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Representatives of the American Akita breed will appeal to every dog lover. They have a beautiful view and a good addition. Dogs are confident. But, if you want to buy such a dog for yourself, do not forget that their character is rather complicated. This trait they received from their ancestors from Japan. Therefore, choose a dog not only on the external characteristics.
Breed history
The ancestors of this breed are Japanese and English dogs. If you believe the sources, the breed belongs to the ancients. Mention of it can be found even on ancient products. But officially this breed is quite new. It appeared when the ports of Japan opened in 1854. People from all over the world began to come to Japan and brought representatives of the breed home.
When these dogs came to the United States, experts immediately began to breed and improve their characteristics.The years of the Second World very bad impact on the breed. A lot of dogs were destroyed. But few individuals were exported from the United States. They were considered American dogs that originated from Japan.
Larger dogs were added to the breed. Breeders used for this bullmastiffs and mastiffs. Later, the breed began to recover. It happened in her homeland. Introduced a restriction on color. And in the United States continued to display larger dogs. Outwardly, they are different from the Japanese Akita Inu.
Breed description
Japanese Akita and their American relatives are very similar. But the differences are still there. American dogs are larger, their coat may have a more varied color. Their head is bigger; it has the shape of a triangle.
These large dogs have wide bones. Males grow to 72 cm, and females about 5 cm below. The weight of a representative of the breed is 65-70 kg. The Japanese fellow weighs only 45 kg. Here is a description of the standard:
- Eyes brown, small size. The nose has a black lobe, but if the dog is white, the lobe may be brown.
- The ears are small. They stand and lean forward slightly.
- The neck is powerful and well muscled.
- Limbs powerful and strong. Paws are fleshy and large.
- Fluffy tail, curled ring.
The hair of representatives of the breed is straight and thick. The undercoat is also very thick. The fur can be of different lengths and colors. But, if there are spots, they should be clearly delineated. The color of the coat may differ from that of the undercoat.
The long-haired variation of the breed, also known as Akita-dlinnik, was also randomly bred. These dogs have longer hair on the limbs, ears and tail. Today, long-haired Akita is considered a consequence of a genetic disorder. There is always the likelihood that a long-haired puppy will be born to parents with a coat of regular length.
The nature of dogs
Japanese akits used to hunt beasts, as well as guard people and gorgeous palaces. Their American descendants received some of their instincts and character traits.
Representatives of the breed are independent dogs with a stable psyche. But, if you have never had a dog before, and you have decided to buy a pet for yourself, then you should not choose Akita. Their owner must have a certain experience and character.
The dog will not tolerate rudeness and carelessness towards him. The owner must be calm, but show that he is the leader. Akita require constant attention and communication. Breed representatives of the breed rarely, so they can be attributed to a fairly peaceful and friendly dogs. If the dog barked, there is a reason for it. To those people with whom the dog constantly communicates, he becomes attached. It treats strangers quite indifferently.
If there are guests in the host family, then the dog will meet them with enough education and calm. But if there are no owners, and at this time someone makes an attempt to enter the dwelling, then the attacker will not be good enough.
Note! Akits do not get along well with other animals, they can behave aggressively with them. Therefore, to keep them with other pets is undesirable.
Walking with the American Akita is better on a leash. The dog can not listen to commands, run around the yard and scare away animals and birds.
They get along well with children. If the child and the dog grew up in a family together or the baby grows in front of the dog, then they will have a good relationship. But in order to avoid trouble should not leave the baby alone with the dog.If the child is too active and makes a lot of noise, the dog may decide that he is a danger to her beloved master.
These dogs are very loyal to the owner, but this dedication must be earned. With proper education, you will get a loyal friend. If the dog is not raised, it will become naughty and disobedient.
Training
The training of representatives of the breed is very difficult. To do this, you need not only to have experience in handling dogs, but also to arm yourself with knowledge about the characteristics of the breed. Otherwise, to educate and raise a pet simply will not work. Akita are not one of those dogs that obediently execute commands a hundred times a day. Before you obey, the pet will think about it, assess the situation, and only then decide whether to respond to the command. If the dog decides that the owner has given him a useless task, then it will not be fulfilled.
If the owner knows about these features, he will be psychologically prepared for the fact that Akita will have to train for a long time. It will be a real test of patience and endurance.If you are not sure that you are ready to go for it, or you do not have enough time and character, then it is better to give preference to a more obedient breed. There are many breeds of dogs that are not so difficult to train.
