I stayed still, kept complimenting her with a sweet voice, held my hand palm-up at about her chin height, and let the shiba sniff me When she stepped closer to sniff my shoes and then my hand more thoroughly, I wiggled my fingers a little, but she stepped back - ok, no pets Continued staying still and talking while the pup sniffed me all over, stared, and eventually her dad tugged her away (2)

Interesting. I was always taught to offer your hand closed, palm down, hand angled down. Maybe it is a raised in the 80s thing

I'm always worried about dogs biting my fingers so I let them sniff my knuckles haha

These are the most cat like dogs I’ve ever interacted with. I love them.

Shibas can be meek and skittish sometimes, but like all dogs, can sense nervousness. The hand sniffing thing, I never understood, seems silly. The dog can smell you already. They have strong noses. I've always greeted random dogs with a higher pitch tone and cheek or chin scratches. Never had any issues, just tail wags and wanting more. But I can read dog body language pretty easily