Shiba Inu board and train in Gloucester, MA

The AKC describes the Shiba Inu as a spirited, good-natured dog of 17 to 23 pounds, the smallest of Japan's native breeds, developed to hunt by sight and scent in dense mountain undergrowth. Its trait chart gives five out of five for watchdog nature and for affection with family, four for mental stimulation needs, and two for trainability. Read together, the numbers describe an alert, bright dog that weighs each request before it decides to answer.

Drilling makes that worse. VCA's breed guide reports that Shiba devotees discourage the repetitious exercises of competitive obedience and suggest agility instead. A Shiba asked for the same sit ten times often quits well before the tenth, so sessions during a stay run short, with a reward the dog has chosen and a break before interest fades. The same guide calls the breed devoted to its people and sensitive to their moods, one more reason a frustrated handler gets less.

Two things go your way. The AKC calls a Shiba practically born housebroken, since puppies try to get away from their sleeping area to toilet within weeks of birth, and VCA calls the breed naturally fastidious. House training is rarely what brings a Shiba household to a trainer. The door, the leash and the nail clippers usually are, and those are the three places this page spends its time.

The AKC states this more firmly than anything else on its Shiba page: the dog can never, ever be considered reliable off lead unless it is in a confined area, and no amount of obedience training will change that. We take that at its word, and a stay never tries to prove it wrong. What training can build is a recall strong enough to rescue a slipped collar or an open car door, rehearsed until turning toward you is close to a reflex.

That recall gets its own word, kept apart from everyday cues, and the dog is paid with the best food it ever tastes. It is practiced on a long line indoors and on the turf yard before any distraction joins in. Off-leash running belongs in fenced space such as the Gloucester Dog Park at Stage Fort Park, 65 Hough Ave, a fenced park of about two acres with separate areas for small and large dogs.

Foundation ends with a go-home lesson and Advanced with two scheduled coaching lessons, all at Dogtown, where you run the waits, the long-line recall and the handling games while a trainer watches your timing. Keep home sessions as short as the ones during the stay. A Shiba that gets three quick handling games a day, one paw, one ear and a look at the teeth, is easier for your vet and for our groomers, where a nail clip costs $16.

For leashed outings, Halibut Point State Park in Rockport requires leashes, which suits a dog that should wear one anyway, and the Trustees welcome dogs at Ravenswood Park in West Gloucester. Dogtown Academy, $89 for a full day or $69 for a half, puts a trainer session into a structured day; Canine Campus runs 2, 4 or 6 weeks with nights at home; private sessions start from $94. From Rockport, Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea or anywhere in Gloucester, a Shiba can ride the Pup Van for $10 each way.