If you do decide, then for training it is recommended to choose the form of the game. In addition, the owner must get to know the dog in order to understand its mood. Akita do not like boring activities that require repeated execution of the same tasks. The dog will be bored and stop executing commands rather quickly. If this happens, you can entertain the dog with a toy or motivate it with something tasty. In no case do not use force against Akita. This will not only discourage the hunt to learn, but also cause a strong offense. After that, it will be very difficult to restore the trust of the dog. The desire to engage also strongly depends on the mood of the dog. If the Akita does not want to train, then it is better not to persevere and postpone training for another day.
American Akita is one of those dog breeds that have the character and cleanliness, allowing them to be kept even in an apartment. These dogs do not make excessive noise and have no unpleasant smell.Places for them too much will not need. Many contain representatives of this breed in the yard. This option is also acceptable. These dogs have a thick coat. They are not afraid of any intense heat or frost.
If you live in an apartment, but still decided to buy an American Akita, think immediately about whether you will have time to walk with such a dog for a long time. The owner of a private house can simply let the dog go so that he can walk on his own. On the other hand, it is important to remember that these dogs need communication. If the dog lives on the street, it needs to pay attention. Lack of communication will lead to a stressful state of the pet.
Also, the Akita hosts should know another characteristic. At the first opportunity the dog can run away, as they are distinguished by a special love of freedom. If the animal lives in the yard, make a fence higher, and consider the possibility of digging. During the walk you need to firmly hold the leash. After all, Akita is quite capable to start a fight with other dogs.
Representatives of the breed love to dominate, so they can coexist with their own kind only when they recognize its leadership.And if in the apartment there will be small animals, then Akita will start hunting for them.
Care
Care is not difficult. Akit should be combed out every month. When the dog sheds, naturally, combing it is recommended more often. But this applies to dogs that live in the house.
If you are the owner of a dog that belongs to a show class, then before the exhibition it will not hurt to take your pets to a special salon, where they will put it in proper order. If the dog's claws do not grind off, then they need to be cut off. Also require attention to the ears and teeth of a pet.
Akita Nutrition
A representative of this breed, like many others, can be fed with ready-made food or you can cook it yourself. If you decide to buy food, then choose the highest quality one that fits the size of the dog and its age. You can buy food that contains fish. Ready food has certain advantages. If you do not save on your pet, and buy good food, you can be sure that there are already all the substances that are needed to maintain a healthy dog.
If for some reason you prefer to prepare food for your pet yourself, then Akita will require products such as cottage cheese. It should contain little fat and be enriched with calcium.Of the other dairy products, representatives of this breed need kefir and yogurt. They also need animal protein in the form of eggs and lean meat. If you give meat or fish, they need to cook.
Aita often likes different fruits. You can give them apples, berries, and even bananas. It depends on exactly what your pet likes. It is better to feed the puppy more often, but gradually transfer it to three meals a day, and then to two meals. You should not give the dog more food than it eats at a time. If the feed remains, it is better to reduce the portion.
Here is an example of the diet of an adult Akita.
- 700 grams of meat. At the same time it should be lean. For example, chicken, turkey. Do not feed the dog pork or other fatty meat. It could hurt him.
- Croup should be about 350 g. The best option would be rice and or buckwheat. Porridge for the pet is boiled with vegetables and meat. You can add herbs and oil.
- About 500 g - fruits and vegetables. They should be mostly fresh.
Food, intended for the day, is divided into two parts. It is also very useful to add such additives to food.
- If periodically added to the food dogs sea kale in dried form, the wool will be healthy and shiny.
- Eating eggs will also improve the condition of the dog's coat.
- If once a week to replace meat with fish, increasing the mass by 2 times, it will saturate the body of your pet with fatty acids and minerals.
Vitamins should be chosen based on the recommendations of the veterinarian.
Puppy price
Akita are rare for Russia. Sometimes you can see a Japanese representative, but the American ones are even more rare. But in some large cities of the country there are nurseries that deal specifically with the American Akita. The price of a puppy depends on its class.
- If he does not have a pedigree, the price varies from 10 to 12 thousand rubles. But in this case, the buyer runs the risk of stumbling over a cross between a puppy or a dog with defects.
- A puppy that is not intended for breeding due to non-compliance with standards, but is a representative of the breed and has no diseases, costs about 15 thousand rubles.
- Puppies that have a pedigree, and subsequently can be used for breeding, but have minor flaws that will not allow to participate in competitions and exhibitions, will cost about 20-30 thousand rubles.
- At least 50 thousandrubles will have to be paid for a representative who is a descendant of famous dogs, and will be able to subsequently participate in competitions and exhibitions.
As a result, we can say that the American Akita are big dogs with good endurance. They have a certain self-esteem, which does not allow them to behave foolishly and be distracted by nonsense. To buy such a dog you need people with strong character and determination. Only such a person will be able to raise from Akita a good faithful friend and pet of the whole family.
Video: American Akita dog breed
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