Vytautas Baranauskas

Lithuania

I began showing my own Rough Collie at the age of 12 in 1991 and started working as a ring assistant at 15. In 1998, I passed my first judging exams for British sheepdog breeds. My first Rough Collie litter was born in 1996, followed by four more litters in subsequent years. In 1998, I visited England and discovered the breed of my dreams—the Shiba Inu. That same year, I imported the first Shiba to Lithuania and the Baltic States. I began breeding Shibas in 2003, and dogs bred by me have achieved significant success across Europe, including Junior World Winner and European Winner titles. My kennel “Žara” is registered with the Lithuanian Cynological Society (LCS). I have been judging regularly since 2007. I became an FCI Group 5 judge in 2013 and later expanded my qualifications to include FCI Groups 1, 2, 4, and 9. I have judged in many European countries, as well as in Japan and Israel. Professionally, I am a veterinary surgeon and a PhD candidate in Biology at Vilnius University, planning to defend my thesis in June 2026. I currently work at the Vilnius University Faculty of Medicine in the field of translational research, focusing on preclinical studies.