Belle-chan Reviews Terminator Salvation

This is Belle-chan, Movie Reviewer Extraordinaire.


Is there Popcorn? Extra Butter Please, no salt.



Family settles in to watch movie. Popcorn already gone.


Sorry, Dude, but you were in my way.



I think I just heard the dog across the street bark. Maybe I should check it out.


Or, maybe not.



I Am Shiba. Review? More Popcorn Needed.

A Pedigree Dog Commercial

Although The Woman considers Pedigree Dog Food to be "Fast Food" of the Dog Food World, this commercial that they did is stunning. And of course, all groundbreaking videos use a Shiba.

Watch For The Shiba



I Am Shiba. Each Of Us Is a Star.

A Reader Writes

Cortez, you disappoint me I expect, sour grapes/poor sportmanship from say the frech poodle, but not a regal dog like you, unless you do think that Shibas are the only dogs in the world, which would be very sad on your part.

In my past life, when I was a show dog, I got into trouble because I did not play by the rules of the show ring. I think that the term is "inappropriate conduct." I figured that the best way to win was to eliminate the competition. It appears that the AKC disagrees with my philosophy of making dog fighting the appropriate means for getting that blue ribbon, but still, I could have been a contender. It was just The Man holding me back (actually, it was my owner/handler who has amazing stories to tell of my childhood antics, but we just won't go there right now).

I do not think that Shiba Inus are the only dog in the world. I don't even think that we are the best dogs in the world. What would be the fun in that? I just don't think that Sadie is the best dog in the world. At the National Dog Show in January, a vote was given to the people in attendance, and it was felt from the attendees that the Labrador (albeit still the most popular canine in America for the 19th year running) was better than the Scottish Terrier. After viewing the videos and having a very decidedly strong opinion about the happy-go-lucky labs that share my neighborhood, I believe that the Labrador was a shining example of what that breed should be, and should have won.

Watching the Westminster, when shown the final contenders, I thought the Whippet- about as opposite of a Shiba Inu as one can get- looked amazing. Beautiful athletic movement with that look of "I am about to run and chase a rabbit right now if only I could get off this lead!" I was proud to see the Spitz breeds take second place in the Non-working Group (the Chinese Sharpei) and fourth in the Working Group (The Alaskan Malamute- when he started to run ahead, pulling on his lead, what better example of a sled dog is that?) which only supports my conflict with the AKC that the way that the dogs are categorized truly does need to be re-examined.

I have no sour grapes that the Shiba Inu did not win. Personally, I do not think that the one in the ring on that day showed particularly well. But I do think that there were a number of dogs who showed better than Sadie, and even in the Terrier group itself, I thought that the Norwich would win although I wished it had been the American Staffordshire Terrier because I thought he looked pretty darn good too (and I have several of those in my neighborhood of whom after seven years, we now stare at each other rather than attempt to seek out and destroy upon sight. One can learn over time). But what I do think happened is that Sadie has gotten all this attention about being so uber, and that Westminster merely said, well, we might as well give her the triple crown because she has won so much already. I just think that there were better dogs there than Sadie.

Now, on a humorous note, since my best friend is a Bichon Frise, I can make fun of him. What happens if you have a showring of these dogs and they all get loose? How can you tell them apart? We are talking white snowball chaos!




I Am Shiba. Save The Sour Grapes For The Woman's Wine.

Sadie Wins The Superbowl

Yawn.

I fail to see the excitement of this Scottish Terrier. If you line up twenty Scottish Terriers, how can you even tell them apart?

I think she got the title because they figured, well, she had won everything else, why not the Westminster as well.



I Am Shiba. I Was Cheering for the Whippet or the Tibetan Mastiff.

For Dogs and Snow

I Am Shiba. Sometimes, You Just Gotta Be A Dog Gone Wild.

Red Alert

Is a Shiba wrong if it sounds the alarm?

Today there was a delivery to our home. The Woman was stretched out on the couch, wrapped in blankets, watching a movie. Belle was stretched out snoozing next to her, taking up the other half of the couch, while I was stretched out on the floor, feeling the periodic belly rub when The Woman's hand dropped down to give me a scritchy.

It was a scene of contentment and quiet until the doorbell rang.

The delivery of the new furniture had arrived. But Belle was not to be silenced and I began to suspect that she might be right. Rather than crating us, The Woman leashed us and let the Men only enter the front room to drop the boxes. Belle maintained full howl with fur raised and lunging, but I was behind her, fur raised, face snarled. Belle was quite impressive. She seemed very serious in her determination of expressing her attitude. I, however, was not in a mood to trust. I had my head and ears down, my lips were back but I was silent. Let Belle bark. I will get you where you are not looking.

I was not amused by this disruption.

Normally, in cases like this, The Woman crates us but something made her feel uneasy. Instead, she leashed us, and we were in front of her. The delivery guys dropped off their goods, and two commented, wow, you got some wild dogs there- as Belle lunged against her leash in full bark and I paced behind, unafraid and ready..

But again, I was not amused.

The Woman was expecting the delivery but there was something different here. She did not crate us, but rather leashed us, and stood in a doorway between the kitchen and the living room, directing the delivery. She appeared nervous to me. I did not have to relay this to Belle who took the alarm to its fullest. Instead, it was us between her and the delivery men.

We may weigh 20 and 30 pounds, but trust me, we can make an impression if need be.

