It’s not cool to see your plants dry and wither simply because Shiba Inus dug around them. It’s annoying and frustrating. It’s even more frustrating if you cannot tell why your Shiba Inu is digging. Needless to say, you might also not be sure how to stop him from digging. Knowing why your Shiba Inus is digging could be vital as it may be signaling an underlying health problem.
So, do Shiba Inus like to dig? If so, why?
Definitely, Shiba Inus like to dig. Your Shiba Inus could be digging because he is bored, frustrated, or idle. You can stop your Shiba Inus from digging by creating more playtime for him, buying him better toys, and keeping him active most of the time to gets exhausted. Consequently, he will rest instead of digging.
Why Has My Shiba Inu Dog Suddenly Started Digging Holes?
Your Shiba Inu dog might suddenly start digging because he is bored, wants to pee, imitate other dogs, or hide treasures, among other reasons.
Below, we look at these and other reasons. Plus, how to effectively stop your Shiba Inus from digging.
Bored
When a Shiba Inus is left alone all day or for many hours, he feels bored. We feel the same, too. Dogs have emotions, too, and the need to stay active or playful with anyone around is necessary. So, if you notice your Shiba Inus digging after being less active all day, then he is bored.
Solution
Every day, spare at least 30 minutes and walk your Shiba Inu around. You can also run with him in the early mornings or late evenings. This not only makes him active but also acts as a stress reliever for him. Besides, you create a strong bond between the two of you.
Do also buy the best Shiba Inus toys, such as the Kong with its candy. Such can help wear him out. Besides, playing a lot also reduces the chances of obesity and stress, which could negatively impact him.
To Pee
If you do not potty train your Shiba Inus, he will poop and pee everywhere. Like cats, the rule of thumb is that he should dig, pee or poop and then cover the waste. This is likely to happen once in a while, according to the number of times he eats or drinks.
Solution
Immediately you adopt new Shiba Inus, or while they’re still young, potty train them.
Let them learn how to pee or poop in the designated area. You can buy the best litter boxes if you do not have some yet.
Imitation
Shiba Inus behave like our little kids; they’ll imitate other kids when they see them digging. So, if other dogs are digging, expect to see the same. He likely sees a lot of fun in it. He might also try it out over and over again when he is alone in case he enjoys the task.
Solution
If the other dogs are foreign, you can just isolate your Shiba Inus from them. Hopefully, once they’re away, your Shiba Inus won’t try digging alone.
Hiding Treasures
Shiba Inus, like other dogs and small children, love their treasures. It can be a bone or a toy. Especially if there are other dogs, a Shiba Inu may want to hide the treasure so that no other dog gets in touch with it.
Hence, he digs a hole to hide the treasure.
Solution
Socialize him. Socializing Shiba Inu makes him understand that other pets are part of his family. Hence, he should share whatever he has with each of them. They should do the same. This stops your Shiba Inu from digging so as to hide his treasures.
Moreover, this is also a way of eliminating fights due to the need to show ownership.
Seeking Shelter
Leaving your Shiba Inu exposed to the sun for long hours could torture him. Likewise, leaving him in the cold is also inhuman. Shiba Inus often dig holes to seek shelter when the temperatures become too harsh for him.
When you notice that your Shiba Inus is lying in the hole he just dug, then he is definitely feeling too hot or cold.
Solution
If you spend most of your hours away from home, consider buying the best Shiba Inus crater. When away, he can seek shelter there when it rains or become too hot.
Also, ensure that he has plenty of clean drinking water during summer. During winters, ensure the crater is well insulated and cozy to keep him warm.
Hunting
Shiba Inus are strong hunters. They specifically target pets that are smaller than them. Such includes rodents as well as other mammals.
So, if insects invade your farm, your Shiba Inus will dig in search of food since that’s part of his meal. This is especially the case if you’ve planted shrubs or trees in your garden.
While he might be enjoying the digging, it might hurt your trees when their roots get exposed to the sun. Of course, they’ll wither and dry.
You need to save the trees by stopping the Shiba Inus from digging.
Solution
Call a pest control service provider. It’s necessary to make it clear that you want to deal with the insects in your garden because your Shiba Inu keep digging holes around trees.
This will let them choose the best but safest chemicals to use to kill the insects. Otherwise, you might kill the insects as well as your Shiba Inu in case he thinks of leaking the sprayed plants.
Creating an Escape Root
Shiba Inus are naturally independent dogs that will, once in a while, want to make their own decisions based on what they want. That may include digging a hole near the fence so as to follow you if you leave them alone. Or dig to join other dogs outside your fence.
