Loki's New House

Yesterday we closed the deal and got the keys to our very first house. The first thing we did was show Loki his new home. Of all the houses we have ever taken him to (my aunt’s home and my parents’ home), this house was the one he loved the best. We entered through the garage and walked into the basement. He immediately loved it. Sniffing around every corner and running in circles.

At one point, he stopped, sniffed the doors that enclose the laundry machines, and was about to mark, while Yun and I gasped and yelled, “No!” Luckily for us, he understood us. Phew!

We opened the backdoor and let him into the small fenced yard. Wow, he was in heaven now. He marked both the big tree and the little tree. Then did his Shiba 500 with a huge smile plastered on his face.

Afterwards, we proceeded upstairs to the main level, which had hardwood flooring. Loki didn’t seem to mind too much. He really hates tile floor, because he slips on it. But he was confident enough on the hardwood floor.

It didn’t take long before we lost him. Where is he? He’s got to be in one of the carpeted areas – the top floor or the basement? I yelled for him to come. Looks like it’s the top floor. He looked so cute as he stood at the top of the stairs, looked down at me, and cocked him head to the side, as if to say, what do you want? I’m busy exploring here.

He explored the house faster than we did. He’s not one to stick close to his humans. He wants to explore on his own. What fun!

We’re not exactly sure when move-in day will be, but it’ll be soon.

Rained Out

Boo, yesterday was very rainy, so we didn't get to go to the Shiba Inu Meetup.
Boo for rain.

Open Advertisement

Dear Shiba Breeder,

My husband and I are looking to adopt a young adult shiba. We currently have one neutered male, named Loki, who is a year and 9 months old. We are looking to add a second shiba to our household and hope to get one between the ages of 6 months - 3 years. We want a young dog, but do not have the time for potty training. We got Loki as a puppy and I fully understand the time committment needed to potty train a puppy. Back then, I was a student and had the time, but now I work full-time.

I figure that breeders might have such young adult dogs available for adoption if the puppies were kept as show potential dogs, but did not necessarily grow up to be of show quality.

Please let me know if you have any dogs available or if you can refer me to other responsible breeders who might have such dogs available for adoption. My husband and I live in the Washington DC metro area. Thank you!

Regards,

Vi

Upside Down

Loki loves to play with his toy upside down. Do all dogs do this? It seems very cat-like to me. Maybe it's a shiba thing. In any case, it's very cute to watch.

Posing for the camera.

Where did Loki go?

Washington Shiba Inu Meetup (October)

Who? Loki and family

What? Next week is the Washington Shiba Inu Meetup!

Where? Shirlington Dog Park in Arlington, VA

When? Saturday, October 25, 2008 at 1pm in the small dog area

Why? Because butt sniffing is so much fun!

Not in the Washington DC area? Search for your own meet up group at Meetup.com!

10 Things You Love About Your Shiba

1. I love it when he smiles.
2. I love his soft ears.
3. I love how he rolls onto his back when he plays with a toy. He’s so catlike.
4. I love how he practically falls over because he’s leaning so much into my hand when I scratch him behind the ears.
5. I love it when he goes into a hunting pose, ready to pounce.
6. I love how Loki flaps his ears like he’s flying when greets us at the door.
7. Even though it’s frustrating, I love how he sometimes refuses to get out of bed early in the morning.
8. I love watching him learn something new, like when he learned to get food out of a bottle.
9. I love his look of complete shock when something is out of place, like when Christmas decorations go up.
10. I love how befuddled he gets at inanimate animal-like objects, like stuffed animals and small garden sculptures.

A wet spot!

I came home from work today to find this:

What ?!?

Loki hasn't had an accident of any sort for over a year! Why would he go in our bed? (Don't mind the fact that we are sleeping on an IKEA futon and don't make the bed.)

I sniff it. It doesn't smell like anything. No smell?

I dab at it with a paper towel. Nothing. It's completely clear. Not the slightest hint of yellow.

Hm... I bet it's not an accident. I bet he was just licking his paws there. Silly cat.

Meet the Cavaliers

Loki, meet Ellie & Aidan.
Ellie & Aidan, meet Loki.

No, Loki, we don't welcome our friends by growling at them.

Well, all right, you can sniff their butts. I suppose that's an acceptable way of greeting our guests.

While visiting my parents this past weekend, Loki got to meet two Cavaliers. All of us humans were on high alert for the first 10 - 15 minutes, since Loki growled quite a bit in the beginning. Yun was especially good about controlling Loki and holding on to him when necessary. In due time, Loki accepted our two furry guests and happily sniffed them all over.

Loki at the laptop

Hi to all my faithful blog readers,

I'm taking over this blog today. This past weekend, I had to ride in the car for a very, very long time. Then we arrived at a wonderful house. It's so much larger than our previous house, and it had a very large yard. I approve.

The only problem with this new place was a funny looking creature, called a cat. I tried to sniff it all over, but it didn't seem to like that very much. He hissed at me.

We were mostly kept separated, but we still had staring contests through the screen door. Can you spot my two little ears in this photo?

Then, when no one was looking, I gobbled up all of the cat's food. That'll show the cat to hiss at me. Yummy in my tummy!

Signing off,
Loki

Buying a house for a dog

Tonight, we went to a home buying class. Slide # 5 of 73 said:

Why Buy

• You want deep roots
• You're going to stay put
• You want a home unavailable for rent
• You want creative control
• Your home is your castle
• You're handy
• You want to accumulate equity
• You have a dog

What? "You have a dog"? Who buys a house for a dog? Oh, right, we do.

Showing teeth picture contest

Over in the Dogster world, the Shiba Inu forum holds bi-monthly picture contests. Loki won second place for the Showing Teeth contest. Here was our picture entry:

I said, stick 'em up!

You can view all the contest entries here.

Of all the picture category contests, this is the one that Loki excels in.