Shikoku Ken

Shikoku Pup (cuteness overload)

TheWalrus — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 08:17:37 -0500

This little guy is a real character. The first few days he was here I wanted to kill him, but now he's my devoted little sidekick, loves to follow my feet everywhere. He's stopped crying bloody murder all the time which is nice, and he's figured out the whole toilet scheme (sort of anyway). I've nicknamed him Kaiju. He's going overseas in a few weeks.

Go for it?

downright — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 20:06:19 -0500

So.....Katja has a male pup available from her Kuma and Aiko litter. We were originally planning on waiting until she has her next litter, which would be in March. However, she can't guarantee we'd be able to get one from her next litter, specifically a male from Kuma and Kimi. So, we need to make a decision. I already booked a flight for Saturday, returning the next day. I'm about 99% there, just have a little indecision left in me. The plan was to definitely get one soon, just not this soon. So, as a person who plans things out way in advance, this is throwing me off a little bit. I know we'd give the dog a great home. He'll be loved. And I know our Shiba Sam will love him just as much. I'm just a little nervous. Want to make sure I make the right decision.

Any advice from you Shikoku owners out there?

Loa's Thread

brada1878 — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:25:48 -0500

This is Loa's thread.

I took some pics of her yesterday...

Mean face Loa:

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More Shikoku Pictures

TheWalrus — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 21:34:47 -0400

I took a few more pictures of Shikoku Ken on Saturday, so I figure I'll post them here.

A very light colored female. This is not a preferred color in the breed, the color in her coat is very diluted. She's not been bred or homed because of it. I just wanted to post the picture as an example of a very light colored Shikoku.

Kuro-goma male, littermate to Koto, my friend's prize winning aka (red) Shikoku male. He has nice coloration, but is a little weak in his hindquarters. He was the runt of the litter, and has not been bred or homed either. I have a better picture of him, but I posted this one for fun for the facial expression.

Here's another of him.

This is the sire of the above kuro-goma (black sesame) male.

Another stud male, an aka.

Two pups sired by the above aka male.

This is the replacement for the female kuro-tora (black brindle) Kai pup.

What color is this Shikoku considered?

Koda&Mugen — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 12:35:29 -0400

I've seen sites that say there are sesame, black & tan, and cream Shikokus (like Shibas), but this seems to be the most prevalent color of a Shikoku and it's the one I want:

Thanks a lot.

Ahi Update...

brada1878 — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 00:35:53 -0400

Well, Ahi has some how recovered from her shoulder issues and her rear leg issue. We're still making her keep her activity down, but she has gotten a bit more freedom this week. She needed it, I think she was starting to get depressed.

Anyway, I took a few pics of her today...

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Rakka Off Leash

hondru — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 23:55:26 -0400

I took some video of Rakka off leash today. There's an off leash portion of a park that's close to my house that we like to go to. I thought I'd post it for interest's sake, to see a shikoku off leash, and also to ask how other people's NK act off leash. Similar to this? Now, the footage is quite shaky because the hand I was using to hold the camera was also pushing the stroller with the elbow. Sorry about that. I really need to get some footage without the stroller. Also, Naomi's in the video. :o)

This one's really long and shaky, but it shows Rakka meeting two off-leash dogs, then an on-leash dog. Also, you get to see Rakka kicking dirt into Naomi's stroller (silly dog).

This video has the same husky that was on leash in the first video, but this time off leash, and you can see the meeting is much more relaxed. It also shows Rakka meeting a small dog.

Ahi's Shoulder - Should we do surgery this time?

brada1878 — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 00:32:05 -0400

Well, Ahi has hurt her shoulder again. Do you think we should put her through the surgery to fix it this time or try the "natural route" again?

Obviously, the "natural route" will probably mean this is a reoccurring injury as that seems to be what is happening this time.

The surgical option might not make this issue reoccurring, but it would require more recovery time for her and yet another surgery (she's already had 4 surgeries in her life).

