Akita
Temperament
by Sherry E. Wallis
Page 5 of 5
Independence
Everyone who has Akitas knows that they
are independent dogs. This is definitely an inherited component of
temperament and very strong in the breed. I don't think this is something
anyone breeds for. In some ways, Akita would be more appealing if they were
a little less independent, but it is so intrinsic to the breed, it shapes
many aspects of their behavior. Without it, we'd have a totally different
breed without the reserve and dignity so typical the adult.
I've been around a lot of different dog
breeds, but Akitas are one of the only ones I'm sure could be depended on to
survive without people, barring encounters with cars about which they seem
to have no sense. They are unlikely to do anything reckless or daring;
rather, they consider what they are doing and use their experiences to
evaluate their actions. In short, the Akita is a survivor, due in large part
to his capacity for independent action.
Therefore, leaving the dog outside to fend
for itself can make him a poor pet. Akitas need to be around the people in
the household to bond with them. Left to their own devices, Akitas will make
their own world and rules for living in it.
Mutual respect is the key to working with
Akitas. You must be the alpha person, but even so, sooner or later, you'll
run up against their independent nature. Pick your battles carefully. If it
doesn't really matter, let the dog have his way. He'll be easier to deal
with later when something needs to be done your way.
Inhibited
Akitas are typically inhibited as opposed
to excitable, a set of inherited characteristics that mark the dog's
response to stress. His inhibited nature is responsible for the laid-back
attitude that makes the Akita a pleasure to have in the house.
It is obvious in puppies as they work through
the PAT. They tend to get calmer and less responsive. Sometimes, inhibited
puppies get so stressed out, they fall asleep. With excitable breeds,
puppies end up running about the room, jumping on the tester, and sometimes,
even barking and whining.
When you start a new training exercise with
your dog, whether it's heeling in obedience or stacking for conformation,
your dog will demonstrate signs of inhibition. He may work slowly, show
little animation, and/or seem very tired. He may yawn repeatedly, which is a
sign of stress.
In the worst cases, the very inhibited dog
demonstrates a sort of waxy catatonia. We had one one a PAT that literally
never moved she was so shut down. She grew up to be a wonderful, calm,
non-adventurous companion.
An excellent example of normal inhibited
behavior is the puppy at its first match. You can position him easily and
then he stays like a little statue without a lick of training. From one show
to the next, it becomes more like the other puppies, moving about and
demonstrating a puppy's typical short attention span.
As the dog gains confidence through exposure,
it is less stressed, so it is less inhibited. The more puppies are exposed
to manageable stress, the less inhibited their response will be. So, don't
get discouraged initially by your dog's response to new situations. He will
become more active and enthusiastic when he gets used to them. If you make
them more stressful by being disapproving of his hesitancy, you will only
make worse. Just go on positively, and your dog's performance will improve.
Protective
Many people depend on their Akitas for
personal protection. Until very recently, I had both German Shepherds and
Akitas, and I have found many differences in how they respond to strangers
in the house and outside the yard. First, the Shepherds (and the other
guard-type dogs, such as Rottweilers and Dobermans) are much better area
guards, especially if the owner is in a situation where he needs or wants
outsiders to be aware that dogs are on the premises. Why? The other breeds
bark more. Like the old joke, that's the good and the bad news.
I love being able to have dogs without
offending my neighbors. All twelve of my dogs bark less than the one dog
that lives next door. For eleven years, two joggers came past our house
every morning, and for eleven years, my German Shepherd barked at them while
the Akitas just watched, a much more sensible response.
However, now that I have only Akitas, our
yardmen have no trouble coming in the backyard so long as my children are
not outside. The Shepherds wouldn't let anyone inside the fence, no matter
how many times a week they showed up. We have back-door garbage pickup,
which means the garbage men have to come inside the gates. Some of my Akitas
will allow them in and station themselves in front of the door, watching. Of
course, the Shepherds wouldn't let them in at all.
Do I think anyone could harm my daughters
with an Akita present? Definitely not! They are less concerned with me and
even less with my husband, probably because we are the dominant people.
Maybe they figure we can look out for ourselves most of the time. I'm fairly
confident that their attitude would change if they sensed we were frightened
or suspicious ourselves.
