Mitsuharu Kanasashi’s Notes about the post standards of Shiba-Inu.
Illustration by Mitsuharu Kanasashi
Following text is by our mentor, Mitsuharu Kanasashi’s description with his own understanding.
– The way to see and examine the Shiba Inu through the conversation with Mr. Kanasashi. The following text has been translated with the concept for letting the people outside Japan to understand how the person such as Mr. Kanasashi who’s been the witness of the whole scene.
1. The “eyeline”matters as a million dollars.
I consider the primal beauty of the Shina Inu could be seen with its eyes and the fur, otherwise the hair. It is hard to describe what I mean about the eyes but it could be said as those eyes are like seeing the deep valley, looking up the high cliff wall of the remote. What I am trying to tell is the image of something that easily blends into the great nature with some kind of mysterious and serious feelings, and such is the best. For now, let me say it could be the eyes set back, otherwise using the word Okume
(O-Koo-May). Oku-may is not the round eyes which looks cute and charming.
Oku means “far” of say “Set back”. The eyes don’t look round because it is set back. (Note: Consider the almond shape and look as it is calm and seeing the far.)
2. MaichiMonji/ The straight-lined mouth.
Muzzle shape is sharp and the “lips” look staright when the mouth is closed, and doesn’t look “lose”. When opened, it could be look as a slit.
3. Inside the ears are whote.
Many might know that the basic of the SHiba Inu is what so called the “Urajiro”. “Ura” means back, “Jiro” which means as “Shiro”. The belly side should be white, is what it means. As same as this, inside the ears must be white. I mean the fur color. White and not long makes the look of the face much sharper.
4. Not the back of the head but the Neck section (Nazoe/ Na-Zo-Ay).
What this means is that the well built back of the head to the Neck but not only that. It includes the other factors such as the fur/ hair, and turns to the meaning of the state of the whole head part which has the good enough length.
5. The foot looks as the fox(Tsumami/ Tzu-Ma-Me).
This doesn’t mean as the cat foot. It is an adjective for the lower leg section. It means as“From the end where the nails coming out and looks as the short fingers, the whole leg shape looks as of the fox”. The paw part is not wide spread and looks as it is grabbing something surely. The breed lines of Naka-Go and Nakaichi-Go (both Akaishi-Soh) feature the this shape. With such shape, I think the overall movement of the dog is sharp and swift.
6. KyuJoSen/ Bow Arch Line
The KyuJoSen reads as Cue-Joe-Sen which means the “arch line as the bow” of the bow and arrow. Maybe this could be said as “the tapered line”.
The term means the “line of the belly from the side view” and if this is good, the look gets better with the extra supporting image enhancing the both rear legs catching the ground surely and mightily.
7. The space in between tail and the Back Line (Haisen, reads as High-Sen) looks much stronger, or say mightier. (About a width of the fist/ wider than 3 inches but lesser than 4 inches.)
In Japan, we make a ball with the cooked rice to carry on for meal and its size varies but the typical one is about 3inches wide. Lesser than 4 inches for sure. We call the rice ball
(usually covered partially with Nori, the seaweed sheet) and it is called as “Omusibi/ Oh-Moo-Sue-Be) or Musubi (Moo-Sue-Be, which means one rice ball).
We use either the Omusubi Ikko which means One Rice-ball or Musubi Ikko (same as former) and it means the preferable or say preferred space in between the silhouette line of the back and the tail, even it is curled. What this means is that “too much curled” is not preferable.
8. Too”wide” is slower, or say “heavy” in action.
It doesn’t mean big, thick or whasoever. With the KyuJoSen (of above 6) which is the belly side line, the body part should enhance the strength, mightiness and the severeness to stand against the nature. These factors are the reflection of the well developed muscle and tendon with the preferable “angle” balance of all those things which gathers and brings the dynamism of the breed.
Shiba Inu moves quick otherwise swiftly, and it is by the total balance of the many factors. The lightening
fast movement of the small hunting breed could be seen and felt from the look. Take the careful look on this leads to the much further understanding for the other things.
9. The coat is formed with the “Three Part Hair”.
The facial look enhances the characteristic of the dog. The simplicity of the “Look” or say the appearance is heavily relying on the “Coat” and it shows the “pureness” otherwise the “genuineness”.
This “Three Part Hair” means, for example, if the dog is the Red or say the Tan color, the tip part of the hair, say the2/5 is the red or the tan, and then it fades to near white, then the black part about 1/5 of of the hair could be seen, and then it ends with the white to the root.
This typical feature is obvious with the Naka-Go and Nakaichi-Go of the Akaishi-So and its line. This feature could be seen with the present Hakuba-No-Gen-Go(Roukaku-So) and its line as well as many dogs with the sharp but yellowish Red coat Shiba Inus from the San-In region.
Shibainu Thai Darumasou 