Our Akita Puppy

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Old thread 'n all that but here is a pic of the boy as he is now.....

and here is a pic of his recently aquired playmate.

An 11 week old Huskey x Akita. His mother died when he was 3 days old and the whole litter was hand reared by a colleague at the animal charity the g/f and I volenteer at.

They spend pretty much all day wrestling, obviously the bg fella is stronger but if he stops for even a second the little 'un is straight on top of him. It wears us out juist watching them

 

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Stunning. Akitas really are beautiful looking. I have no idea what their temperament is like, would appreciate it if you could tell me a little.

The breed is a very old one, (one of the oldest) and have been developed specifically for hunting large game such as deer, wild boar and bears and guarding.(not for fighting as is the popular belief). They would hunt in male/female pairs and would be away from their handlers for long periods of time and needed the intelligence and independance to think for themselves.

Temperament wise it will vary from dog to dog, however the most common trait I've seen with Akitas is an aloofness towards strangers. Then obviously you will get other emotions aswell, some can be very placid to those that can be aggresive to pretty much anything that moves. They are very intelligent and head strong it can be a right pain to stop them once they get an idea into their heads. They tend to be very dominant towards other dogs and sometimes people if their owners don't stop it.

They are a great breed but people who get them need to be aware of what they are, what they were developed for are and how difficult they can be raise in the correct manner.
Are they good for first time owners? Depends on the amount of work the owners are willing to put in. They are a lot more difficult to raise that something like a labrador, but if the effort is put in then they are a fantastic dog to own. As it stands I don't think I'd want another dog breed.

They aren't a breed for everyone but for those that can give them the upbringing they deserve then there isn't a better breed out there.