My Shiba has always been difficult to bathe. She hates water. As a puppy, I would hold a Buda bone between my knees for her to chew while I brushed her. It made grooming 1000 times easier. As an adult, I reward her with her favorite goody after brushing. For bathing purposes, I will take her out for a long butt busting walk. She is too pooped to wrestle. I also place a nonskid rubber bath mat in the tub so she does not slip and use a hand held Waterpik shower sprayer to soak her down. It is so much easier to bathe this way than filling up the tub. Also for the times when she sneaks off to the back of the tub where I cannot reach her, I can still wash her down with the hand held sprayer. There is just no escaping mama!