Nam-Nam! Congratumalations! Im glad she's here in NE, so maybe I can meet her sometime! :)

you say small and i think normal (Sachi size and nikki is actually bigger). I like the third picture from the last her tail is finishing a wag.

Thank you, guys!

I guess Nami is pretty "normal sized" as far as the other breeds go, but I think she's a small Kishu. She's also my smallest dog by far, so she seems pocket-sized! :p

We had another busy day juggling dogs. I took the boys out for a walk earlier. I wanted to take Nami and TK, but she was being pretty argumentative earlier and I wanted it to be a good experience for everyone.

I took her to my grandmother's house to do some things for mother's day. She met my family and my brother's friends and was super sweet with everyone. She met my oldest cat (Joey) who was decidedly very boring to her--she tried to chase her and snarl at her and get Joey to run, but when Joey did nothing, Nami settled down and forgot about her.

She likes my brother's dog, Russell, but about an hour into our visit, a door slammed and scared her a bit. She didn't settle down after that and ended up taking it out on poor Russell. They didn't get at each other, but she went for him in a hurry!

So now we're home. I think Nami is going to nap and I'll just take her out on a walk later tonight when its cooler.

Here's the pretty girl.

Congrats! She's so gorgeous.

Thanks, all! :D



Day number three went by pretty well. Nami continues to do amazingly with people. She's a little leery at first, but never snappish, and doesn't startle easy. She just wants to know what people are about before they touch all over her, which is cool!

She did, however, try to eat my oldest cat when we visited my grandmother's house. The cat was right behind the door when I opened it and Nami just went for her. Me, being dumb, stuck my leg in the way and ended up getting bit... and Nami was pretty stressed out after that, so we had to leave.

She ran mother's day errands with me and my boyfriend - we alternated Nami-watch with each stop so she got out to explore. She always seems very curious and eager to understand her setting. She's outgoing and fairly easy-going as well.

Found out that she seems to have a high toy drive right now, so I hope she keeps it! I'd like to do something with her that challenges her and gets the breed out there... looking at agility, flyball, and nosework right now.

I could not get her to get in the Jeep with my Malamute this evening for a jog, even though he was in the boot and I was trying to put her up front with me. She got in the seat and immediately began snarling at him. He didn't react, but I was worried she was going to launch herself over the seat to get to him and ended up leaving her home.

She has, on the bright side, stopped reacting to London in the house. She also doesn't react to my Siamese, but she doesn't much care for TK and likes to try and spook my other cat.

For day three, I think she did well. I suspect things will get worse before they get better. She'll probably be separated from the household for a while longer.

I did put the cats and the boys away to let her wander around our living room (the room that connects the whole apartment). She was really stiff and tense during her first round, but quickly found London's toy hoard and got busy with some bones. I let her keep one.

I'm going out to meet a friend of a friend who is interested in the Japanese breeds tomorrow. Nami and TK will be coming with me so she can meet a Shikoku and a Kishu - I just have to crate Nami while she's in the Jeep. We'll be going for a hike after the initial meet... but I'm not sure I'll bring Nami. We'll see how she does. Everything is very experimental and flexible right now.

She is so pretty! And I am glad she is finally home. :)

I didn't update yesterday, but I did meet up with a friend to take Nami, TK, and her two Akita mixes on a "hike" through the woods. I forgot my camera card, so she used her card in my camera to snap some pictures. Hopefully I can post some of those up later today.

Nami does VERY WELL out and about. She is not reactive to other dogs beyond the initial meet-and-greet (which really could have been TK's fault because he's reactive to everything). She is reactive only when she is in her crate or in a closed space in general (car, house, etc). Outside, where she's comfortable, she's a totally different animal! I hope we see a little more of that once she starts to get used to everything.

Here she is, post-hike and post-swim, looking very tired.

Nami went to lunch with me and London today, then, after a nap, she went out with TK and I.