Remember, like many other dogs, Shiba Inus have a strong sense of smell. They can tell when there’s a female or male dog nearby their home. Sometimes they may want to mate. If there’s no other way of escaping, they’ll dig holes to get a way to escape.
It’s easy to tell Shiba Inus are trying to escape if the holes are around your home fence.
Solution
Dig deeper into the soil when installing your fence so that he gets weary of digging and gives up. Also, try to keep him physically active so that he cares less about what is going on outside the fence.
Teach him to swim, too, so that he can get occupied mentally. Have toys in the swimming pool and make him fetch them all.
When All Other Ways Fail; How Do I Stop A Dog From Digging Holes?
What if you’ve tried all you could do, but your Shiba Inus won’t stop digging? Probably, you’ve bought the best toys, given them enough exercise, and separated him from other foreign dogs, but he won’t stop digging; what do you do?
Offer Training
Training Shiba Inus has never been easy as they’re also stubborn dogs. That’s not to say it’s entirely difficult to train Shiba Inus to stop digging holes.
It’s possible if you use short commands such as “stop” and “no”. Also, always use an authoritative tone so that he can obey without fail.
Leash Him
A stubborn Shiba Inu often wants to dig holes even after good training and excellent use of commands. Such a Shiba Inu may require a leash.
A leash effectively limits his movement so that he cannot have access to the garden.
Dig Deterrents
Since Shiba Inus are stubborn dogs, stopping them from digging might, at times, prove to be a task. In such cases, try digging deterrents. Look for the areas they dig most and fence using a strong but flexible barrier.
Where need be, bury a strong-smelling deterrent that makes him uncomfortable and unwilling to dig around the fence.
Fill Up The holes
Filling up the holes makes it impossible for the Shiba Inus to dig holes.
There are two ways of doing this:
i. Covering with Cement or
ii. Poop
With Cement
While covering the holes with cement may not be a long-term solution, it can help to stop the habit for some time.
Who knows, he will give up digging once he realizes that he can’t make holes anymore?
With Poop
Shiba Inus detest soiling themselves. Even when they spend a day in an extremely dirty place, they try to clean themselves up. That’s to say; they are clean dogs that wouldn’t want to get in touch with their poop.
So, fill the areas your Shiba Inus are digging with their poop. This, though, is not for the faint Shiba Inus owners. Also, don’t worry about him smelling bad because of digging such areas. The fact is, they won’t even start digging because their sense of smell is high, and they can tell that there’s poop in that area.
Just grab a mug of coffee and watch their frustrations as they walk away without you issuing any command(s)!
Why Does My Female Shiba Inus Keep Digging?
During the initial stage of labor, female Shiba Inus like to dig. The contraction of their uterus prompts them to do so.
Shiba Inus also dig in search of a safe place to deliver their babies. When they feel that their babies are insecure, female Shiba Inus dig a hole to hide their puppies.
You can easily tell they are digging because of the puppies if the holes are (so close) to a bushy area.
Should I Let My Shiba Inus Dig Holes?
While digging is a nuisance, it also has some health benefits for your Shiba Inus. For example, digging is a stress reliever for Shiba Inus. It stimulates the mind of your dog as well as his body.
It could also be a way of protecting himself from harsh weather. Sometimes it’s helpful to let your Shiba dig holes.
Do so by providing a good place for him to dig.
Why Is My Shiba Inus Dog Digging In Her Bed?
Shiba Inus dig or scratch their beds for many reasons. First, female Shiba Inus dig for maternal reasons. A female Shiba Inu who is getting ready to give birth often digs in her bed.
Both male and female Shiba Inus dig in their beds to show ownership of their bedding. It’s a territorial behavior found in Shiba Inus’ DNA. Nonetheless, this kind of bed digging only happens when there’s a new pet in the house.
It can also happen because they’ve seen their mother or other pets digging in their beds. So, they thought, “This is fun!” Before you know it, they’re all digging in their bed.
Parting Point: Do Shiba Inus Like to Dig?
It may be challenging to tell why your Shiba Inu is digging but checking which areas he is digging could help identify the reason. Also, getting to know when he started digging could help point out why he started it.
Even so, since Shiba Inu like digging, it’s maybe quite a task to bring him to stop the habit.
However, you can always try to buy him some toys to keep him active, play with him, take him to a swimming pool, entertain, or train him not to dig. In addition, train him to obey your commands.
If none of the ways you bring in works, create a better place for him to dig.
After all, Shiba Inus are born diggers.
