Trick or Cheese

Happy Halloween 2010!  Did you dress up for Halloween this year?  I wanted to wear great big fangs but my people wouldn't draw them for me.  I hope everyone got lots of nom nom treats.

Happy Travels

I'm an urban city dog, so I've been exposed to many people, places, sounds, and things on a daily basis.  I've traveled by car, bus, shuttle and airplane so far.  I like traveling because it means I get to be around my people as much as possible.  Many times a trip means there will be dogs and people to play with on the other end. Socialization has been an important part of my life.  But because I'm a shiba, I don't naturally take to every unfamiliar thing so it's important that my people are alert and sensitive to my limits.  They need to be uber perceptive and watch the invisible line between building my confidence and creating anxiety.  This means that they need to know when I've had enough and it's no longer a positive experience for me.

My people are also learning that just because I am "good" in a situation today doesn't mean in two months that I will feel the same.  In many ways, my development has not been progressive nor linear.  It ebbs and flows and meanders in ways my people are trying to understand.  Patterns don't always emerge.  Nothing is a given except knowing that nothing is a given. 

My brofur, Al Capone

I live with a meowie.  His name is Capone and he is five years old.  He is a very big black cat that weighs 22lbs.  I like to chase Capone whenever I see him but my people don't like it much.  I also like to sit really close to him and poke him with my nose.  I really want to play with Capone but he doesn't like to play with me.  I don't know what the problem is.   Do any other shibas live with meowies? You can follow my brofur on Twitter @CaponeCat http://twitter.com/#!/CaponeCat

Tokyo Picks: Boomerang Tags, the best dog tag ever...

Fellow shibas, I am here to report that Boomerang Pet Tags are simply the best pet identification tags ever.  First of all, I hate hanging tags that go clang, clang, clang, jingle, jingle, jingle all day long.  Jingling is for Santa and that better mean toys for me.  My Boomerang tag is sleek and quiet. (Think "stealth shiba.")  I have the Adjustable CollarTag version which is basically designed to easily slide onto any existing dog collar.  I usually wear a martingale collar and the new ID tags fits perfect.  The tags can be ordered in different sizes to fit the width of your collar.  I am wearing a 5/8" inch pink nylon collar in this picture- so my people ordered the size small Adjustable CollarTag.  As you can see, the actual ID tag is a little wider than the width of your collar itself.  The fit is very secure.  The stainless steel material is not flimsy.  This is a strong durable tag.  This is truly a buy one have-it-forever kinda tag. The price was only $10.20 including the engraving (no tax or shipping charges).  They also ship fast.  Most shibas will probably want the size "medium" which is for a 3/4" inch wide dog collar. 

http://www.boomerangtags.com/ 

With sizes small (5/8"), medium (3/4") and large (1") you get up to 6 lines of text.  For my 6 lines I did this:

1. TOKYO (plus last name)
2. Phone number
3. Email address
4. City, State
5. County Dog License number
6. Avid ID number