Donna, DJ’s foster mom, told us that in the last month DJ has become even MORE affectionate and loyal to her. He also likes to zoom and do the Shiba 500 through the house. Sounds like DJ is a very very happy dog.

He has free roam now during the day and night, which has made him a better dog. He still barks alot, still working on that, he always barks at something. He does have issues with doors and door ways he tends to get snappy when he is trying to protect the door, doing away with confining him has helped a lot.

DJ still will protect something he deems high value to him, no toys or food, just objects. Donna and her family are working with him on this issue. He has to learn to give and drop things without any hostility.

However, DJ is friendly with dogs, people, and seems to be good with children. He’s also a very happy go-lucky dog most of the time and seems to be a sensitive guy. He shows guilt and knows when he’s done something that is not acceptable. He’s very smart and mimics commands that he sees other dogs do, so he learns from the “pack.” Currently, Donna is teaching him to go on his bed on command.

DJ is a sweetheart and his foster mom told us he’s very happy and likes to play in the yard and has a great time at the dog park. He likes to chew on nylabones and is calming down, not barking as much, and is friendly with other pets.

He’s friendly and affectionate and overall a joy to have around. He still begs for food and his foster family is working with him to modify this behavior. They are also reinforcing and teaching some new commands and tricks to him such as sit, stay, come, and high five!

DJ’s barking is still an issue that they are working on and as he becomes calmer it seems he’s starting to bark less at people walking by the house and anything else that he felt needed to be brought to his fosters’ attention. DJ is a good dog and is going to be ready for adoption soon.

DJ’s foster mom told us that he’s getting a shinier coat and went to the vet recently to get his yearly shots. He was exceptionally good and sat in the waiting room nice and patiently, and was very good with the vet.

His foster mom, Donna, describes him as a happy go lucky boy who still has a lot of puppy-like traits and sometimes does things that aren’t acceptable like stealing food from a plate on the table. She’s been working with him on modifying this behavior. He also sometimes chews on items that aren’t his toys.

DJ does guard some of his toys and will get a little nippy if you try to take it from him. He also still whines when he’s crated and knows you haven’t left the house yet. However, he’s become very very good on walks and has shown more confidence with exploring the outdoors. He’s friendly with other dogs, people, and seems to be good with meeting children.

He’s vocal and will bark at things and whine when it’s dinner time but overall he’s learning to be a good dog and Donna is enjoying fostering him.

DJ’s foster mom, Donna, told us that he’s a very happy and lively guy. He’s smart and a quick learner. DJ has been doing well with basic commands and doesn’t bark at the fence as much as he did last month. He’s also very friendly to other dogs that he meets at the dog park and loves going there.

DJ is vocal, like many shibas, and carries on a conversation with her and her husband if they keep talking to him or asking him questions. She said it’s very cute. The only thing they are trying to work on now is his excitement barking when they come home. He doesn’t always stop when they’ve entered the house and he sometimes cries in the morning when they leave for work.

He has certainly improved and doesn’t show any aggression and we’ve had no reports of him guarding items or treats that are high-value to him. He is a playful dog and loves to play fetch and learn new tricks. They’ve taught him to crawl, shake hands, and spin.

DJ is doing very well in his new foster home.

His coat has gotten shinier and softer. DJ is a wonderful dog, he is very loving and loves to cuddle. He is a leaner and will push you out of the way to make himself more comfy.

He is a little mouthy but not aggressive, just playful mouthy. If you say to him kisses he will stop. We are teaching him stay and wait when at the front door. He is doing very well with training, he also comes in when called, also he can give paw and is a very fast learner. He has some issues with whining – he sits at the back fence and whines a lot, not sure what for maybe he sees our cat.

He only barks when you come home or he sees something in the yard, he does very good leash walking and loves the car and the dog park. He whines a little when you leave for work but he does not mind his crate. During the day he is in his crate, but at night he has free roam of house.

He is a much calmer dog, he sleeps very well at night no issues at all. He shakes his tails very fast and then barks at it, very funny to watch. He loves to play fetch, he will do it for hours.