I guess my question is, do you guys think there has been enough of a break from her last 3 surgeries to do another one? I just can't make up my mind on it. I hate that she is injured like this again. :o(

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Two questions about Shikoku Ken...

jhartenbach — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 11:31:41 -0400

Hello all, I am glad to recently joined the forum. I have been researching the forum and decided that it was a must to join such a knowledgeable community.

I met a Shikoku Ken a few months ago and absolutely fell in love with the dog. Although the meeting was brief, it was enough to convince me to do some research and see if a Shikoku Ken could be addition to my family. This forum has answered several of my questions, but there are a few that I could not answer. One, how much do they shed? I have read that they change coats up to twice a year but I am curious to see how much fallout there is between the change of coats. Also, how much does a puppy cost from one of the few breeders from North America. I know price should not matter, but I need to know if purchasing this dog would financially possible. I read the article about exporting dogs from Japan. That is a possible option but I would like to support the North American breeders if I can.

Thank you in advance and glad to be a member,
Jay

Shikokus and Shibas

kato — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 10:32:28 -0400

Just to start - I swear I have read the Breed Temperament comparison list, and loads of other things before asking this.
Also the answer to this might in part just be the fact that individual dogs have their own personalities. Anyway:

I am really leaning toward getting a Shikoku breed, they sound fantastic and right for my lifestyle from everything I've read so far. However, there is one thing that is confusing me, which seems to be a contradiction, so I'm pretty sure I'm missing something.

On a number of threads I've seen people saying that Shikokus are not good for a first time owner, and they would be much better suited for a Shiba (or Akita, but I'm not really interested in them. Too big.) My question is why?

In a few places on these forums I've seen comparisons of the breeds, and mostly I've gathered the idea that Shikokus are: Easier to train than a Shiba, more affectionate, more loyal, better around strangers (and maybe other dogs) and possibly more open to being stroked (although not entirely certain on that one).

If this is the case, why are Shibas frequently recommended as an easier starting breed? The only thing that seems certain, is that Shikokus have more energy, but I don't think that's got much to do with whether you are a first time owner or not, that seems more to do with your lifestyle.

Thanks for the help.

Please help to find japan breeders

ellix — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 16:07:09 -0400

Dear friends,
my name is Artem, Moscow, Russia. I'd like to start breeding shikoku in Russia (now working with akita and shiba). Would you be so kind to help me in this breed and introduce in japanese breeders, some of you have import dogs. It's very high language barrier between japan and russia.
Kind regards

Koshi turns one year old!!

Two Socks — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:03:16 -0400

I just thought I might add a few pictures of Koshi to celebrate her first birthday this Friday Aug 13!!
She is a fantastic Shika & we feel very gifted to have her in our life! Her coat is really thin right now so she looks a little scrawny !
I can honestly say she has surpassed all of our expectations & has fit into our little pack perfectly!!

Here Matsuhime Go

Yogen — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 20:50:19 -0400

I present Matsuhime Go, my young female aged 9 months.

Matsuhime is a real ray of sunshine, very active outside, still in "radar" ready to pounce on anything that moves in the garden.
By cons at home she is very calm and loves to take long naps on the couch.
Side character, I would say it has character, it didn't really cold feet, and stands up to my Akita Inu, even my females, not insist with her. But it always does in games, without ever showing teeth, then finally, maybe for my "big wolf" ... she's insignificant...hahaha !!
Here a pic taken recently in the Championship of France in Paris, where Miss has finished first in Puppy class.

3 year old Shikoku Male

TheWalrus — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 16:08:12 -0400

I'm just going out on a limb here. Perhaps this will work out, perhaps not. I'd just like to put it out there. This Shikoku male is up for adoption. Anyone who is interested please take the time to really think about all the work it will entail to adopt an adult male Shikoku, and ship it across the ocean!

This male is owned by a good friend of mine. He's a hunter, and was originally planning to hunt and show his Shikoku, but realized that at his age it's easier to tag along with us young bucks and our dogs.

This male is a red Shikoku from very good show lines. My friend would have kept him for conformation events, but size wise he's at the bottom end of the breed standard, so didn't show that well. The dog is 3 years old, turning 4 this year I believe.

