Shio vs. Lamby

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Shio's favorite toy has recently been Lamby. Every time we sit down to watch TV, he will bring Lamby over and ask that we play fetch with him. In fact, Shio loves this toy so much that he "rescued" it from the top of our dresser, where we purposely kept Lamby away from Shio because he was ripping out all the insides.

(Shio never tries to take stuff off tables.)

Unfortunately, Lamby is approaching its end-of-life...

We will soon say "Goodbye" to this toy, but man did Shio love it.

Photos taken with D700, Zeiss 50mm f/1.4 ZF. I haven't taken pictures with this combo, and have forgotten how creamy the bokeh is...!!

Shio's Current Favorite Toy

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It's amazing that J and I will spend good money on toys that we think Shio will love but the ones he loves are the cheapest toys in his toy box.

He currently loves the Petco toy that I bought for him as a compulsive, last minute buy. It is a plush sheep squeaky ball that I bought for a couple of bucks but it's actually really nicely designed.

As you may already know, Shio absolutely adores all his squeaky toys, especially if it is a squeaky ball. This toy not only squeaks when you deflate it, but it also squeaks as it is reinflates itself. The rubber ball on the inside keeps the toy intact from his destructive self while keeping the plushness of a soft toy with the fleecy outside. It is also incredibly adorable. I love the smile on the sheep's face as I chuck the ball for Shio to fetch.

Overall a great buy. We will have to wait and see how long it will keep his interest for.

Shio @ 16 months

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I actually had to sit here and count how many months old he is... which means that its just about time to stop calculating the months! Let's see... updates from February until now...

- Allergies are back! We've determined that he has seasonal allergies, just like his human daddy. I have two sneezy and snotty men in my life. :)

- Shio likes to grab his toys with his mouth and smush them into our legs as his way of beckoning us to play with him.

- Since I'm at home a lot more than Josh, Shio is actually very clingy towards me in the way that Shibas can be clingy. This means that he will become anxious and stared at the door I walked out of until I return or look for me after I walk away from him.

- We learned a couple of new tricks: "Play dead" and "beg".

- He is a bit afraid of dog runs/Shibas now. Since the incident in the Union Square dog run, he is much more hesitant about walking into a new dog park. During the last Shiba meetup, he was not as friendly has he used to be and even got into a fight with an intact male Shiba. I'm not sure if he's afraid of dog runs, Shibas, or both.

- He's been testing his limits. He keeps on trying to jump on the couch even though he knows that he's not allowed to. Of course, there's also the lay down protests during his daily walks.

- He will sleep til 10am. Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!! We haven't had an accident since January. Yayyyyyyy!!!!

- We are shedding. And we don't stop. Ever.

That's about it. Happy 16 months Shio!

Shio @ 14 months

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I've realized that I have neglected to update this blog with the monthly changes that Shio has gone through as he progresses into adulthood. Last time I wrote about the monthly updates was when Shio was 10 months old (how embarassing!) so let's list the changes from then up until now.

- Shio has significantly calmed down since October. When J and I are busy at home, he will entertain himself with the toys that are lying on the ground and not bother us at all.

- The morning wake up calls have ceased and he will now walk into the bedroom (we hear the "tap tap tap" from his nails walking on the hardwood floors) to check up on us. He makes sure we're still alive and breathing and walk out the after he sees that we are still asleep. No more jumping on the bed.

- I can sleep til 10am without feeling guilty about not waking up at 8am to drag him out for a potty break. Yes, I've been pushing my limits. :X

- He's been telling hyper-active puppies off like a grumpy old man when they jump in his face.

- Thanks to proper exercise in Central Park in the mornings, Shio has trimmed down around his waist and his Shiba tummy tuck and leg muscles are showing. He is a big and healthy Shiba - the vet clocked him in at 29 lbs during our annual visit last week.

- His face has lightened and shows little blackness around the snout. The eyebrows have also disappeared. This is what he looked like when we picked him up: http://www.shiotheshiba.com/blog/?p=194

- The amount of loyalty that he has shown to J and I has increased exponentially. He trusts very few people and rarely lets a stranger pet him without shying away.

- No more testing his limits and boundaries.

- We had our last potty accident in January. The end of February will mark (haha) the first full month where we have not had an accident. For us, potty training was much tougher than anticipated.

- No more tearing up every rug he sees! Paper is another story however.

We love him more and more every day. He's such a wonderful dog.