Akita
Temperament:
Akita is one of the most popular and well-known dog breeds in Japan. In his homeland, he was originally used as a reliable hunting dog. Today he is symbolic of loyalty and faithfulness. Due to its appearance, it is one of the dog breeds with the most similarities to the wolf.
Characteristics
The cute dog has a lot of muscles. Visually, he makes a majestic impression. It comes in brown, sesame, white, red, brindle colors. His coat is rough and hard. Under it is a dense and soft undercoat. Cheeks, underside of the jaw, neck, chest and tail are often colored white.
His forehead as well as his frontal furrow are broadly built. The standing ears have a cute triangular shape. His eye color is brown and the edges of the eyelids are colored black. He has a calm nature and is not easily upset. At the same time, the calm dog is very self-confident. He prefers to act independently.
He likes to get his own way and usually does not behave submissively. When meeting strangers, he usually acts indifferent or simply neutral. However, when he sees danger, he also attacks and defends his family.
The Akita is a loyal dog and actively seeks a caregiver. He then builds up a strong bond with this person. If you have conquered his heart, you definitely have a friend for life. In stressful situations, the Akita remains calm and relaxed at first. However, his original wild character comes out as soon as he smells prey. The proud and sublime dog is then difficult to restrain. By the way, many males of this dog breed do not get along with strange dogs.
In general, the Akita needs his daily exercise. However, if he does not feel like it, he is difficult to encourage. The sublime dog has a mind of his own and also likes to just rest in his basket. Whether or not he feels like exercising depends largely on whether or not he feels like it. Therefore, as the owner, you have the task of convincing him that it is useful for him to obey you.
If he sees exercises or games as silly and pointless, it is difficult to encourage him to do them. So you have to make sure that you give him challenges that interest him. However, this does not make the Akita lazy. As soon as he sees the sense in an activity, he is on fire.
In many areas he is also used as a sled dog. His dense coat and good health are good prerequisites for this. This activity gives pleasure to the Akita and seems meaningful to him - that's why he joins in. Often he is also used as a companion dog for the blind. Once you have gained his trust, you can rely on him.
Coat care:
Shedding:
Energy level:
Trainability:
Children suitable:
The right food
The Akita needs a high quality and balanced food. The Akita has shown allergic reactions to many types of feed in the past. Products high in soy or protein are less suitable. These often resulted in skin rashes or similar. The same has been reported when feeding certain treats.
To avoid allergic reactions, you should therefore pay close attention to the food. Such intolerances have also been found in some cases with many types of meat. However, this happened only in isolated cases. In addition, feeds with a high proportion of wheat are often incompatible. This is due to the gluten contained in them. Therefore, you should pay attention to feed without wheat and corn. However, oats contain less gluten as a cereal and can therefore be fed.
However, not every Akita automatically has a gluten intolerance. However, since it has been observed many times, you should pay attention to it. Always keep an eye on what your dog tolerates well and what not. Then adjust his food accordingly. Especially with ready-made food mixtures you should also pay attention to additives. There should be as few color flavors, attractants, preservatives and flavor enhancers as possible.
When feeding raw meat (Barf), the reactions are different. When feeding raw meat, you should pay particular attention to a good composition. If necessary, seek professional advice on this. You should also be selective with dry food. Cheap products often contain less good ingredients.
The Akita needs in any case varied and balanced food. If you have bought a puppy from the breeder, you should initially continue to feed the same food as the breeder. He needs this several times a day in small portions. Later it will be enough if the Akita gets two portions of food a day. In any case, you should avoid products that contain inferior ingredients. Therefore, pay attention to the ingredients but also the specified additives.
Among other things, you can give him dried meat to chew. Especially suitable are lamb, venison, beef, horse or dried rumen. Also ears of beef or lamb have proven themselves. Especially as a young puppy, the Akita needs some opportunities to chew. Therefore, put together a good selection for him here.
Akita care
The Akita is a very low-maintenance dog breed. He cleans himself almost as thoroughly as a cat. Therefore, he usually does not need any special coat care and also no dog groomer. The dog's coat is quite clean by nature and moreover, it hardly smells. So, because of these characteristics, it is a very clean dog.
Therefore, it rarely needs to be washed or groomed. Basically, it is sufficient if he is brushed once a week. Due to the change of coat, he loses a large part of his thick undercoat in spring and autumn.
During this time, the dog should be combed once a day because of the severe hair loss. Not infrequently, the apartment must also be cleaned more often than usual. It is not uncommon then to find a lot of dog hair on clothes, carpets and furniture.
However, regular combing can counteract a dirty apartment. Sometimes the little four-legged friend also needs to have its claws trimmed. With many walks on asphalt, the claws usually run off by themselves.
However, if he rather gets his run in forests and meadows, the claws usually need to be trimmed. If you have concerns, you can also let the vet take over this task. The eyes and ears should also be checked regularly by the vet.
Diseases affect the Akita rather rarely, because he comes from a serious breeding. Due to the low susceptibility to diseases, the little four-legged friend often lives over 12 years.
Suitable accessories
Since the Akita loses a lot of undercoat during the coat change, you need a very good brush for this time. Very proven for this purpose also a so-called Furminator. With this you can remove the excess and loose undercoat very well.
The faithful dog likes to rest in his basket. Therefore, you should provide him with a cozy place to sleep. You can also offer him various toys, but he may be quite picky about them. He likes outdoor exercises the most. He is especially enthusiastic about meaningful challenges.
Among the most important components of a species-appropriate attitude are a lot of exercise and nice walks. Therefore, of course, you need a comfortable leash. The adventurer should also have a suitable collar or harness.
Origin & History
The Akita is a dog breed from Japan. The breed name Akita comes from the Japanese province from which the dog originates. Often the dog breed is also Akita Inu called. With this term, only the Japanese designation Dog (= Inu) added.
Its history goes back a long way. Already in the second century before Jesus Christ dog breed Akita was depicted. Especially on works of art such as clay vessels or bronze bells he was found. In Japan, the Akita was often used as a hunting dog. Later, he was also used as a guard dog and sometimes as a cargo dog.
From the 19th century people became more and more enthusiastic about dog fighting. Therefore, strong dog breeds were often mated with the Akita. In 1931, the Japanese government declared the Akita a natural monument. During the Second World War, dogs were used, among other things, as a source of meat and fur. This almost led to the extinction of the Akita - but fortunately only almost.
Some Japanese tried to develop the original breed again after the war. The surviving dogs were then crossed with other breeds. This often happened with the breed of the Chow Chow and other Japanese sled dogs. From this then arose the somewhat smaller and often reddish colored dogs.
Some were also crossed with German shepherds. This created a breed of its own, which then came to a large extent to the United States. This breed is therefore called today the Amercian Akita. They are significantly larger and also narrower built than the original Akitas.
The Japanese eagerly noted all the data during the crossings. Among them, for example, the size, pedigree and other specific characteristics of the dogs. Finally, from the tips developed four different species. The Akita Inu, the Small Spitz Shiba-Inu, the Medium Spitz Nippon-Inu and the Chow-Chow.
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