A typical Shikoku tops out around 23.5 mph in Fast CAT. The fastest one on record ran 28.17 mph. 0.8 mph faster than the typical dog (22.7 mph). The fastest Shikokus outrun Usain Bolt's top speed by 0.4 mph.
Based on the best Fast CAT run of 59 Shikokus, a typical Shikoku tops out at 23.5 mph, and half of them run faster than 24.7 mph. That makes the Shikoku the 58th fastest of the 226 breeds that have run Fast CAT.
25 Shikokus have topped 25 mph, but none has reached 30 yet.
Among the most popular Non-Sporting breeds, the typical Shikoku is faster than 7 of 8. The Dalmatian is the quickest of the bunch at 25.1 mph, and the Standard Poodle (22.9 mph) runs closest to the Shikoku. Over Fast CAT's 100 yards, the 1.6 mph gap to the Dalmatian is about 0.55 seconds.
Himetsuruichimonji Go Miyako Tachibana En holds the fastest consistent run by any Shikoku: 28.17 mph at the Housatonic Cairn Terrier Club in Connecticut on June 11, 2023. That's 100 yards in 7.26 seconds.
AKC's results also show Jiki O Toraeru Go Hachidorisou at 29.43 mph, but that dog's next-best run is 25.22 mph. A jump that big is usually a timing or typing error, so we flag it rather than crown it.
Shikokus come in more than one Fast CAT height group. 46 measured over 18 inches and averaged 23.1 mph; 13 measured 12 to 18 inches and averaged 24.8 mph. Smaller dogs earn extra points per mph toward their titles, so the shorter ones rack up titles faster.
Virginia has the most Shikoku runs, 165 of them, followed by Arizona, California, North Carolina. The fastest Shikoku run in Virginia is 27.16 mph.
Any AKC-registered Shikoku over 12 months old can enter, and your dog runs alone down a straight 100 yards. Most dogs figure out the lure fast. Have someone your dog will run to waiting past the finish line, because a dog that stops to check on you can lose a second or two.
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Speeds from AKC Fast CAT results. Photographers: spotted your work? Tell us at [email protected] and we'll credit it or take it down.