The Beginning

We found an ad in the paper for Shiba puppies in July 2009.  We took a 90 minute drive to meet the puppies.  There were 4 puppies in total - 1 girl (sesame), 3 boys (1 all white, 1 sesame, and 1 black and tan).  The black and tan male was the most playful and biggest in size.  We thought he was a little too wild and may be hard to train. So, we chose the male sesame for being cuddly and calm.

On the ride home, we decided to name our new addition to the family, Niko.  We put him in a big box with holes and towels.  When we looked back, he had his nose poking out of a hole.
It was adorable. We could hear him sniffing and he finally settled down and laid on his side with his legs stretched out like a deer on the road  : )

This is a picture of him coming into his new home that first night:

Niko was 8 weeks old when we brought him home.  He hasn't had a potty accident since the first night and is now crate trained.  We can tell when he needs to go outside and we always take him out when he needs to go.  For the first few nights we left him in the crate, he howled and whined several times a night.  We did our best to ignore it.  On the fourth night, we got him a heartbeat pillow(to mimic his mom's heart) and also covered his crate with a big towel.  After that night, he remains quiet all night.  In the morning we can hear him move around in the crate, but he never cries anymore.  He has learned to love his crate because we leave treats and toys in there. He even goes in it all by himself!