The Shiba Inu is famous as a walking expression pack and also as a breed that is stubborn and difficult to train. Some people even say that the Shibas personality feels more like a cats than a dogs, and there is some truth in that comparison. The Shiba is not especially clingy, has a strong independent streak, and often prefers to act according to its own ideas. Many times it seems indifferent even to its owner, and anyone thinking of raising one should understand this clearly in advance.
Shiba personality
The Shiba has a fairly independent character. Compared with many other dogs, it is not especially attached in a clingy way. Because it is naturally watchful, it tends to show emotion mainly toward people it already knows and respects, while keeping some distance from others. This stubbornness becomes especially obvious on walks. If the Shiba decides it is tired and does not want to continue, it may simply sit down and refuse to move. The owner can pull all they like, and the dog may still stay perfectly still. Anyone who wants a deeply warm and constantly affectionate dog should think carefully before choosing a Shiba.
The Shiba is hard to train
The very same personality that makes the Shiba unique also makes training difficult. The best window for training usually falls between about three and four months of age, when the body is already stronger, the organs more mature, and bad habits have not yet become fixed. If formal training is delayed until after six months, both the difficulty and the intensity required may rise noticeably.
Even at the ideal training age, a Shiba is not especially easy to train. A very bright and cooperative dog may understand a command after five repetitions, but a Shiba may need twenty before it learns the same thing. Sometimes it will seem to learn one day and forget the next, forcing the owner to start again. And even when it does understand a skill, whether it chooses to perform may still depend on its mood. That single trait alone is enough to exhaust many owners.