Hi. I’m Shannon, founder of Shiba Saviors. This is the story of how a lifelong love for animals turned into a decision: to stop waiting for the “right time” to help, and start building something real.
I do not remember a version of myself that did not love animals. Not selectively. Not conditionally. I mean the whole spectrum. The strays. The seniors. The ones that are anxious or misunderstood. The ones that are not “easy.” Animals have always felt like honest souls to me. They do not perform. They do not manipulate. They simply are.
For years, that love looked like personal rescues. A pet that needed a second chance. A cat that needed food and safety. A dog that needed patience and time. I would help where I could and I would keep moving, hoping that one day I would figure out how to take it further.
I think a lot of people live with that same ache. You want to help, but the path feels vague. You do not have a big network. You do not have a facility. You do not have a huge budget. You just have a heart that cannot look away.
So you wait. You tell yourself, “Maybe someday.” You donate when you can. You share posts. You cry over the ones you cannot save. And you keep wondering what it would look like to actually build the thing you keep wishing existed.
For me, the dream was never about being a hero. It was about being useful. About being one more person who refuses to let suffering be normal.
Shiba Inus are not a breed you just casually own. They are smart. They are intense. They are independent. They have boundaries. They have opinions. They are hilarious and maddening and incredible. They are also one of the most misunderstood breeds out there.
The more I learned, the more I saw the pattern: Shibas ending up in shelters and rescues because people expected a different kind of dog. Too stubborn. Too aloof. Too much. It made me sad in a way I could not shake.
Our littlest, Yume, came to us as a puppy through a rescue after being pulled from a bad breeding situation. She was tiny, bright-eyed, and already full of that unmistakable Shiba spirit.
Bringing her home was joy, yes, but it was also a reminder. A puppy like that should never have needed rescue in the first place. She should have been protected. She should have been cared for. She should have been safe.
In December 2025, a case in Largo, Florida broke my heart wide open. Park staff at Taylor Park found Shiba Inu puppies abandoned in a storage container, with two adult female Shibas also left at the park. The dogs were sick with parvovirus, a fast, brutal illness that can be deadly, especially for puppies.
One puppy, later named Frosty, did not survive. Reports and a necropsy indicated he suffered severe physical injuries consistent with blunt force trauma, including a snapped leg, a dislocated jaw, and internal damage. He also had parvo.
Writing that feels horrible. Reading it felt worse. But what crushed me most was the truth underneath it: they were left to suffer. Left like they did not matter. Left like their pain was acceptable.
If you have ever loved a dog, you already know. They feel everything. Fear. Hunger. Pain. Relief. Safety. They are not disposable. They are not objects. They are lives. Frosty was a life that never got to live his full one.
In the middle of that horror, there was also something I will never forget. A grassroots rescue, Pawlicious Poochie Pet Rescue, stepped in and got these dogs immediate care. Jamie and the vet and staff at Skyway Animal Hospital worked long, exhausting days to give them a chance.
That is what real rescue looks like. It is not glamorous. It is not tidy. It is late nights and constant disinfecting and bills that make your stomach drop. It is showing up anyway. Like Jamie McKnight did. Like Dr. C did. Like so many others do every day.
I realized I could not keep being the person who only grieved these stories. I had to stop standing on the edge with a plan, I had to put the plan into action. I wanted to start with what I know. I wanted to start where I felt I could help. I wanted to try to prevent Shiba Inu dogs (well any dog really, but Shibas in particular) from winding up in shelters. Education is prevention. Understanding is prevention. Support is prevention. A rescue network is prevention. I may never be able to prevent another situation like Taylor Park from happening, but I can be part of the solution that helps dogs after it does. I can be part of the community that shows up. I can be part of the team that refuses to let suffering be normal.
Shiba Saviors exists because I believe most Shibas do not need to be rescued. They need to be understood. But for those who do need rescue, we will show up.
If you are here because you love Shibas, or you are overwhelmed by one, or you are trying to decide if this breed fits your life, you are in the right place. This journal will be education-first, honest, and compassionate. No shame. No cruelty. No performative outrage. Just real information, and if information is not enough, real help wherever we can provide it.
...and while yes, our focus is Shiba Inus, we believe in helping all dogs in need. If you have a dog that needs help rehoming, please visit our Rehoming Help page to get started. But plesase understand that we are a small foster-based rescue, so our ability to help is limited by our available resources this time.
If you want a topic covered, send it through the contact form and pick “Education request.” And if you want to help build this rescue with us, look at Foster and Donate. We cannot do this without a community.
Written by Shannon, Founder of Shiba Saviors™.
