# Akita



## Wayne Dodge (Mar 7, 2008)

I have a friend who is looking for an Akita... I know nothing about breeders involved with this breed.... Any recommended people would be appreciated.


----------



## James Downey (Oct 27, 2008)

I do not know the people personally, But a neighbor bought one back in 2002 from these people. The dog was super. He was social, safe, lived with kids, he fence fought with out dog, a lab. But they were good buds, without the fence. They health test the dogs, and urge people to go to Akita rescues. 

It's a good sign that they direct to a rescue instead of trying to sell pups. I think it shows they are not in it for the dough. at least that's the preception they put out there. They have been in buisness for a long time also...thats another good sgn. 

moonlightakita.com


----------



## Melissa Thom (Jun 21, 2011)

Do they want a japanese akita or an american akita? Also what do they want the dog for?


----------



## Wayne Dodge (Mar 7, 2008)

James..... Thanks

Melissa.... American


----------



## Erika Ackerland (Oct 27, 2011)

Akitas were the breed I wanted to start showing and breeding myself, I spoke to many Akita breeders through Canada and the US, the reason I did not go with an Akita... The breeders were hard to talk to.
There are some I would highly recommend for someone looking for a companion Akita and there are some that I would strongly steer away from. 
I am not comfortable with naming people publically, and to start naming lines, names kennels. 
What area are you looking in? Are they willing to ship a pup in?


----------



## rick smith (Dec 31, 2010)

obviously I have some experience with Akitas living in Japan
...unfortunately I have also had some bad experiences with Akita owners in the states

i also know they were very popular about ten years ago with air force families stationed here who brought a lot of akitas back to the states. some of that was from good stock; but a lot was pet store quality because it was hard for an american to buy a Nihon-ken titled akita from a serious Japanese breeder

- i got a request to hook up with an akita owner in the states ... all thru email ...was then steered to the owners "favorite web site" ... i have since forgotten about it .... TOTAL disaster and the biggest group of jerks i have ever read about relating to any dog breed ... it was an "all japan breed" forum btw; not just akitas 
- they all came across as a cliquish group that thought their "japan breeds" were in a different league than "regular" dogs and therefore all the crap behaviors they had developed thru show breeding for color combinations needed to be "understood" rather than FIXED ... "managed" rather than dealt with, if u catch my drift ... total denial ... i could go on and on
- lots of fear biting issues, extreme dog aggression, food aggression, "stubborn dog, hard to train and don't listen to owner" issues, etc etc 
- most of them were absolute IDIOTS who felt these problems could be solved with more love and clickers, imo, so i would steer clear of anyone; breeder or owner that supports that forum 
- not so many akita types; seemed more like the shiba owners were the most common, but i didn't stick around long enuff to find out 
- i have also heard and read (but don't know first hand) that the american akita has now become its own separate breed, and maybe they are still good dogs too, but it is a red flag to me, because they seem to be strictly show bred
- and altho you can probably find that any good dog (purebred or mutt) is capable of prancing around in a circle and letting a judge stroke it, that's not my idea of a way to develop a breed ... any breed
- an akita rescue might end up being a nice dog but could also be a lotta dog for someone who isn't familiar with how they should be raised

as i mentioned, there is a Nihon-ken association here in Japan for Japan breeds ... they are dedicated to preserving Japan breeds ... in SPIRIT as well as conformation and their competitions are MUCH more than show competitions --- TEMPERAMENT is judged very critically and is even more important than the color combinations and shape, etc ... owners and breeders who compete here have excellent stable dogs with no behavior baggage that sprouts up from pet breeders and dog farmers ... if you could be able to get a akita from one of these people you would have a much better chance of getting a good dog, but would need to cultivate the relationship slowly since they don't sell dogs for a business and are very selective about where their dogs end up

hope this doesn't discourage you but that's all i know based on my experiences ... i have trained with akita owners and they are no different than any other strong breed ... can be real nice dogs or big punks in the wrong hands  

guess all this means is find out what it takes to be an akita breeder, get refs of dogs they have sold, and then be very selective before you decide to buy one


----------



## Tiago Fontes (Apr 17, 2011)

Hi Rick,

What kind of performance testing are those Akitas you mentioned subject to? 



Thank you


----------



## Matt Grosch (Jul 4, 2009)

never heard anything good about akitas, sure some look pretty, but they sound like they may be the worst of the mastiff mixes (everything ive read, and when you look at jap akitas that look just like shiba inus, make the stories seem very reasonable about how the japanese dogs lost badly to western dogs when fought, and the japanese just added in more western mastiff types to make a tougher dog, the mastiff/western dog is obvious, again, just look at a shiba inu)


----------



## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

Rick, I don't know if it's still going on but there was a time just a few yrs when the Japanese were paying big money to purchase big winning American show dogs (any breed). 
How does this blend into the Nihon-Ken Association?


----------