DJ’s foster mom let us know that he’s a great dog. He loves to cuddle and is extremely loving. He is a leaner and will push you out of the way to make himself more comfy. He can be a little mouthy but isn’t aggressive, just playful, if she asks him to “give kisses” he will stop being mouthy.

She told us that DJ is intrigued by her cat and will watch him for hours with curiosity. He also jumps the baby gate she had set up in her house. Her family is teaching DJ some basic commands such as sit, and wait. He’s doing well and is learning to come when he’s called. He sometimes whines in the backyard and stares through the fencing. His foster mom isn’t sure if he sees a cat or something that he wants to go checkout but in the house, he’s very good and has free roam at night.

DJ sometimes whines when his foster parents leave the house but he’s overall a calm dog and has learned to shake hands and doesn’t beg as badly as he used to for food. Donna has told us he’s so cute and charismatic. It’s easy to fall for DJ.

DJ has been staying with Molly but will soon be moved to a new foster mom to see how he adapts to new environments and also to continue his training and behavior modification. Molly told us that DJ may have some allergies to some materials and recommends no bedding in the crate. We’re not sure if it’s a specific type of material or maybe dust. He went to the vet and was a very very good patient and he was heart worm tested and micro chipped.

Molly describes DJ as a happy-go-lucky kind of dog. He likes to play with other dogs but still shows some resource guarding behavior. His food agression has greatly improved but whoever adopts him must understand that they need to continue reinforcing and training DJ to not guard his food, toys, or other items he deems as “high value.” He will beg for table food and still tries to steal from the counter and tables if he thinks you’re not watching. DJ is very nice to people and gets along very well with other dogs, he also has a lot of energy and needs to be in a good routine of exercising regularly to make sure he doesn’t get “stir crazy” or bored.

DJ has a high prey drive too so he needs to be supervised when outside to make sure he doesn’t try to get out of a fenced area to chase a small animal. We hope to have more news to share about DJ next week after he’s settled into his new foster home for a few days.

Dj’s foster mom sent us a few pics of him for us to share.

Click the images to enlarge

DJ’s foster mom told us that he’s been doing great! He has some resource guarding that she is working to modify and says it’s minor in comparison to other dogs that she has worked with. It seems that maybe it was a mixture of DJ not understanding what was being asked of him and his previous owners not quite sure how to communicate.

Since he’s been with his foster mom, he’s learned to “trade” objects and he is getting better and better at it. He does have a tendency to eat his collars. This made a few of us laugh. Each dog has their funny little quirk. From our assessment, it’s a boredom thing. If he’s left alone, has no new toys to occupy his time, or just having a “meh” day he may chew on his collar, chew on an inappropriate object or pull what we call a “Bart Simpson” and act a little devious.

His foster mom told us he’s a real joy, very very playful, high energy, and needs lots of stimulation and repetition. His basic obedience training is coming along, however, his leash walking is a battle. She’s working with him to understand that dogs should walk beside their owner and that it’s not the iditarod.

DJ was born on Nov 13, 2007 and is about 26 lbs. He’s a cute ball of energy who was turned into a shelter because he bit his owner. We’re not sure of the reason why he was aggressive with his owner. The shelter has reported to us that he was sweet and fine. We wonder if maybe he did not like his owner or was scared, but we don’t know.

From our initial evaluation he’s got the typical puppy personality: jumping on people, chewing on things he’s not supposed to, wants to run and be silly, and extremely excited and energetic!

DJ is crate-trained and housebroken. He also was relaxed and didn’t seem nervous or tense when he met our volunteer and our foster has not had a problem with him. DJ gets very happy when you praise him or talk to him with a happy tone of voice. He also is a “wiggly” dog meaning his tail is always going and he fidgets like puppies tend to do… they never sit still!

He’s a good boy and will come to you if you call him, although he gets easily distracted and will quickly go to check out something else or grab a toy. He’s a great dog!

Keep checking back to learn more about him and when he will be available.