I don't know who the workmen feared most- Belle lunging and snapping at them or me behind her with snarl and fur raised. Even when That Guy appeared toward the end of the delivery, we did not relax until everything was over. Then we enjoyed our dinner of salmon and kibble, and called it a night. Now, we are quietly resting, looking at the strange boxes and I have been told, I can not pee on them.

Sometimes when workmen come, The Woman crates us. She greets them and eventually, we are let loose to check out what they are doing. We may bark once or twice, but its all cool. In the end, the workman is doing his job with two Shibas overseeing.

Today, I got the message that not everything was cool. So did Belle. And who are we to disagree? She can not tell us what caused her to leash instead of crate us, but as us Shibas believe, follow your instincts.

And with Shibas, believe me, we will back your instincts.



I Am Shiba. I Am The Gatekeeper.

Weather Alert: Incoming Snow

Predictions:

I will get snow in my paws. This will delay any outside activities or the meeting of daily needs, causing further delays in later daily accomplishments. I will stand in the middle of the snow, attempting to pick up all four paws at once, with a look of absolute miserableness on my face.

Belle is going to be in ectasy. She will be bounding through snow piles, leaping through snow drifts, and digging tunnels, all while on a six foot lead, thus dragging The Woman and myself all along her merry path.

The People are thinking that they may not even be able to start digging out until tomorrow. Hurrah! That means that they are snowbound for two days, and the treat bag is full (because neither one pays attention when the other gives a treat so we get twice as many treats on these days!)




I Am Shiba. A Determined 19 lb. Shiba > One Woman and One Disgruntled Shiba With Wet Toes.

Superbowl Sunday

Let us all give thanks that the Eagles did not make it this year.



I Am Shiba. Bring Out Those Shrimp Plates!

Traveling Man

The Woman has this belief that I should be able to go most anywhere with her. While she does not take me into the grocery store (unfortunately), she has and does take me to and inside many other places.

The Bank
The Post Office
The Liquor Store
All the Pet Supply Stores
Any Restaurant with a Patio
The Local Tavern
Her School/Classes
Visiting Collegues at Her Old Place of Work

To Name a few.

Belle and I often travel in the car with her. I am the Backseat Driver while Belle has assumed the position of co-pilot in the front seat. It is not uncommon for the two of us to wait patiently while she runs an errand. Almost every time we go somewhere, she takes a minute or two and lets us out of the car to sniff around where we are.

Belle and I make sure that we leave our mark somewhere so that everyone knows that The Shiba has blessed this point on Earth. Almost, but not quite as good, as Google Mapquest.

The interesting thing is how surprised people are as This Shiba moves around in This World. They claim I am well behaved. Well, I am until a squirrel comes by. Once, I attempted to bolt at a dog therapy session with My Ladies because a chipmunk happened to run across the yard. As we drag Belle now along with us to these various places, Belle follows my lead and is becoming more confident in a zen approach with the outside world. Don't get me wrong, though. We still tangle the leashes around The Woman sometimes, and periodically, Belle will announce her presence at an amazingly inconvenient moment. Being well-behaved is a matter of perspective. I suspect that The Woman would love it if the two of us when walking together would choose a side and stick to it, but where is the fun in that?

What I do know is that the Perspective of a Well-Behaved Dog is in the Eye of the Beholder. People think we are well-behaved so we appear to be well-behaved. The Woman expects us to be well-behaved but that doesn't stop Belle from coming into the kitchen to beg for a piece of deli meat when sandwiches are being made or me from pulling all her clothes off the shelf so I can roll on them. These are the qualities that make us unique.

Yesterday, we saw a friend and The Woman pulled over to the side of the road, rolled down the window, and the friend distributed pets to both of us. He then commented, "You know, this is really stupid what I am doing, reaching inside your car and petting your dogs." But, The Woman was happy to see the friend, I recognized his smell immediately, and Belle realized that the situation was a positive one, and felt confident as she accepted his attentions. But our friend was right. It is stupid to lean into a dog's car and pet them. But, The Woman gave the okay and I trust her enough to know that it must be.

It's not about being well-behaved. It is about learning to live with one another. It is about enjoying each other. It is about being the dog that The Woman wants me to be. And if she wants me to be the dog that rides around all day with her in the car while she does errands, then so be it.



I Am Shiba. The Car Needs To Be Cleaned, BTW.

Well, Bah!

I found out from Dogster.com today that my idea for rearranging the AKC dog classifications had already been proposed back in 2008.

Hmmfrp. I did not even have a chance to propose myself!

http://www.akc.org/events/conformation/group_realignment.cfm

Group 10: Northern (13) (16)
Akita
Alaskan Malamute
American Eskimo Dog
Chinese Shar-Pei
Chow Chow
Finnish Spitz
Icelandic Sheepdog — Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Keeshond
Norwegian Buhund — Miscellaneous 1/1/07; Full Recognition 1/1/09
Norwegian Lundehund — Miscellaneous 7/1/08
Norwegian Elkhound
Samoyed
Siberian Husky
Schipperke
Shiba Inu
Swedish Vallhund

Now while apparently some folks are up in arms about the sight hound category and a few other things, at least my idea of those of us with prick ears, double coats, and curly tails will be judged together rather than with the Hounds, the Poodles, and the Bichon Frisee.



I Am Shiba. See? I Was Right All Along!