Akita

I am on my third akita and totally in love with this breed. They are affectionate, loyal, intelligent companions who can be wonderful doggy neighbors, good with children, and coexist peacefully with other animals. Much depends on the individual dog's personality, as well as early upbringing by the breeder, and the training and socialization you provide.

The first point I'd want to emphasize is that akitas should be treated as individuals and not subjected to the canine equivalent of racial stereotypes. My male loved all other dogs regardless of gender. My first female wanted to be "head cheerleader," around other females and could get pushy, but she was never aggressive. My current girl seems headed in the same direction. That said, I've heard and seen households where female akitas get along quite well with other girls. When I subscribed to the breed magazine "Akita World," every issue included pictures of multi-dog/multi-akita/multi-pet homes, so it is NOT true that you can't have other animals if you own an akita. Some combinations are going to be risky, but it's not impossible.

All of my akitas have been friendly with people because I worked hard to socialize them young. I've been able to leave my akitas with a house sitter while I go on vacation with no problems whatsoever.

My first two akitas were raised by a breeder who had young children, two little girls who played with the puppies. For the rest of their lives, the dogs loved any child they met, of any age. My female especially would wag her tail in excitement whenever she saw a little girl. My third akita was raised by a couple that used Biosensor and did a lot of socialization early on. These conscientious breeders gave their dogs a fantastic start in life and I did my best to continue molding my dogs into good canine citizens.

Yes, these dogs shed heavily twice a year and the hair finds its way into everything. Baths help loosen and dispose of much of the fur, but there's no getting around a lot of vacuuming and brushing. For me, it's a small price to pay.

I was a novice dog owner when I got my first akita, but I did my homework by thoroughly reading a number of puppy books before getting the puppy and then conscientiously applying the advice. I ended up with a dog that was described by one neighbor as "the best behaved dog I've ever met." She was also my dear friend for 14 years. I still miss her, but now have a new little girl. She can be willful and pretend not to hear me, which can be problematic given that she weighs 70 lbs and is still growing, but I apply the training tips from the manuals and see positive results.

With the right upbringing and a loving but firm environment, akitas can be a pleasure to own. If you are interested in one, talk to breeders listed with the AKC. Not only can they tell you about the breed, but the qualities of their particular dogs. Some are real marshmallows, despite the guard dog reputation!

I read this page of reviews before we went ahead and got our Japanese Akita. I am so grateful! He is the most amazingly well behaved and well tempered dog I have ever had. We have a 4 year old Shitzu also, and were worried about how they may be together but it is just amazing. They play together extremely well, and he looks to her whenever she is around. He is extremely gentle with her. He lets her eat and drink before him, doesn't growl at her when she takes his toys or bones. Henry (the Akita -- no we did not name him a japanese name, sorry) was even in a photoshoot the other day and people were SHOCKED that he was just a puppy. He is 6.5 months and 50 pounds already! They were also shocked because he is extremely call, lovable, and unafraid. They were all amazed at how sweet and smart he was. Henry, like other Akitas, likes to interact with his paws. He will paw at you for attention or if he needs something. He does not bite, he LOVES other animals and dogs, and he LOVES people. Maybe we lucked out but I am hardly finding him difficult to raise. You tell him "no" once and he will never do it again. Akita's are generally not people-pleasing dogs, that is, they tend to be more independent. I do find this about ours, but at the same time, he is quite clingy. He almost NEEDS to be around us or at least see us. At first he was TERRIBLE being left along, chewing everything, wrecking havoc, but now he is fine. But he will stand by the door and stare at it until we come home (we turned on the webcam). When we walk him around, people are so intrigued by him and surprised about how gentle he is. He is also amazing with children even when they pull his tail and ears. He still is not neutered. I am going to come back and write another review when he is a year old!

These dogs are honestly wonderful and amazing dogs. Extremely intelligent, observant and aware of what is going on. Henry does not bark, he does not growl and he is extremely gentle. I will never get another dog breed again.

Expensive but so worth it. Cannot wait to continue watching him grow!

I have had my White Japanese akita for over a year now and took him on as a rescue 3 year old male.

i have had experience with larger dogs as i grew up around alsations, however i had no idea how hard it was to own a large dog myself in my own home! on initial contact my akita did show signs of trying to be the "pack leader" but as long as you install authority on them they could not behave better! admittedly he was difficult on & off the lead and paid no attention to commands at the start however within six months of training (and both myself and my partner work full time) he is an absolute gem, taught to sit, stay, lay down, would NEVER jump up on furniture unless told it is okay no food aggression.

i have no children and no other pets so yes i may have better circumstances than others when it comes to a dog of this breed however he is commonly socialised with my family's & friends dogs (ranging from collies / alsations, staffordshire terriors and yorkshire terriors)and no problems and i have two young neices under 5 who absolutely adore him and jump all over him. NEVER once has he responded in a vicious manner!!

to sum up -

Bad points - have had difficulty with recall training - will get there!

- can be unsure of other male dogs he doesnt know however was advised this is an "unneutered male" trait

- has no idea of his size and still trys to jump in the boot of my little suzuki!

Good points - Simple training such as house, sit, stay, lay down and waiting for food was picked up at a fast rate

- amazing with all children, even strangers children (gets very excited when he see's pushchairs??!!)

- very loyal, does have a tendancy to choose me over my partner when it comes to cuddles!