About this boy. His name is Tatsu. He's an outside dog, so I'm not sure how well he'd adjust to moving indoors. He's quite active with a high energy level, but not too loud in the kennel. He's very NK in temperament, not that interested in people other than his owner, and not super affectionate. He was fine with me touching him, and gave me a few licks but that was it. He's not aggressive with the other 2 dogs he lives with, but at the moment I have no idea how he is with strange dogs.

My friend has a large fenced property, so the dogs exercise/play in there. Tatsu goes hunting every now and again, but other than that doesn't go on walks off the property. I've never known him to be shy.

He'll live out his life at my friend's house if he doesn't find a new home, so there's no rush to place him. His present owner just feels that if there's somewhere that could give him more attention, he'd probably be happier. He doesn't get to 'work' right now (conformation or hunting), so doesn't get as much attention as he should.

Here's some pictures. He's ever so slightly overweight at the moment. He's been healthy his entire life, no medical history.

If anyone is interested in finding out more about him, feel free to email me. My address is listed in my NKF profile.

Personalities and likes!

kyralyn — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:43:21 -0400

Damn I ask a lot of questions! I hope you all don't mind...
But what's the Shikoku's personality like? And what kind of things do they like to do? Are they easily exciteable? Playful? Do they like to play rough? (like tug of war and such..) Do they like water and swimming?
What do your Shikoku(s) like, and what kind of personality do they have?

Where are all you Shikoku owners in the USA located?

kyralyn — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 17:08:43 -0400

Tell me what state you're in :)

Shikoku owners near Seattle?

Koda&Mugen — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 14:56:50 -0400

Hi everybody,

I just joined this forum in an attempt to locate a Shikoku breeder who might have puppies soon - but it seems as if there are only about 3 in North America and we've contacted each of them already.

One individual suggested that we try to reach out to somebody who has a Shikoku and visit it before we proceed with waiting for a puppy to be ready and I thought that was a good idea.

Does anyone know of any Shikoku owners near Seattle who might be willing to let us meet their dog (and maybe introduce our Shiba inu to them)?

Thanks much.

A vid of Ahi cuasing trouble...

brada1878 — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 13:45:43 -0400

Ahi's found a new hobby: annoying Blue...

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InuYasha has discovered kitty poo :(

the_november_rain — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 04:39:44 -0400

Tonight was no good. I found Inu in the kitty safe room chopping down on kitty litter nuggets and spewing cat turds all over the floor; to include some smudging into the carpet. The litter box is in a room thats door is barricaded with a heavy dumbbell. Well the door must have been tampered with so Inu squeezed through. I was really hoping to prevent any contact with cat litter. Cat puke keeps me busy enough because he makes a beeline for their hacking, will lick it, then throw up himself. :)

So after some cat poop pick up, carpet spraying, vacuuming, steam vacuuming, showering, and teeth brushing all is well in Inu’s world again.

He has become camera shy so it is difficult to get pictures.

Pre-kitty poop InuYasha

Post-kitty poop InuYasha

The naked spot on the top of his nose is where he rubbed it raw from eating a SweetsSpots.

show me your best shikoku pics!

kyralyn — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 18:47:41 -0400

show off your best shikoku pictures here!! i would love to see them!

i was browsing through threads on here, and came across a gorgeous shikoku picture! i can't remember what thread it was on or who posted it, so i apologize!
see the picture below.

now, i am asking YOU, to post shikoku pics on this thread! i am excited to see everyones beautiful shikoku dogs! puppies or adults!

red sesame and black sesame? sesame sesame!

kyralyn — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 05:28:07 -0400

BLAH sesame! the word looks weird now that i've been looking at it for a while...

