Drama-Queen Dogs

The ear muffs aren't for warmth, they are to block out Hayate's complaining

Shiba are well-known drama queens. The “shiba scream” is a breed trait familiar to all humans who live with shiba. If you haven’t had the joy of hearing it, listen to this video (skip forward to around 4:15). I guarantee you this dog is not being hurt or harmed in anyway.

We bought a book about shiba before we got Hayate, and it said to be very careful to treat illnesses seriously because shiba are a stoic breed who won’t show how much pain they are in. This may be true when they are seriously ill, but it definitely wasn’t true in any of the incidents we’ve experienced with Hayate. After Hayate was neutered he acted as though he was dying. Because of the cone he couldn’t scratch his face, and he would cry and eventually shiba-scream unless I scratched it for him whenever he got an itch. Yes, I literally slept on the floor beside him so I could “nurse” him until the cone came off (don't be fooled by the picture, the man spent a bout five minutes in there then gave up and left me to it). Then there was drinking. He could drink from his bowl just fine with the cone on, but he felt that it was unbecoming. So he required his water to be delivered into his mouth via a dropper. He also refused to walk or urinate for the first three days. Since I was (very painfully) aware of how much water he had been drinking I got pretty freaked out by day three, so we decided to take him back to the vet. The Mr carried him in his arms, because we thought the bicycle might jolt him around too much (this was before we had the car). About five minutes down the road, while cradled against the loving bosom of the aforementioned man, Hayate decided that he could pee after all.  Three days’ worth. All down the front of the now considerably less loving Mr.

When we arrived at the vet I explained the terrible pain Hayate appeared to be experiencing that prevented him from walking or peeing (when not being carried, at least). Our long-suffering vet listened patiently, then told me to put Hayate down on the ground. Hayate likes our vet as a person but hates The Vet as a place and experience. The second I put him down on the ground he bolted for the door at top speed. “He seems fine” the vet commented mildly.

This video was taken about half an hour before dinner time (we feed him in his travel crate). Although he sounds like he is starving to death, keep in mind this was his second meal of the day and he gets fed at exactly the same time every day so he knew full well it wasn’t dinner time yet.