Welcome to the home page of Performance Shibas! This is the site for our Shiba Inus - Nakitama Akiashi Tentetsu "Kita", Hi-Jinx Black Reign "Taiko", Hi-Jinx Fade to Black "Katsu", and Saskatchewan Trail's Legend "Legend." These four Shiba are owned by the Hewitt family and enjoy participating in rally, obedience, agility, therapy work and many other fun events.
Shiba inus are not necessarily known to be a performance breed, but we have found that although they do not necessarily learn and perform tasks like other breeds, they need to have something to do. Working their minds is an important aspect of having Shibas one can live with. By training and competing with them in our many activities and venues we are able to customize their training towards their strengths and minimize their weaknesses.
We actively compete in seven different venues: United Kennel Club, American Kennel Club, United States Dog Agility Association, Canine Performance Events, North American Dog Agility Council, American Pet Dog Trainers, and Australian Shepherd Club of America. Our initial goal was to try all the available venues to see what they offered and then specialize in one. Fortunately, we have found that all organizations allow us to test different skill sets and all are fun to play in. Some we have more success in than others at this point in our career, but all provide us a place to have fun working our dogs and enjoying time with them.
Our family tries to incorporate the animals into our lives every single day. We go on walks together as a family, everyone is welcome to come to the various classes and activities we do, and trips typically include our dogs. Our children give the dogs and cat commands to follow just as we do and the dogs are expected to comply- with possibly an extra hand signal thrown in to help with the translation from a new handler. Neither of our children have shown an interest to be in ther performance ring themselves to date. They won't be stopped if they want to, but they won't be pressured into it either. It's their path to find and follow if they choose it. It is not ours to force upon them.
Kita, Taiko, Katsu, and now Legend are wonderful ambassadors showing what Shiba Inus are capable of doing. They may get a few extra "style" points in each ring they compete in, but there's always treats and a good laugh after every event.
To work with a Shiba you must have a willingness to be cooperative and take their unique personalities and work with them. They are not a dog that will allow you to be lazy. They are independant, aloof and stubborn, but in a good way.