Shiba's & Smaller Dogs

sarahnya

Hi there, I've been thinking about adding a Shiba to the family for a couple of years now and decided to go for it however I had a rather disturbing email from one of the breeders I mailed. I have two Chihuahuas one of 12 years and one of 5, I advised this in my mail and one came back to me and said she would advise against a Shiba as she knew of 2 cases where the Shiba had actually killed the Chi!

Only one of the breeders of the 6 or so I emailed said this would be a problem, does anyone else here keep smaller breeds alongside Chi's?

I now have big fears about getting a Shiba as I can't watch them 24/7 :(

Leonberger

I'm not living with a Shiba, so I can't help you much on that. Bt what I know is they have high prey drives, and maybe an adult Shiba that hasn't been raised with your Chihuahuas would get all hunter on them. It would be a lot better, in my opinion, if the Shiba is raised with your dogs from an early age to see them as part of the pack. This is pretty much basic, probably someone living with a Shiba will be able to give better advice.

scarlet

Both Shibas and Chihauhuas can be possessive and territorial. I see a potential problem, especially with the age of your little ones and the dogs not growing up together. The Chi's are grounded in their own space. Most Shibas want to control and issues may arise, especially when the Shiba matures and refuses to allow dominance from the Chi.

tsukitsune

well shibas have naturally high prey drives and can be dog aggressive so if you cannot guarentee temperment I'd never leave them on their own together if I couldn't watch them during the day. I think their prey drive is higher for non canine animals (cats, rodents, birds), but you never know.

shibas are controlling, but they also have great respect and loyalty for their pack leader, and being a benevolent leader enables you to control them with mutual respect, I can't speak for a chihuahua, i've never had one, but I would imagine they are as heard headed as a shiba but also have the potential for respect and loyalty for a leader as a shiba does. I am continuously working on this!!!

I have shibas - my mother has an 11 year old rat terrier/chihuahua mix - our dogs have interacted for short time periods and there have been no issues.
Shibas have the potential of being very rough during play - perhaps that breeder (or whoever it was) wasn't controlling their dogs and the chi got an unfortunate bite during rough play. I'm sure it happens, my shibas give each other accident knicks here and there.
You would probably have success starting either from a pup and letting your dogs set their boundaries early on with a less rough/aggressive pup or introducing an older non dominant or submissive adult shiba into your pack.

so to answer your immediate question - my shibas did not do any harm to my mother's small dog - but that dog is very snarky and set boundaries right away for the shibas, it may be a different scenario if they shared a living space, but probably not.

ivanmeza03

.....its all about the Shiba, if you raise your shiba sorrounded by chihuahuas i think theres any problem at all, its like "having 2 dogs of the same sex"..... if you raise two males/females from puppies, then when they grow up they should not have any problem... thats my point of view....

BradA1878

First off, welcome to the forum!

I agree with Ivan on this one, you will just need to be diligent about socializing your Shiba with your Chis and make sure you are getting a Shiba from a reputable breeder that temperament tests their pups so that you can get the best puppy matched to your situation. I would go with a less-dominant Shiba pup.

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JessicaRabbit

Brad and Ivan hit the nail on the head. I have a male shiba who has played with plenty of little dogs and he does pretty well. Being that you would be starting with a puppy he or she will grow up knowing the chi's. As long as YOU stay in control of the situation you should be fine. As Brad can tell you from personal experience, size has almost nothing to do with which dog is the alpha dog. His smallest dog Kaia, runs the show.

I would also STRONGLY suggest crating them (in seperate crates obviously) when you aren't with them.

Oh and Welcome by the way.

tobyshiba

Even if you get a less-dominant Shiba pup or not, Shibas play rough, and you wouldn't want to risk having a playful 25 lb Shiba sit on and play rough on your 6 or so lb Chihuahua. Even my Shiba enjoys playing with the larger dogs more than little ones. He always sits on little dogs, and mouths them, and rolls onto them and plays similar with them as he does with like the larger dogs that are 80-100+ lbs. And even my puppy has been socialized with all dogs, big and small. Hes going on 6 months of age.

I'm actually afraid for my cat's life, somewhat. Toby plays very, very rough with him. I discourage it, but when i'm not home or around, my parents don't really do much about it. They think its funny, but Toby always goes for his neck and I get really scared, because he has lots more teeth and could possibly suffocate my cat to death.

Heidi

The last time my shiba saw a little dog at the dog park, he was actually scared of it, lol. Funny, because he has no problem flying up in the face of any number of gigantic dogs.

Anyway, I agree that if you raise them together they will be fine.

okiron

IMO owning a chi and a shiba is just like owning a chi and any other bigger dog. You'll have to make sure the bigger dog is careful and doesn't get too rough regardless of its breed.

I mean, if you have a 3 year old toddler and a 3 month old infant, the 3 year old can accidentally kill the infant if you're not watching them. It's not gonna keep you from keeping both your children though. You learn to work with it. Only difference there is that the infant will eventually grow large enough to fend for themselves while the chi wont get any bigger.

sarahnya

Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to interrogate the breeder when I go to view the pups this weekend, it will also give me chance to check out the puppies (there are 2) temperament. I have already got a large crate that I was going to use to train the puppy initially so I could split them up when I'm not in but I don't like the idea of leaving either one confined for too long.

Sarah

StaticNfuzz

Hi Sarah,

Welcome….Thanks for asking and thinking about this issue now. Each Shiba is different. Probably the breeder you spoke with being caution knowing her own animals and their to head off problems at the pass.

Your Chihuahuas are much smaller and as senior citizens that deserve the room to live peacefully in retirement without being harassed by over zealous Shiba puppy antics, if they do not wish to interact. If the Chih’s were younger I would be less concerned.

If you do decide to bring a Shiba pup home, as suggested by others, you will need to manage the integration and interactions carefully until the newcomer learns some manners. This can take a lot of time on your part as most Shiba pups do not mature until 15 months of age or older and tend to push the envelope in some cases particularly with weaker or more vulnerable animals.

Don’t be afraid to use a crate to help you out in attaining peace and safety when you can not monitor both when you are at home AND when you are away.

As an example my female Shibas are gentle with smaller dogs and pretty much hold their own with most well socialized dogs of any size. They are well socialized and great pains have been made to keep them that way. But they do not like all other dogs, picking and choosing who the want to interact with. They do like to rule the roost and will act out when their authority is questioned within the pack. When Brad’s Kaya was here, she was lowest of the pack. In Brad’s situation Kaya is the most dominant. So it goes to show you one can not predict how the behavior will be with any given dog prior to entry into the group if a Shiba is involved. Have your Chihuahuas met Shibas on their turf and outside say at the park? How did that go? How are you Chihuahuas with neighborhood dogs?

It will probably take more work on your part in this case (adding a shiba) given, age, breed and size difference between the dogs. Think carefully when best to bring in a newcomer. It might seem a great idea for you but maybe not so good for your seniors. Going to visit the breeder is a really good idea to find out more though. Is the breeder willing to take the pup back if things don’t work out?

Enjoy your visit and find out as much as you can about the breeder.

Snf

Victoria

Hi Sarah. I have a nine months old Pomeranian which has CONSTANTLY been around with his playmate, a Shiba. He's also surprised me by playing with a full-grown retriever when we were hanging out at a park. I've been making him sociable with dogs, cats, kids and adults around him and we're even thinking about either having an Akita Inu or a Kuvasz. Of course, we're getting a puppy so we can socialize her with our Pom and cat, and also taking it to obedience classes. I'd put my pom in the crate when I'm not home if I have to protect the little ones. Or vice versa.

Hope this helps.