KumaAkita

Thanks Saxonpup and GomezAkita! So kind... I've dropped my breeder and email and will go from there. Hey GomezAkita - any photos???

thanks y'all I love this photo too (sorry for some reason photobucket didn't resize it...) he looks a bit "lady, if you don't get this hat off my head soon, I'm gunna...." Poor Roo - hope there's nothing too wrong with her stitches. Oh and yay for Ava. I knew she'd bounce back quickly! I am also certain that Satch would have been happier with a few more days of peace and quiet!

My special little guy turns 1 today... Happy Birthday Lovely Boy! We had his birthday celebrations last night coz I'm off to melbourne at midday. He was rather unimpressed with his birthday hat. I gave him some foody treats, a KraMar Chicken Chew and a few KraMar Chew Rizo. He loved the Chicken Chew thing. I'll buy him a proper present soon... I gave him a special bone today, it looked like a pig shin. It was all meaty and cartlidgey and I'm sure he's nomming away on that right now. naawwwh, they grow up so quicky *wipes tear from eye*

My.... what big ears you have... ETA: whoops - probably should photoshop out his lipstick! must do that when I get home.... :D

Hey all... hope today's treating you all well. lilli_star: Glad Roo's on the up and up, hope she continues to improve and has no icky stitches issues Wuffles: Good luck to Miss Ava. I'm sure she'll be fine... bet Satch enjoys the peace and quiet while it lasts Max#1: +1 on the flyball video. I can't imagine Kuma doing it. He'd probably destroy the equipment! I'm clumsy too, so i'm sure it'd never work. :D KTB: Lovely Hoov photos. Second one is all - hey, you woke me up! Niques: We used to call Kuma Long Dog, coz he'd grow in length first. Then his back legs would grow, then his front would catch up. He is still a bit gangly and awkward. On the Show Dog/Conformation topic - hmmm... I too am bemused by the show dog scene. I don't begrudge those who do it, it's just not my bag. I personally cannot see why I'd want to do it. I understand that the standards all came from somewhere, and that there is some basis in historical/traditional uses for the animal. However, I need convincing as to why some of the standards remain. I'm also desperate to find out why Kuma is not "show worthy" I also think Humans have their own "conformation" show - if not, then Miss Universe/Miss Worlds, etc would not exist. These ladies are held up to be the best example of womanhood at that given moment in time. I don't buy into that either, by the way, just an example of the ideals humans impose on themselves and all around them. Re cocking of leg: Kuma has only started doing it in the last few months. Now he's working on getting his pee higher up the totem pole. We have to inspect every blade of grass, ever light pole, every letter box, just so Kuma can claim it as "his". He still pees like a girl at home. Once he pee'd on a banked garden bed, he was half asleep and cocked too high and nearly fell over. Silly Billy ETA: I've put a couple of photos of Kuma in the Spitz Calendar 2011 thread, if you like 'em please vote for me when it's time

all that glitters - the cat in the second last photo looks like "seriously, this is so un-cool" My faves:

Hadn't even thought of that! Thanks Bjelkier, I'll send her an email.

The OH and I are planning a holiday - first one in forever. But we now have the added complication of our darling boy. I'm not keen on putting him in a kennel and wouldn't dream of asking friends to take care of him - he's a big boy and it's a lot of responsiblity. Has anyone used a dog walker/sitter in Canberra? I'm keen to hear about any experiences (good/bad/indifferent) The plan would be to start using a dog walker once a week until we leave, that way our boy is more comfortable than simply just dumping him for a two week holiday! Any other suggestions? Many thanks

Ok, some pics from me:

Oh Huga... so sad... :rolleyes: Run free Harry.

Perhaps she can teach Kuma how to jump onto/into vehicles. He stedfastly refuses to jump into the back of the car. He puts his paws up and then gives us this "uh, a little help please..." look. We give him a boost up :rolleyes:

Awesome shot Lic - They look so happy together

I love the one of Akira on the ute - it's like she's saying "yep, they're my pavers... whatcha goin' ta do about it???"