But anyway, I have a question about the SESAMES! *bah*
Okay, so, how exactly do you tell black sesame from red sesame? But before you go thinking i have mental problems, because, *duh* the "RED" and "BLACK" in those sure give it away on how you can tell! But what i mean is, like, i've seen pics of shikoku's on here, black sesames and red. But, i've seen some that are really dark black sesames, to like a red sesame with some black, then just a red sesame with no black hairs at all? It's kinda hard to explain...
Like, some shikas have LOTS of black, some have SOME black, some have LITTLE black, and some have no black at all!!
soooooo what im saying is, how do i tell the difference between the red and black sesame? are the shikas with any black on them at all considered black sesames? and the ones with no black at all, red sesames? or can the red sesames have some black hairs?
Okay im really confusing myself...i hope some of you understand what im saying??

anyway, if you have any idea what im talking about, please explain to me about these sesames, and even post pictures :D i love pictures of shikoku's! (plus it wouldnt hurt me to actually SEE the differences in these colors)

Shikoku's are mutts?

kyralyn — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 04:16:52 -0400

alright, i keep running into things that are pretty much pointing at shikoku's as MUTTS. Like one person on the internet asked about where to get a shikoku, and someone responded with this:
"Well you can't really say that mix of dog won't have any Shiba traits as it's a mixed breed (mutt) and traits are not set. In other words you can't predict anything about it. And why go looking for a breeder? Any breeder breeding mutts is a 'breeder' with no ethics. It' would just be a rip off.
If you go on petfinders.com you can find a nice mixed breed dog. It will have had all it's shots, worming, neuter/spay, might even have been microchipped, temperament tested and already traind to some degree, and all that for cost. WHAT A BARGAIN!!!!"
Are shikoku's really just a randomly mixed breed? See the picture below as well...

please don't take an offense to this, i am just curious :)

P.S. if they are mixed to be created, why do people look at shikoku's like they're mutts bred by BYB's? I mean, some of the most treasured breeds are mixed, such as the bull mastiff, crossed with mastiff and bulldog, and the smooth collie, crossed with collie and greyhound, and the doberman, crossed with rottweiler and greyhound and all those other breeds that were mixed...bull terriers were mixed with several breeds to get their look as well!

Newbie Questions (looking to get involved)

Crispy — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 17:00:22 -0400

HI GUYS, I'm fresh out of the Introductions, and ready to dive in without my suit... so here's all my brain drool in relatively unorganized bliss.

1. I am very interested in *some day* owning a Shikoku. I've read through a lot of these discussions, dissected pretty much EVERY bit of information I could find online... and the next step is to talk to breeders... but I didn't want to do that until I was ready for a commitment. Before that, I would love to do some work with the breed or get a little more exposure, though... and that's where I'm a little lost.

I'm just... not exactly sure how to do this, since it's such an uncommon/rare breed. Are there suggestions? Help? I'm... short here. I feel like I've gotten all dressed up on a Friday night and realized all my friends moved away last Tuesday.

2. Just to ask how rare, exactly, are the Black and Tan Shikoku? I'm really partial to them from what I've seen... but I also understand that there don't seem to be any in North America, and don't seem to be MANY in Japan. Should I give up on that pipe dream and settle for a more realistic one?

3. I have very dog-friendly cats. It seems like Shikoku still have a strong prey drive - has anyone ever had problems with their puppy not being able to adjust/accept their cats? (I don't expect this to be much of a problem, but I wanted to throw it out there)

4. For Shikoku owners, directly... I'd love to know what some of the hurdles or challenges, if any, that you had to overcome with your puppy(/ies) or dog(s)?

uuuuhhhhh.... :v
I guess that's all I can think of for now, but I'm sure more will drip out later.
Thank you SO much, in advance!

Shikoku shedding again....

tini — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 07:37:03 -0500

Well....Kekko is on the middle of his first real shedding....huhh. I have read the topics about the shikoku shedding heavily before, but pictures are not seen on the old topics - so I wanted to ask again, is this really normal??? I could not imagine its that bad. I mean he looses ALL his undercoat and there is only some really rough guard hair still on him - looks really horrible. You can almost see his skin, he looks like a sick dog. None of my huskies shed like that....although they do shed a lot of hair, but never be that naked. Kekko still has coat on the back and sides on some places....this makes it look even worse.
I brush him every day to make the coat change faster, but on some places it just won't come off :)) How long it usually takes to get new coat on?

