While everyone was jamming to Michael Jackson in the 80s, my grandparents were busy raising the first of many Shiba Inu puppies of the Atarashi family. My grandmother, mother, and I all have soft spots for dogs and I am always the overly-excited student who stops owners to ask to pet their dog. However, I am not just an avid dog lover. After the death of our beloved third generation Shiba, Moo, I decided that I was ready to take on the responsibility of caring for my own Shiba dogs. I distinctly remember being woken up at 3 in the morning by Taro, the older, adorable-yet-excessively-needy Shiba, crying while he was merely 5 months old. I sat next to him, petting him until he peacefully fell back asleep. Today, I take them on "excursions" (as I like to call them) to a nearby vista, where I run alongside them as they enjoy the grass and greenery in Tokyo. With my life-long experience of caring for and loving dogs in urban settings, I am confident that I will be an amazing dog walker for many families.