| Adoption status: Adopted! |
Hello everyone! My new name is now Arigato and it means, ‘Thank you very much’ in Japanese. I am a 10-month-old, male red Shiba Inu. My owners surrendered me to DC SIR on Thanksgiving because I have some leash reactivity and my parents are going to have human kids of their own. I am thankful for a place to go where I will receive reward-based training! They work with a lot of reactive dogs and have amazing success using humane, science-based training methods.
I first met a DC SIR volunteer and neutral dog at my assessment and the volunteers thought I did great. With a proper introduction, I was able to play very nicely with the DC SIR neutral dog. I also did great on my body-handling assessment. My parents did a great job teaching me lots of tricks, so I already know things like, ‘sit’, ‘down,’ ‘paws up,’ ‘roll-over,’ ‘spin,’ and more! DC SIR will focus on my manners while on leash. When I got to Shiba HQ, I got to explore the yard on my own. After some time, I got to see my friend from the assessment, neutral dog Katniss. I was happy to see her and we got along right away. I soon met the other dogs at Shiba HQ.
I was a little growly with the new dogs but soon realized everyone was getting rewarded for positive greetings. Soon I was running and playing with the other pups! I’m so fast that no one could catch me! Not even Shiro who is the fastest dog at Shiba HQ. I even learned to use the doggie door in under an hour! My foster took me for a bath after I settled in. I wasn’t thrilled about being bathed, but the volunteer came in the shower with me and took her time to make me comfortable. I felt real good after the bath and got the zoomies all over the place! Follow my journey with DC SIR to learn what the best fit home for my personality and needs will be!
Here are some updates on his assessment while in foster care. Arigato does excellent with friendly playful dogs off-leash while in foster care. He has great canine social skills. Arigato is food motivated and loves to learn! Arigato knows a lot of basic manners (sit, down, paw, hands up, high-five). Arigato has made a lot of progress with his leash reactivity but we keep him in low-criteria walks to ensure we set him up for success. Arigato has had one marking incident while in foster care when he first arrived, but no other soiling issues. Arigato tends to chase cats. He rides well in a car and likes to go on adventures. He has not been destructive in the home. Arigato loves to de-stuff plush toys and will eviscerate all that he can find!
Email adoption@dcsir.org and tell them that you’d like to adopt Arigato!
Training is of paramount importance to our rescue. If you do not read the required training material, the Adoption Associate will end the call. Please be considerate of our volunteers’ time and make sure you read the process and information about Arigato. He will require a training contract with a force free trainer. For more information about reactivity, check out our reactivity resource page.
Location: Local (DC/MD/VA)
Dogs: Yes
Cats: No
Kids: 12+
Weight: 16lbs
DOB is 12/31/15
Basics on working with leash reactivity
1. Build trust and a bond with dog
2. Practice attention and recall before venturing out
3. Reward the desired behavior (that means NOT reacting to stimuli (dogs/ppl/etc)
4. Timing is everything
5. Training should be fun!