Panda is coming!

TaraA — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 22:41:31 -0400

So I'll be picking Panda up at the Sacramento airport tomorrow! I'm so excited. Panda's the slightly smaller, darker puppy on the right in both pics.

Questions from a newbie

Korey — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:40:52 -0400

Hello, this is my first post here, and you can read a little about me in the Introduction Forum here.

I live in Socal and am really interested in getting a Shikoku. The Family Pet Expo next month is really close to where I live so I may attend it to meet one up close. I just have a few questions I'm hoping you guys could answer:

1) How long does it take for a Shikoku to reach full maturity in weight/size?

2) How much do these dogs typically cost?

3) How bad are the waiting-lists? So far I've gleaned that there are only about 3-4 breeders in North America so I imagine it must be difficult to reserve a dog, but at the same time this breed seems very unknown for the most part to most people.

4) I live in an apartment, and am soon moving to one that has huge lawns and running trails. Every breeder I've looked at so far strongly encourages (or even requires) a fenced yard to even consider me as an applicant. Do you think it would be possible to find a breeder that would be willing to sell me a Shikoku, or should I just give up my quest now until I get my own place someday? At the moment, "settling" for a different breed isn't an option since I have my eyes set on a Shikoku.

I have more questions but these will do for now. Thank you!

How many of you have a Shikoku Ken that cleans their house for them?

brada1878 — Tue, 04 May 2010 23:58:05 -0400

We do :oP

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Kekko spam

tini — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 20:39:11 -0400

Finally there is no snow anymore and I could take some pictures. Here is Kekko a bit more mature, he is 1 year old now.

2010 America's Family Pet Expo (So.Cal)

ShikokuSpirit — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 22:48:36 -0500

It's that time of year again! This will be the 2nd year Beikoku Shikoku Ken Aikokai will be putting on the Shikoku Ken booth at America's Family Pet Expo.

This is the schedule:

Set-up / Exhibit Hours / Move-out

Wednesday, April 14 12:30 pm - 6:00 pm Set-up
Thursday, April 15 8:00 am - 8:00 pm Set-up
Friday, April 16 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Expo
Saturday, April 17 10:00 am -7:00 pm Expo
Sunday, April 18 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Expo
Sunday, April 18 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm Move Out
Monday, April 19 8:00 am - 12:00 pm Move Out

website: Pet Expo in Costa Mesa

I need to know how many of you will be interested and able to volunteer booth hours. As volunteer you must be informed about the breed, you will be asked TONS of questions! A breed overview guide will be available to volunteers and can be given in advanced as a study guide.

Shifts hours:

- All day (with 1 hour lunch break)
- Half day (10am-2pm or 2pm-6pm)
Or
- In 2 hour intervals (ex. 10am-12pm, 12pm-2pm, 2pm-4pm, 4pm-6pm)

And of those who chose to volunteer, how many of you will be bringing a Shikoku?
Events like this do put a lot of pressure on a dog, so if your Shikoku is good with meeting lots of people and hanging out in a very active, busy, possibly crowded environment then please bring your dog! Wire crates will be available to provide your dog with a break or "time out" from all the commotion.

Volunteer Application

Full Name:
Days Available: (Friday, Saturday or Sunday or All Days)
Hours/Shifts Wanted:
Bringing a Shikoku?

You may post your "Volunteer Application" in this very thread!

Thanks! Your help will be greatly appreciated!

- Corina A. Gonzalez
BSKA President

been MIA for awhile but im back, with an addition to the family :)

lingmorton — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 12:22:42 -0400

Hi all,

Sorry been MIA for awhile. have had a lot going on here, work, getting ready for the big move to SD, nikki being diagnosed withh HD, and lastly, our new addition to the family.

Meet Odin, the Shikoku.
We got him from a breeder here in Kanagawa Japan, after a 2year wait.
Got to meet the mummy, grandma, grandpa and uncle too when i picked him up last Mon. His papa is from Oita in Kyushu Japan.

Odin's mummy

Odin's grandma

Odin's grandpa