person wants a particular breed of dog instead of a mix, they automatically turn to a breeder or a pet store, not realizing there is another option. This is unfortunate and I want to do whatever I can to spread the word about purebred rescue.

Recently, I had the honor of being interviewed for a Shiba Inu breed profile page on woofpatrol.com. One of the topics we discussed was purebred rescue and WHY purebred dogs end up in shelters. Part of my response was:

Purebred dogs get dumped at shelters, abandoned at vet’s offices and dumped by the side of the road, just like mixes. Others run away without IDs and then aren’t claimed at the shelter. Many purebreds are dumped because people buy them at pet stores on impulse and then decide they don’t have the time or patience to care for a dog. Others are dumped because people don’t take the time to research and select a dog that fits their lifestyle and activity level.

And, now that I’ve had a couple years practice answering questions about Shiba rescue in particular, I was ready for this next question!

Woof Patrol: What are the top 3 reasons Shiba’s end up in shelters?

Me: 1. Unrealistic Expectations. People don’t do the research. Shibas are incredibly cute puppies, like little stuffed animals. Many people buy them without knowing what their personalities are like. Shibas don’t normally like to be held, hugged or handled excessively. They are high energy and therefore need a lot of exercise or they get into mischief. They are also VERY smart, so training them can be quite challenging for novice dog owners.

2. They Are Runners. Having been bred to hunt for thousands of years, Shibas have a high prey drive and will chase anything that runs. They are known escape artists - they bolt through doors, climb fences, slip collars - and then they’re off and running. By the time they stop, they’re usually far from home. They end up at a vet, having been hit by a car, or in a shelter as a stray. If they don’t have ID, sometimes the owner never finds them.

3. "Having A Baby" This applies to all breeds and mixes: way too many young people get a dog for companionship and/or to keep them busy. Then when they start a family, they dump the dog instead of investing some time into integrating the family.

To read more, check out the Shiba Inu breed profile on woofpatrol.com.