Guarding is a primary duty of the European
guard dogs commonly seen in Schutzhund work--Rottweilers, Belgians,
Shepherds, and Bouviers. The Akita's basic temperament, shaped for different
purposes, gives it a different approach to life. Protectiveness is
definitely there but takes a backseat to other facets of the dog's
personality.
If our Akita's bark in the night, we know
they have a good reason. They know people don't skulk around after dark. On
the other hand, if Akitas were great protection dogs, they'd be working in
police departments everywhere, and some of us would be in Schutzhund trials.
I remember an interview with a policeman who trained his Akita for K-9 work.
He said the dog was a good worker but not a breed he would select again for
that particular job because the Akita was harder to train.
Tolerant of Other
Dogs
Low on the list,
but still there is tolerance of other dogs. To some extent, all northern dog
are scrappy. Akitas have the dubious distinction of being one of the only
ones actually used for dog-fighting. Undoubtedly, Japanese breeders selected
for the more aggressive dogs throughout the years the breed was used for
fighting, but I'm sure their choice to use the Akita in the first place had
much to do with their innate desire to scrap with other dogs. This tendency
made them a good choice for the sport of dog-fighting. Breeding programs
over the year increased this tendency and kept it in the breed.
Historical data tell us that the native dogs
of the Dewa area were also crossed with European dogs to increase their size
and, therefore, their fighting ability. These were probably Great Danes
(also known as Deutsche Dogges) which were brought to the area by German
mining engineers.
Was this version of the Akita a ferocious pit
dog? They certainly were pitted against similar dogs. However, Tatsuo Kimura
tells me that one of the reasons the Akita breeders shifted directions early
in this century was because of a fight between an Akita fighting champion
and a Tosa Fighting Dog, a breed resulting from crosses of the Japanese
native Tosa Inu with various European imports. Looking at them today, I
would guess the imports must have included at least the English Mastiff and
probably some other Molossan-type dogs. Anyway, the Akita barely escaped
with its life. Its fanciers realized that continuing to pit them with dogs
like the Tosa might be the end of the breed. With the rising tide of
nationalism in Japan, they began to value the Akita Inu as a native Japanese
breed, for itself rather than for what it could do in a dog fight. Instead
of crosses aimed at fighting ability, they began to look for hunting-type
dogs to restore the breed to its original type.
If you can enhance a trait by selective
breeding, of course, you can also minimize it. Certainly, Akitas today seem
less dog-aggressive generally than they were twenty years ago. This
alteration is due in part to selection for less aggressive dogs and in part
to better training techniques such as early socialization of puppies,
continued exposure of adult dogs to strange dogs, and obedience training of
young dogs.
I know several people who keep same-sex
Akitas together and others that have several mixed-sex ones that run
together with no trouble. Sometimes, a pack works because a dominant dog
keeps everyone in line, but maybe these Akitas are just that much less
dog-aggressive. I've never been daring enough to put my older bitches
together, although I suspect a few of them would get along. One, though, can
run with any male but cannot be put loose with a female without fighting.
She's been dog-aggressive since puppyhood, and I'm sure had she been put in
a pack situation, she'd have inflicted a lot of damage on other bitches.
Fence Fighting
Putting dogs in a situation where they can
fence-fight builds up a lot of unresolved aggression. It starts as a game
and then escalates to serious dislike. To minimize this, I have board
fencing between my runs. It is covered on both sides with chain-link to keep
it from being eaten. The dogs really don't see each other, and rarely ever
bark at dogs on the other sides. Given a chance, though, they will
fence-fight through the gates or the outside chain-link.
Dogs that fence fight can cause significant
damage to each other. Worse if you hve two together, tthey canbecome so
enraged that the fight with each other when they can;t get to the dog on the
otherside of the fence.
Aggressive To Other Dogs?
According to the standard, an Akita may be
aggressive towards other dogs; however, it doesn't say that they have to be
so. In today's litigious society, the consequences of an attack that damages
someone else's dog can be severe indeed. Also, many people do not understand
that a dog that is aggressive towards another dog is not necessarily
aggressive to people. Looking at a snarling, bristling Akita doesn't inspire
a lot of confidence about the breed.