IME I have found that the people who are certain you have a cross, especially if they think they've nailed one part of the breed, are the people who won't believe that your breed exists. They're also the ones who ask how much you paid for your dog and nearly wet themselves when you tell them. If I'm not sure of a breed, I will just ask "what breed..." and wouldn't make an assumption that it was a cross. I've only recently started to identify different breeds (thanks DOL!) but I know that there are many different breeds that I have not come across, so would never assume I'm right. Soooo many animals I have never seen in the fur, and only seen in photo, so I'd prefer not to make an assumption, but that's just me. It's the people that argue that I'm wrong about the breed of my dog... I do love it when people get it right tho! Warms the cockles a little.

Kuma has a thing for licking my OH's ears, face and nibbling on his beard. I won't let him lick my face, unless I ask for a kiss. He's also started showing his toys to us. If we are in different rooms (i.e. I'm watching telly and he's on the computer) Kuma will grab his toys and run in and show my OH, then plonk them at my feet. One by one until he's comfortable that he's shared enough. But my absolutely all time favourite would be the Akita Lean. If we stand still for too long, he's leaning against us...

I had someone ask me if Kuma was a labrador... The most common reaction is "Gee, that's a big Husky/Malamute". I always set them straight, but give them cudos for picking a spitz breed. The people who ask me "what's your husky crossed with??" usually irk me the most, coz they're the ones who don't want to hear that he's purebred.

We were driving home in it too - we were about 3 blocks from home when it hit... OH and I are carpooling this week coz my car is in for repair. Kuma was at the back door absolutely saturated. He wasn't so keen on coming inside, but I coaxed him in. He was a wee bit agitated... I gave him a dentastick thinking he'd just plonk on the rug and calm down. Nope, took the dentastick and did zoomies around the house... laps around the dining table, up the hall, onto the futon and back onto the couch... he's an idiot! did this for about 10 mins, then he calmed down and nommed on the dentastick. Once the rain cleared a little, he went back outside and continued his zoomies around the backyard. Finally got him back inside and he zonked out... my white fluffy is a dull brown with all the mud now! Yay, glad she's home (albeit stinky!). Good luck keeping her quiet Your MDTL sounds awesome - need to find me one of those! We met a husky on our morning walk - 4 years old. I asked if they could meet, but the husky wasn't too keen, bit growly and stuff. Her owner said that she's only used to other huskies... she was a cute little thing. Wuffles: we need to organise this birthday party so our boys can meet properly!

Tri a Lil Tenderness (or a truncated version fit in with character limits - sorry, don't know what they are)

Wuffles: Good explanation. I hadn't thought of the team-work angle. My little card says "needs to practice heelwork". I think I've just lost my Obedience Mojo and need to start looking at other ways to "make it work". I agree with what Max#1 is saying, class size/instructor/dog/handler combo needs to be right. We have an ever changing number of people in our class - up to 15 at one class. I think it is unworkable for one lone instructor to provide positive feedback to each dog. I've been skipped over in so many classes, and I'm sure that the moments that Kuma is actually doing the right thing have been missed because our instructor is on the other side of the paddock with other dogs. By the time she's gotten around to us (if she gets around the whole group), Kuma's in the "been there, done that" phase and is ignoring my command. I count my blessings where they come, he's really good at mealtime manners and is steady for pats and examination. He meets other dogs well (when he's not trying to squoosh them - sorry Ava). We could work on the sit/stay and down/stay, but mostly he's good with that. I think he just got too hot yesterday, went through a 750ml waterbottle in 45 mins. ETA: I still think you're crazy for loving obedience! Then again, I hated school so am not surprised that Obedience isn't my bag either!