She's doing well. Getting better with the dogs inside the house. She's more focused on the cats now, but I had her on the lead in the house on the couch with me tonight and she did pretty well - ignored them after a couple minutes. I'm cautiously optimistic. I don't think I'll ever be able to trust her in the house alone with them, though. (That's okay! That's what baby gates and crates are for!)

Here's a picture update.

@Crispy! Come back here and explain that new development!

And can I say, I thought she looked a bit distended in the pics!

I wasn't planning on making the announcement until they were here, but Nami was bred to Taro and the pregnancy was confirmed on Monday. We're expecting 5 puppies right now.

@zandrame - That's ok! It's on FaceBook. I just didn't want to get everyone excited before I knew how many puppies we really had and what their deets were. :)

It was not an intentional breeding, but she was only around Taro, so the puppies will be purebred and NIPPO registered. She's about 6-7 weeks along.

Nami looks great love the TK play pic. hehe

Wow, she's beautiful.

Great pics! I really like the last two. Is that a normal spot for their toys (in the second to last picture). I hadn't thought of something like that to put toys on outside so they aren't just sitting out in the way of everything.

Ahh! It looks like congratulations are in order!!!!! :-D That was quite fast!

That was fast! I hope things are going well with the new additions! :)
Will you post updates on their development here, or a new thread? I would definitely like to follow along.

I'm actually curious about the kishu color genetics now. (I'm not sure if there is a better thread for this.) I was not expecting the pups to be white, so that's interesting.

I'm not a geneticist, though... and no expert.

Here are puppies. :)

Great response, thanks! Since I didn't know what color Nami's parents are, I didn't think about her being a carrier. Then the Punnett square is simple, Ee x ee = 2 Ee and 2 ee. 50/50.

Puppies! They are so pink! And Nami looks so sleepy :)

@Valkyrii - now that they're sleeping. :p

@zandrame - yep! There could be other things that affect the white coloration or the frequency of colored dogs, but I think it's simply the frequency of white in the genepool.

@Bootz - It's my first litter. It was a big surprise! I was a little scared with the first pup because Nami did not do anything for it. I think she was panicking - and i'm sure I wasn't making it better by staring at her. I watched this alive and wriggling puppy start to go limp before I stepped in and ripped the sack and took over for her. I had to do all of them except the very last one, but she was good to them after I got them cleaned up. :)

I didn't realize the puppies were due so soon! Congratulations!

She is so pretty. Does she look thin because she is out of coat?

That's good. :) Even with a thing coat and a little weight loss she's still a pretty girl. Love her face.

She looks a little like an Egyptian queen. There's something regal about her posture and in her eyes.

I've posted these all over FB but I figured I'd share here.

Nami and I attended our first lure coursing event today. It was an open field when I got there and I didn't notice until after I registered her to run so it was pretty stressful to put so much trust in her when I'd hardly worked in recall with her, but that ended up being the least of our problems today, lol.

Nami was actually rather bored of the lure. Her first run, she went faster in a sprint than I think the operator gave her credit for - she cut the lure off and tripped over it when she tried to catch it and became distracted after that. I got her to finish and then it took me a bit to get her back - she kept jogging around and trying to sniff around for something better to chase after, I think.

Her second run went better and she was into it for the first two turns, but started becoming disinterested in the third turn. By the fourth turn, she was still going, but was much less enthusiastic about the whole thing. She came right back to me on her second run with a bit of coaxing and waited to get leashed up.

She won one ribbon today, so she'll need two more before she has that "CAT" after her name. I think I'll do it again with her to see if it's the right thing for her - she was definitely more interested on her second run, so maybe she'll get into it. I dunno.

I'm really proud of her, regardless of anything, and it was a fun thing to experience together.

That's pretty cool! It probably wasn't as exciting for her since she's used to hunting real animals. And the operator needs to do their job to keep the lure interesting.

