I've decided to not get the Kai. I would've really loved to get one. But surprisingly my mom and my brother has given me an urge to get a red Shiba girl, which I wouldn't have ever minded in the past.

They saw two red Shibas the other day when we were shopping, and mind you they've never seen any other color but black and tan. They instantly fell in love with them. "Kim, you should get a red one too!"

My mom even offered to pay for half if I decided to get one. I dunno, that means I would have to share my dog, LOL. It's not like I don't share Kuma as it is. I guess it would be alright as long as I would have ownership.

So, luckily, I found a breeder that lives down the freeway (who's part of the Shiba Club of Southern California). Unfortunately, I'm 5th in line for a red female. >_<" I'm keeping in contact with the breeder as we speak for information on future litters and the cost of deposit.

I'm still thinking of a name for her though. Most likely a Japanese name that starts with a "K" ... I am staying away from Kitsune... that seems to be popular. Also, Kiko, Keiko, and Kokoro. I was thinking of Akane, which means reddening, or something to that extent.

We'll see!

I'll update soon!

Hello!

So, I've been making future plans to get a friend to keep Kuma company at home when we're not around or when we're just to busy at home to give him the 25/8 attention he deserves, haha.

I can't afford another dog at the moment due to our living situation in which we haven't decided whether we wanted to renew or look for a bigger place to live. Also we got new furniture, so we've been rearranging like crazy.

Anyway, for my next dog, I've been definitely looking to get a Japanese breed, because once you've had one, you've basically had them all or at least have a confident idea on what you're going to be dealing and working with.  So, I have two breeds in mind: another Shiba Inu or the Kai Ken (Tora Dog or Kai Inu).

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What on earth is a Kai Ken?  Very rare Japanese breed, also considered one of Japan's national treasures.  They imported the first Kais to the U.S. in 1990.  That's not too long ago considering how large the nation is.  Do the math and you can see why the Kai population is very sparse.

There are 5 Japanese breeds, only 3 of them are really breeded here in the U.S. which are the Akita, the Kai, and the Shiba.  Although, I would have to say, there are actually two different Akitas out here: the Akita INU and the American Akita.  They look fairly different.

Well, the Kai, in size, is between the Akita and the Shiba but closer in size to the Shiba itself being only 3-4 inches taller and 5-10 pounds heavier.  It's face it considered to be more bear-like than fox-like and the coat is always dark and marbley looking, which is where is alternate name "tora" comes from, which means "tiger".

Temperaments are pretty even.  The Shibas being the smallest have the biggest attitude.  Kais are te habit formers meaning if you don't break them soon, you probably never will.  But they are, however, very very loyal dogs like the Akita, although they are freedom runners if given the opportunity.

I've been searching for breeders here in the U.S., which has been long and tedious.  Most of them reside in Michigan, and only ONE in Northern California (lucky me!).  I would have to say, in the U.S., I've only found at most 5 active Kai Ken breeders: four in Michigan and one in California.  Even though they are active breeders, they rarely have litters.  They usually also breed Shibas and/or Akitas at their kennel.  So, of course, I wrote them e-mails with questions about the Kai Kens and their litters, etc.

I would have to say, look up information on the Kai Ken.  You'll be able to tell there aren't a lot of places except for the AKC, UKC, Wiki, and breeder sites that will have information on the breed.  Even dogbreedinfo.com didn't have anything on it.

Beautiful dog though.  I wouldn't mind owning one.  I would like a slightly bigger and confident dog to keep Kuma in line if he ever gets to crazy.

Would you like more information on Japanese breeds in general?  Go here:
http://re-veritas.livejournal.com/16754.html#cutid1

I currently do not have any videos or photos of the Kumster running freely, but I will soon.

I've trained Kuma to be off the leash.  It was fairly difficult.  Just letting him loose when taking him to his potty spot was already heart-racing.  He was the type to run out the door if it were opened for any reason and run straight down the stairs (from the 3rd floor of the apartment building).  Luckily, I've fixed this problem before there was a situation that required any real chasing or searching for him.  NEVER chase a Shiba because it becomes a game for them!  Also, NEVER trust your Shiba off a leash unless you really know he's loyal to you or hates being away from you, or is obedient (not perfectly though because it IS a Shiba).

Anyway, he doesn't like being by himself.  Usually when he wanders off several feet away from me, it's usually because he smells something and goes over to examine whatever the scent is.  Like all dogs, he tends to get into his world of examination totally forgetting that he was walking with me in the first place.  When this happens, I walk away from him on purpose to see if he realizes.  When I get far enough to where he can't see me but I can see him, I call him a few times until I get his attention and then he notices that he's "strayed off" from me and goes off to look for me, following my voice or my scent.   He always runs back to me whenever he's done with his business -- going to the bathroom or sniffing (which are two situations he'll ignore me completely if he really MUST do these things).

Ever since I've been walking him off-leash, he's been a lot more obedient.  He understands that he gets this "freedom" to roam as long he obeys my commands.  I have two recalls: "Kuma!" which is a normal call and "Kuma, COME HERE!" is the NOW call, not angry, but firm.   He responds quickly to both.

First, you're probably wondering where I do all of this.  Well, my apartment building frames a side to the pool area, which is basically the center of the entire complex that includes the leasing office, gym, pool, mail boxes, and... the putting green.   The putting green has been Kuma's play spot since I got him back in September, especially after he broke his leg.  It's about 25 by 10 feet in dimension, bordered by pond rocks and surrounded by a grassy area which is where he usually roams to do his business.

When Adam (boyfriend) and I are standing on the green, Kuma never runs off.  He's like a rubber band traveling between the grass and us.  He never has the urge to "get away" because he knows that he's out to go to the bathroom and to play with us if it's playtime, also because he knows we're his "pack" and a stranger is just a stranger even though he's openly friendly towards them.

I usually take Kuma to one side of the green by calling him over and I have him sit which in this case is Wait.  The concept of Wait is that he stays still until a command is given to him.  Then Adam would be on the opposite side.  Adam would call him and Kuma would usually run straight to him.  Then this goes back and forth with an occasional treat.

Stay is different. Stay requires that he Wait without our presence or without following us until a further command is given.  Usually when I say Stay, Kuma tends to lie down instead of sitting.  It works, so it doesn't really matter to me.  Adam and I would usually walk away, sometimes out of sight, count to 30, then call him then he'll come straight to us.

Stay and Wait work in many situations: from opening the front door, the door to the car, giving treats, etc.  He no longer runs straight out the door, and MOST of the time, he won't try to jump out the car before I can even get out myself.  He's consistently obedient to Stay and Wait.

I say Go to him when I'm giving him allowance to run off without me, usually when he really needs to go to the bathroom and can't no longer hold it or stand to walk at my pace when we're going down the stairs.  Unless I say Go he'll walk at my pace or stops until I catch up.

Today, Adam and I were able to take him to a store without a leash for the first time.  Which means from the car, through the parking lot, and into the store.

Magic? 

I found this on Vox.  ^_^

I woke up pretty early the other day. Kuma seemed really energetic for some reason.  Here's a video of him being... well, just Kuma!  Haha!  It'll give you an idea of what it's like living with a Shiba Inu.