Car-Dude,
Both my wife and I grew up on farms with large dogs and know people with Labs, Rotties, Golden retreivers, Collies, Border Collies, Pits, Great Danes, and of course..Mutts.
They all wanted us to get what they had, but we didn't want our yard totally destroyed, and poop the size of a cow-pie. I did a lot of research to find a suitable breed for us and kept coming back to the Shiba because of the reputation of being a large dog in a small package, the double coat, the fact the breed is totally unaltered, easy to groom, generally quiet, and he is a very clean dog. We visited a couple different breeders, went to dog shows and just fell in love with the Shiba and knew it was for us.
We have had him for about a month now and just adore the little guy, the picture I posted was the day we brought him home. He is an absolute blast, whether he's running around in the snow outside, dragging his toys around the house, or just being a goof. I can see how they can be addicting, this is not a fragile little lap dog, this is definatly a big dog in a small package, I already want another one.
I will be sure to keep you in mind for advice if needed since you obviously have a lot of experience with them. So far things are great and I know we made the right choice. Most of our friends and family were skeptical about us getting a "little dog", but he has won over everyone he meets. To see him play with my grumpy 81 yr old father who hates almost everything is really something to behold. He can reduce dad to a giggling kid in about 30 seconds.
Take care,
Ken
