Shiba Inu's Smiling Face While Begging Dad to Pet Her Truly Says It All

There's a reason that the photo of a Shiba Inu named Kabosu went viral years ago, becoming the well used "doge" meme: These are some truly cute and unique dogs. They're also very expressive in a way that many dogs' faces don't allow them to be. Whether they're giving you the side-eye or begging for table food, what they're thinking is usually written all over their faces. And they're especially good at smiling, so it wouldn't be the most shocking thing in the world to find out that these dogs learned how to use that smiling skill to their advantage!

Case in point: the pup in this video. She wants some pets from her dad while they lounged on the couch together and she's willing to pull out the big guns if it means she can get what she wants!

On Tuesday, July 30, @jroshibaandfamily shared this precious video of a Shiba Inu named Jiro begging her dad for pets without making a single sound, and I think it might just be the most convincing argument I've ever seen someone make.

Jiro is in full relax mode on the couch with a bowl of kibble in front of her as a snack, and I have a feeling that she got all comfy and thought, "you know what the only thing missing is? Some pets."

So began her journey to acquire said pets... which simply involved staring her dad down and giving him the world's sweetest smile. Seriously, how could anyone say no to this face?

In a comment, Jiro's mom mentioned that her dad was playing video games at the time, so of course, she wanted all of the attention on her! Unfortunately, we don't get to see if Jiro managed to convince him or not in the video, but she must have. She deserves all the pets in the world.

The Shiba Smile

It's pretty common for Shiba Inus to smile like this — so common, in fact, that lovers of the breed have named it the Shiba Smile.

The smile isn't necessarily an expression of happiness the way it is for humans, though. According to one site dedicated to the breed, it's actually something they do because they've learned that humans respond well to it. It doesn't mean they aren't happy when they smile, just that the main purpose they do it is to get that positive response we give them.

Not all Shiba Inus smile, either, but whether or not yours does, it's easiest to follow other cues to see how happy they are, like a wagging tail. And of course, if you want your Shiba to smile at you more often, make a big, happy deal out of it when they do.

I'm just saying if my dog smiled at me as often as Jiro and many other Shibu Inus seem to do it, she would win the argument every time!