Love Brandy's Vid KTB It sounds like Hoover is having a bit of a calming effect on Elbie - sleeping though your Rockband challenge! We copped the storm at 5:30 this morning, just as the alarm went off (so we hit snoooozzzzeee and slept in!) Kuma is back to sleeping in the laundry so he doesn't bark at the neighbours, and all I heard from him was a soft little snore. Glad he isn't a storm freaker either. My parent's lab had severe storm issues. He could feel a storm within a 200Km radious and if he was outside, would automatically start digging to get out. He ended up at the pound so many times. If my folks left him inside, he'd tear up the house... scratching doors etc. If they were home, he'd race into the Walk in robe only to come out when the folks went to bed - when he flopped next to mum and she'd have to have her hand on him.... super sooky la la. Lilli_star: wedding sounds nice, low key... Hope Roo is doin' ok. I'm sure she'll be stoked to see you. The Cat, probably won't be as happy! Clastic: Awesome photos, love the snoozy kids on the back seat. I think that one should be in a frame. There is no way on God's Green Earth that Kuma will be passing Bronze in a few weeks. He doesn't heel. At all. I don't see the needs for heeling, therefore can't enforce my dog to do it. I was chatting to the guy how owns Louis the Dalmation (tho I'm sure there's some cross in there...) and he said heeling is all about control. I have control in other ways and don't see the need to enforce "heel". I think we're just too bored with the training, but really loving the socialisation. I'll have to think about my next move. Also, think classes in Jan/Feb/Mar are going to be way too hot for Kuma. Max#1: I'm with KTB on this - You'll get another dog... You'll get another dog... You'll get another dog (chant along with me, everyone!) In other news, Kuma had his cranky pants on yesterday. He was growling at planes flying in the sky, a bird overhead... anything... strange little bugger! Seems to be happier today. Hopefully he's found a nice dry spot, away from the swamp marsh that is my backyard!

true, true... Kuma is very happy to plonk and will keep himself amused for hours on end without mischief I do however wish that I could get more out of him, hence why I'm going to do the course! No dogs day out for us either, sorry! Re birthday party... I'm away for work on November 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18 and 19. My inlaws come for the weekend on the 19th... then I'm going to book myself into a mental institution for a melt down. How about a joint party on either November 27 or December 4? I can't wait to meet Satch.

Steve is the dude behind K9Pro - he is an awesome dog trainer and all around doggie Guru. See his website for details K9Pro. We took Kuma for a visit to make sure we are on the right track - it is hard raising a big dog, and even more so if it becomes aggressive/dominant/stubborn. I wanted to make sure Kuma is just a nice balanced dog. He wasn't doing too well at training using the conventional food treat method, so I wanted to explore other ways to make him more engaged in the training. A mentally active dog is not prone to being naughty! I'm going to do the Training in Drive program by distance (off to by a video camera tomorrow!). If you stick training in drive (or TID) into a youtube search, you'll see some amazing videos! I envy those of you who have "trainable" dog, i.e. food driven, easy to engage. I struggle to get Kuma's attention for too long, he's soo aloof.

Morning All! Yikes this week has been quick... KTB: your furkids are too cute - I love Hoover's baleful face. He looks like a shy country kid that has a load of energy inside him Niques: the wet photos of James crack me up. I iz wet! Kuma is getting used to the towel. Half of the time he tries to bite it, the other half he just sucumbs to being dried. We have a microfibre towel which works well, it's a bit softer than a standard bath towel and I think it isn't as "scratchy". lilly_star: I know you're worried about Roo - She's in the best place for her and will get expert care. I'm sure she'll be AOK. Enjoy your busy weekend! Betsy: Ziggy looks shattered! You guys musta had fun at your treasure hunt. Awesome beach shots. I'm not so sure I'll ever let Kuma off at a beach. He'd probably choose that moment to flip me the bird and run off into the sunset :D at the poo talk. Kuma's pretty good at converting his food into energy and not poop, we don't have to pick up that much. Plus he prefers to poop on our walks - especially that grass/straw stuff (have you seen it? they mulch up hay combine it with grass seed and fertiliser and spray it around - it's awesome) Kuma likes it coz it's crunchy under foot. We got Kuma one of these when we were at Steve's place. It's his all time favourite toy. He LOVES chasing the rag around and does everything he can to catch it. Favourite thing ever!

Holy Moley! That South Russian Ovcharka is one HUGE dog!

@ MrRedDog!