I've heard from people who bought dogs as
pets, listened to all that the breeeder told them about this less desireable
aspect of Akita temperament and failed utterly to understand what it really
meant until their darling scooped up the neighbors peekapoo amd put it in
the hospital with one bite. Fence fighting with the neighbor's dog can
result in an attack should your dog ever get into his yard or his into
yours! Hot wires, extra fencing, or just vigilance on your part will help
avoid this kind of disaster.
Mostly, your dog has to be socialized to
accept strange dogs at class, in the street, or wherever you might go with
him. For some dogs with strong tendencies toward dog aggression, one class
at 12 weks won't be enough; you have to keep it up for most of his life.
These tendencies also may not appear until the dog goes through puberty.
Misbehavior here should be firmly corrected because the hormonal surges your
dog is undergoing will make him harder to deal with and can set up bad
habits that last a lifetime. Correctly managed, the dog will settle down
when his testosterone does.
If you want to compete with an Akita,
regardless of the venue, you must have a dog that can be trusted around
other dogs. A dog that can't be trusted to leave other animals alone on
neutral ground is a real liability. In obedience and agility, the dog works
off-leash, so he has to be reliable. At a dog show, he must negotiate
crowded aisles and stand close together in crowded rings.
The demands of such activities have shaped
our selection for less dog-aggression in our Akitas, and I think this is
perfectly acceptable and somewhat desireable. Nonetheless, you should
remember that the most benign Akita can conceive a sudden and violent
dislike for another Akita. In that case, you'll have to avoid that dog like
the plague because if your's has a chance, he'll get in a fight. That may be
only dog that ever inspires such antipathy, but both dogs will remember each
other and renew hostilities any time they can. It's part of what makes an
Akita an Akita!
Loyalty
After I started this series, I realized
that I had left loyalty off my list of temperament components. This is a
hallmark of Akita character, and the only excuse I can offer for overlooking
it is that it so much an intrinsic part of Akita nature that we take it for
granted.
I don't think I've ever been around an Akita
didn't have it. Is it an inherited trait? Since some breeds to not have a
lot of personal loyalty to any one person or group, I suspect it is, and it
is vital that we keep it in the breed.
I think their sense of loyalty makes Akitas
accepting of all the household inhabitants, including cats, kids, other
adults, and livestock. It allows them to form firm friendships with other
people--your friends, trainers, handlers, neighbors--and to never forget
them. Akitas I raised and sold as puppies have greeted me enthusiastically
years later. Dogs that belong to friends I travel with greet me
enthusiastically every time I see them, even though months or even years may
pass between meetings. Akitas never forget a friend.
The down side is that they never forget
people the don't like either. Once, my brother Steve had a picnic. To keep
him from being a pest, Scotty and Amy were in their crates. Rusty, Steve's
brother-in-law, set his plate with two hot dogs on top of Scotty's crate and
went off to get something to drink. I guess Scotty thought they were his,
because when Rusty picked them up and ate them, Scotty barked at him. Since
then, Scotty has never liked Rusty despite Rusty's overtures to redress the
wrong. Akitas aren't very forgiving either.
To some extent, their sense of loyalty is the
fount from which other traits arise. Without it, Akitas would not be
protective of their friends. Given their sense of independence, the Akita's
working ability probably finds its roots in loyalty. Can you imagine an
Akita that is not loyal to its family and friends? I can't; it is such a
pervasive part of the breed that we just accept its presence. Loosing it
would make a profoundly different dog.
Conclusion
I hope this series on temperament has
made everyone breeding Akitas think about what you want in a dog and how to
go about getting it through good breeding choices. Those of you who are just
owners or who are considering this breed should take note of the areas where
problems commonly occur.
This doesn't mean that your dog will manifest
these behaviors, but it does mean that if he has problems, they are likely
to be in these areas. Please watch for signs that you might be having
trouble, because if you catch this at the beginning, you'll probably be able
to either change the dog's or your behavior and stop a molehill from
becoming a mountain.
I don't mind answering questions when I have
time. And I certainly welcome your observations. You can
email me or call (713/465-9729).
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