- very good guard dog - doesnt bark very often however will go to the door or the window should he hear someone walking up our drive or a car pulling in

- very self sufficient - my partner works away and i work full time (understandably not an ideal situation to own a dog) but he has a free range garden that is still in immaculate condition as will not dig, chew etc

whether this is all within the breed or the correct training i don't know, but i do know that i would happily get another akita tomorrow as the good really outways the bad - though would not reccommend one to a first time large dog owner - they can be challenging!!

Given the right training and circumstances they do make a fantastic family pet and if we decided to have children at some point i would trust him with them explicitly!! (noted that i would never leave a child alone with any breed of dog)

Good Luck!

I have now had my Akita for 7 years now and she is the best. Yes I have had a few problems with her but nothing to serious. Very laid back, calm, loyal and family oriented. Though Akitas are not very everyone, before getting Akita make sure you do you're research first. They are/can be handlefulls but to me it's worth it. I couldn't ask for a better dog.

We own an Akita Male, he is 2 1/2 years old, and very laid back. This breed is very very loyal to it's owners, and very protective. Just lately, we have had friends over and our male friend was playing with our Akita, when after about 15 minutes he decided to attack him and left him with serious bites. Do not under estimate this breed, they will turn on you at any time, even though you might think they are very passive and social. It doesn't matter how much you train them, this is their tempermant. Our breeder who sold us ours, didn't tell us the most of the bad sides of this breed, and only wanted the check and get us out the door. So because of this incident, we have decided to put him down. So when choosing a family pet, please be careful when choosing this breed.

We have had our Akita for 6 years now and we now need to find her a good home with no other pets. She has been wonderful with family members and any human she comes in contact with. She is very calm and mellow. I knew this breed could be agressive but I always thought if she were raised right and around other animals she would be fine. When she turned 3 she started to go after other dogs. There was NO warning, she did not even act as if she noticed the other dog just one swift movement and the other dog was on the ground. I believe that she has now almost killed our other dog. I could not believe what I was seeing and also could not believe I could not get her off the dog. She has always seen my husband any myself as the pack leaders but she had no idea I was even there. There seemed to be no reason for the attack she was not caught off guard and there was no food involved. We have had over five dogs so we have been around dogs most ou outr adult life. This really is a breed you must always keep your eye on. Really great dog but must be raised by a firm responsible dog person and I do not believe they should be around other animals. I think we did everything right the kennel that we board her at always would comment on how great she was for an Akita. Love them but please be careful.

Diane

I have just got myself a Japanese akita with my boyfriend. I begged him not to get her as I read up on them on the internet but my boyfriend decided to go against me and get her anyway. I have now had her for a month and she is the most adorable dog I have ever had, She is caring and has been very easy to train already, I had her sitting, giving me her paw and lying down in about 30 minutes. She is brilliant around kids she gets very excited when the kids in my local area come to see her or even strangers at the beach. My akita is also brilliant with other dogs I have been out walking her and another dog owner came up to me with her dog and it barked and barked at my akita and my akita stood there very calm and observed the dog. I have read some bad reviews on these dogs and I disagree with the things I read. At the end of the day no matter what species you are, dog, human cat when your born you know nothing you only learn from what you're told by whoever is in charge in your life i.e. parents. Your parents are responsible for how you turn out. If you are raising a pup they will learn all their rights and wrongs from you as their pack leader. If I ever hear bad reviews about any dogs I always blame the owner!

This article has just made me more sure that I will be ok getting my Akita and that it will be safe around our children thank you

Great animals. Always remember to buy from a good breeder and a dog with good bloodlines. They are very loyal and protective.

I have read that Akita's can be high energy, food possessive, aggressive dogs. Well, obviously no one ever bothered to tell my Akita (Female) that! She has to be the most laid back dog I've ever owned, and I have had experience of numerous breeds. I've taken her to ringcraft to ensure she was well socialised, and ironically, the owners of an extremely lively Newfoundland were surprised to see how laid back she was. Aren't Akita's meant to be high energy dogs? I think they are meant to be good guard dogs too, and on this point I believe she is, without actually being aggressive. She just sits quietly by my side when I open the door, she doesn't bark she just watches. She knows the regular postman, but if a stranger lurks around the door then she might bark, but mostly she doesn't make a sound.

Not being a boisterous dog she is very gentle around small children, although she isn't particularly comfortable with them. I would never leave her with a strange small child, even though they are known to be Nanny type dogs. You never know what a child might do to a dog. My nephew when he was 2 years old tried to pull our GSD's tongue out of his mouth when we took our eye off him for a second. Fortunately, the dog had the sense to make a hasty retreat as soon as my nephew released his grip. Our Akita has the sense not to sit next to a 2 year in the first place!

The Akita, like any dog will vary in temperament depending on its upbringing and breeding. My own experience of the Akita is a positive one. If she has a fault it is that she is not more agile, but then you can't expect a cart horse to compare with a race horse. Both are magnificent animals in their own right. The Akita has greater strength than agility, so that when she caught up with you, which might be a second or two slower than the Shepherd dog, she'd be able to body slam you to the ground with twice the force.

But we've encouraged her to be calm, and she excels at it. These were once dogs of royalty, and if you own a good one you can see why. That said, they are definitely not the dog for someone who knows nothing about dogs, because they are large and powerful, and they know it.