But yay! Would she be the first Kishu to get a title?

Ms. Nami...

Nami went off-leash for the first time the other day. She did pretty well. She was very responsive if I was within 20 feet. If I was outside of that range, she'd stop and turn and see where I was at, but she would not come to me. I think she'll be all set for hiking in the spring (I do very little hiking in the winter, or she might be ready for woodsy off-lead hikes sooner.)

SO HAPPY. The tongue kills me.

Great story, and yay Nami! It's ok if she randomly decides to not like a particular dog...it may not be as random as you think (or maybe it is...you know how some people just give you a bad vibe for no reason?)

I'm glad she did so well with everyone, and she looks so pleased with herself :) Except for when she was waiting for you to get coffee...Nami says "oh woooe is me!" xP

Awe, i wish i could meet her! In every picture i just want to squeeze her face. (not sure how she would feel about that haha)

Nami update!









I want to take a nice picture of me with the dogs, but this is all you get for now.

Are those wrinkles on her forehead or an illusion of her coloration? I want to touch....

Love that coloring!!!

Thanks, guys. I'm very lucky to have her. :)

@shishiinu - Once I get to Oregon, a road trip to southern California will get on the schedule. :(

Awesome, maybe a trip to a pig rich area to get her back to her roots?

Tiny Nami - she's shedding all her coat recently. She and my Malamute.









Fionna giving mom some sass.


Not a fancy camera picture, but this is pretty much how Nami is.
I got up for a second to go get food after starting a movie and she jumped in my grave with her favorite toy. We watched the movie together, naturally.


I'm so happy to have her. She is such a great companion and outdoorsdog. She loves doing anything and everything.

Nami sheds her coat in January? So does Meitou! It seems really weird to me.

Naked Nami disliked the blizzard, but she's getting used to the snow.

I haven't updated Nami in a LONG TIME. We recently moved (beginning of March) to Portland, Oregon, and she's been having fun with me exploring every muddy, forested, mountain-y area we have had the opportunity to, so far. She's also a pro when it comes to visiting city center.

Here she is!

@WhoBitMe - Nami and I go ALL over. She's a really good people-dog, so I can trust her outside if I have to tie her for a little bit. I always tie her where I can see her because I'm super paranoid of people stealing my dogs (people have made attempts with my Malamute in the past)... but we've mostly been exploring PSU campus, but we made it to Chinatown, the riverwalk, and all over on Sunday!

@WhoBitMe - TK would not do well with people if I left him out, either. Don't feel bad. :(

Some newer ones of Nami:

Miss Nami.

Some recent ones of Nami. I took her out yesterday and we had a lot of fun.









I also have this, which is probably my favorite headshot of her... this isn't a great version, tho...

We need to establish a Kishu transportation program. I'm sure Nami would love to hunt again. :(

She was so good yesterday, off leash. She bounced off into the brush and all we could hear was a little Kishu with a bell, bounce-bounce-bouncing in the brush. She came right back when I called her and was all smiles. The only reason I kept the long line on her at all was because I had Finn and my roommate and Finn is a resource guarder. It's good I did have the long line, because I had to step in and stop her from removing Finn's face when he tried to go at her over a fish spine on the beach. She stopped when I asked her to stop and backed off - she's really a great dog, even when she doesn't *want* to do something, she still minds me really well.

Just a few more of Nami.

She had some GI issue recently we couldn't really identify except to say that her intestines appeared inflamed. During this time (about a week, a little less), she was inappetent and not drinking water, so we were in and out of work getting fluids. She seemed to perk up after a number of days, though, and hasn't had issues since. It was very strange. :\

At my sister's place in Seattle


Sauvie Island, Oregon.

That cutie face. I'm glad she's doing better! :)

Miss that Nami. She's doing so good. Thank you for taking such good care of her.

Nami on one of our favorite hikes. It's close in Portland and there are rarely people there.

She's still so pretty! :x