Yeah, it's been a while...

Sorry for the wait! We've been very busy. Here's the rundown on some of the things we've been up to...

We took Rowdy to Barktober Fest where he was admired by many people and allowed them the honor of petting him and taking his picture. In addition, while we were there, he sniffed many bushes, peed on many immobile objects, and picked up and crunched on many acorns that had fallen on the ground. Little River was left at home, as we did not think it was wise to introduce her to so many dogs and people in a fairly large unfenced area. We spotted another Shiba, but before we could approach he snapped at a passing dog so the owners decided not to stay. Since River did not get to go, we brought her home a doggie bag (haha) of treats which she relished.

River has had her first encounter with other dogs during her first trip to the dog park. She ran her little heart out chasing a Boston Terrier, who in turn chased her all over the park, quickly tiring her of the seemingly endless energy stored inside her little Shiba body. Rowdy, it seemed, found a new family. He'd chase tennis balls and Frisbees thrown by the Dad and followed them as they walked around the park. He really didn't play with anyone else and I'm sure that, had they let him, he would have gone home with them without so much as a parting glance our way. Rowdy and River also made a new friend, Sam, an adorable mini-Beagle who thinks she's people.

We've had to take River to the emergency room for throwing up the entire contents of her stomach. She was very lethargic and limp when picked up. While we waited and waited and waited for the doctor at the hospital, her condition improved (thankfully) and she was given fluids under the skin. Because this hasn't been the first occurrence, we thought maybe she was eating her food too fast. I started putting her food in a hollow rubber toy that she'd have to paw at to get to the food resulting in her eating slower. So far she hasn't had any issues.

Lately, they have been busy working on their tunnel to Japan as well as digging up the acorns that the squirrels painstakingly buried in preparation for the winter.

Well, this post seems pretty sufficient for now. I'll be adding more so don't go anywhere!


P.S. I would be remiss if I did not add any images of River so here you go...

Road Trip!

Rowdy and River are recuperating from a long journey to North Carolina to visit some of my family. They were very good on the car ride up, sleeping most of the way.

Rowdy used his Shiba Mind Tricks to slip out of his seat belt harness during the trip. I could tell he was uncomfortable. He gets "stuck" when he wears anything besides his collar--shirts, harnesses, bandanas, you name it as soon as it slips on he promptly ceases to move from the spot he's in. I tried to get him used to the seat belt when I bought it by having him wear it for a few minutes a day. He never got used to it. He tried walking in it once, but he kept veering to the right. I was hoping that when it came time to leave, he'd be okay in it enough to just go to sleep. We didn't make it out of Florida before he slipped out of it. So much for that idea.

When we reached our destination, they immediately set out sniffing all the wonderful scents of Murphy, NC. The weather was wonderfully pleasant, cooling down to 70 at night; a good change from the 90 degree weather here in Florida. Rowdy and River went for walks on some trails through the woods around the house so at bedtime they were two very exhausted pups. Nan and Poppy were surprised how well behaved the dogs were, not making a peep all day and night, unlike the neighbors' dogs who barked nonstop at all hours of the day.

River surprised us by actually walking on her leash; we didn't have to coax her forward using treats like we did Rowdy. Until our trip, we'd put the leash on her to get her used to it, not really venturing outside with it. Most of the time she fought it, but eventually she accepted being tethered to one of us. When we walked her in NC, she actually walked next us like she'd been doing it all her life.

The first thing they did when we arrived home was the Shiba 500 in the back yard. After a good five minutes of chasing each other around, they came inside for water, dinner, and naps (as if they didn't get enough naps on the ride back!). I think they're happy to be back in their own yard.

I captured some pictures and videos during our trip so stay tuned for those posts coming up in the next few days!

Happy Birthday Rowdy!

Today Rowdy is 1 year old! Time goes by so fast, it's easy to forget how tiny Rowdy was when we got him. I've put together a slide show of Rowdy pictures that I've taken each month since he came home. Enjoy!

Poor River!

Last night we learned that when dogs are nauseous, sometimes they drool excessively. That's exactly what happened to River, along with diarrhea and vomiting. Evidently, she ate something that didn't quite agree with her. In addition to her drooling like an English Mastiff, she did not welcome us home with her usual song and dance. Worried, we took her to the vet who ruled out any parasites or whatever. They injected fluids underneath the skin on her neck so she would not get dehydrated, gave her a shot to help with the nausea, and sent us home with instructions to give her Pepto if she still had diarrhea. We left home with a little drooling Shiba, and we came back with a little drooling hunchback.

Today, River is back to her usual self, full of energy and attitude, void of drool and barf.

Vet Visit

Today River went to the vet to get her last puppy shots. She did really, really well through the entire process. She just laid there on her leash observing the goings on with the other dogs and their owners. While we waited, two gi-normous english mastiffs came in. Their paws were bigger than River's head and they produced enough drool to fill two of her water bowls. They were very beautiful and well behaved. One day I'd like to own some big dogs like those.

After about 30 minutes of waiting, we finally were called back. As usual, the people that worked there went on and on about how cute and friendly she is. River knows she's cute and uses it to her every advantage (last time she even got a cookie!). Her weight is 10lbs (such a big girl!) and when her shots were given, she didn't even flinch. Her eyes did get kinda wide when they took a poop sample, though. Well, at least that will be the last vet visit (we plan on) until she gets spayed in a few months.

Warning: Cuteness Overload!

Hooray for puppy pictures!

SMT Productions Presents...

...River and Rowdy in their first ever Shiba mini-sode.

Funny YouTube Video

Watch this video of a shiba inu puppy telling off his poop.

The Shiba Mind Trick

River did not like being in her crate at first. Every night for the first couple of weeks she protested by blowing out the eardrums of anyone unfortunate enough to be within a two mile radius. One morning while I was getting ready for work, I could see Rowdy, (who, by the way, adjusted to being in his crate phenomenally) staring at me from inside his crate, I mean really staring; like the creepy kinda stare that creepy old guys, in creepy fedora hats, and creepy black socks with sandals stare at you when you're at the mall standing in line for 20 minutes on your 30 minute lunch break and when you feel those beady eyes burning into your soul you just stop and stare back until a passerby walks between you both and you snap out of it. Anyway, I digress. Rowdy was staring at me and River was hollering to get out and suddenly in a sort of out of body experience-ish trance I felt myself walking to River's crate and opening the door, all the while Rowdy watched intently. While she darted out like a black streak of lightening I notice Rowdy turn his back to me and go back to sleep. Ladies and gentlemen, I had just succumbed to the Shiba Mind Trick.

...Beware the Shiba Mind Trick...

Hello World!

Meet the Shiba Inus, Rowdy and River. Rowdy (red) came into our lives just last year in November. River (black/tan) has been recently added to our family. They're small dogs with big attitudes; they do what they like and they like what they do even if it bothers the humans of the house. I figured our house just isn't big enough to contain all their Shiba-ness and the only way for them to realize their full Shiba potentials is to share their adventures (or misadventures) with the world.