minxy

I don't know if it would suit people, but there's a dog park right near my house that is always empty. I've never seen more than 2 dogs there, and only because they were from the same owner It's small, but I don't know, could be good because it would mean we'd probably have the place to ourselves? Otherwise, I'm not too sure. There's another one I like at Moorooka, but there's normally about another 40 dogs there on a Sunday arvo.

I'm working until 3, but it's a Southside meet so I'll come straight there. I'll see if I can convince OH to drive me to work that day and pick me up so we can go straight to the meet. Which park do we want for this one???

Probably a harness or a new toy. He doesn't really need any more toys though. Harness might come in handy. I've never used one before!

QUESTIONS 1. What is my relationship with the breed? (ie breeder, first time owner etc) First time owner 2. Where and why was the breed first developed? Japan, Akita named after the Akita prefecture. They have been used for various things such as hunting (bears in particular), babysitting, police work, on rural properties to guard livestock etc. 3. How common is it in Australia? Not very at all. There are only about 20 registered breeders in Australia (some of the ones on dogzonline that are listed as breeders aren't actually breeders, they just offer a stud service) and the breed has only been in Australia since the 80's. 4. What is the average lifespan? 10 - 12 years 5. What is the general temperament/personality? Extremely loyal, loving, protective, can be stubborn, dominant, aloof with strangers, natural protective tendencies, affectionate. 6. How much daily exercise is needed for the average adult? Not a huge amount. A half hour - 1 hour walk each day roughly, but apparently they can be just as happy to skip a day or two. So far Kyojin doesn't mind either way. 7. Is it a breed that a first time dog owner could easily cope with? Definitely not. They need a firm owner who will consistently correct their behaviour and not let them get away with anything. They also can be selective in their obedience in that like some other Spitz breeds, if they don't see the point in doing something, they won't. 8. Can solo dogs of this breed easily occupy themselves for long periods? They love human company more so than other animal company. Kyojin's definitely a million times happier when we're at home, even if he's just sleeping all day anyway. He loves to lie near us so he can keep track of the action. 9. How much grooming is required? A lot when they are blowing their coat. I haven't experienced Kyojin's first coat blow, but I feel I'm pretty prepared after all the research I've done! We have bought a force dryer to help with the process. If you watch this video from youtube you'll see just how handy these dryers can be!! They'll lose all of their undercoat roughly twice a year, this can last a couple of weeks. During this time they'll need LOTS of brushing to help remove the coat quickly, and bathing them a few times will help too. The rest of the time, they don't really shed, or have a the "doggy" smell that a lot of dogs have. 10. Is it too boisterous for very small children or for infirm people (unless the dog is well trained)? I don't think ANY breed of dog should be left alone/unattended with very young children, but especially such large dogs like Akitas. Due to their size it would be pretty easy for them to accidentally injure a small child. 11. Are there any common hereditary problems a puppy buyer should be aware of? Hips, thyroid/bloat, PRA (eyes) 12. When buying a puppy, what are the things you should ask of the breeder? (eg what health tests have been done (if applicable) and what is an acceptable result to those tests so the buyer has an idea of what the result should be) Hip scores probably. I'd want to know what the personalities of the parents are like, what sort of socialisation the dog has had etc

I was more amused by their names - all quite cute, pleasant names until "Vulcan" at the end

Agreed, LM you need to settle down. I fail to see where Dju has blatantly declared that she has no interest in keeping Hugo safe. All she said was that she didn't have one yet - never did she write that she does not care for his safety or wouldn't consider getting him a seatbelt or harness. Find something better to do with your time then bully other members.

that's the best way to go about it isn't it... unlike me and my crazy shopping for Kairu and got him one that he still needs to wait to grow into :D Haha, yea I figure he'll do fine on Nylon for now. Every time I look at him, I swear he's grown some more!

K9 Pro. I can't wait for Kyojin to finish growing so I can buy him a leash and collar from them

I should be good for the 2nd January. OH has the day off work and I'm only working til 3pm, which should be fine since it's a Southside meet. Who else is free on the 2nd??

We haven't really come up with that too much yet, but I'd say that's only because so far no one in our class had ever heard of an Akita before. Our trainer had said she had to Google Akita's before we got there so she'd know what one looked like. I have my suspicions that the other trainer who I didn't want, HAS heard of them though and thinks negatively of them. I'm not sure, but I do get that feeling. I've had one or two people at the park ask me if they are fighting dogs etc, but at least they were asking out of curiousity and not fear/disgust etc as they had spent the last 2 hours cuddling up to him and saying how wonderful he was. I've grown up with Rotties my whole life, so I've definitely heard loads of people say how horrible and aggressive they are. My girls have been some of the most gentle, sweet natured dogs I've ever met! I think that just because a dog can be trained to be a guard dog, or some bogan idiot has trained their dog to be aggressive, that everyone automatically views the whole breed as bad, which is definitely not true. I'm surprised that at the moment when we walk Kyojin that so many people want to pat him and smile at him. He's already a "big" dog at the moment, but I'm not sure that once he's fully grown that people will still be interested in him. I suspect they will run the other way I have actually heard the kids thing from my sister. She tried telling my mum how bad they'd be with kids etc and again, that they are fighting dogs. Fortunately my mum has the good sense not to condemn a dog based on what she has heard, and when she met him, she thought he was beautiful.

Cute, Raven!

Wow, I love my training club! So I asked them to confirm who the trainer would be for the next level, and mentioned that I was hoping to continue with the same lady. Well, they said they were more than happy to switch the trainers for that class and promptly changed the info on the website! SWEET

Kyojin also loves apples

Dogtainers! The breeder my pup came from works for them. We had our boy sent from Canberra to Brisbane using them, and we couldn't have been happier.

Some things I can think of that you need/might need: A crate - google crate training if you don't know much about it, it is wonderful! Food/water bowls Food - same type the breeder has been feeding your puppy Toys Blankets/bed Collar Leash Harness/seat belt for in the car Flea/tick/heartworm prevention Brush A good puppy school

Thanks Ugh yes, tell me about it! I don't even *love* the club in general, but it's the only place that offer these sorts of classes. There is one obedience club that sounds amazing, but it's an hour away, which makes it pretty hard when we're trying to do night classes around work. There are a few other clubs around that do agility, but I think they're competitive, and your dog needs to be 11 months to start, plus, agile is not a word I'd use to describe either Kyojin or myself

Yay, we finally graduated from puppy school last night! (Was meant to be last week, but was cancelled due to all the rain). I was just going to enrol in the next level of training starting next week, but it looks like they might have switched trainers.

Kyojin while getting a brush out on the front lawn

You can get a car restraint which attaches to the d-ring on the harness: http://www.worldforpets.com.au/products/pr...ail.asp?ID=3007 (also available from Big W) or http://waggle.com.au/petbuckle-b18/kwik-connect-tether-p272 I prefer the petbuckle attachment as it won't accidently come undone, nor can the dog learn to release it himself We have the first one and I love it. We have a car seat hammock to protect the back seat and always have the seatbelt pulled through, ready to go. It takes literally two seconds to clip Kyojin in. I've tried having the seatbelt debate with a few people, but they just don't get it. Why would you NOT spend $10 to restrain your loved ones to try and keep them safe?!

Yay Pandii!! He's BEAUTIFUL!

Were there/are there any Akitas there this weekend that anyone knows of??

How's the courtyard?? I thought the rain here was bad enough just because we haven't been able to take Kyojin for a walk! He got me up at 4.30 this morning for a pee, so I opened the front door and he was like "What?! Still raining?! Alright. Ahhhhhhhhhhh" *Whizz* All over my front steps

Fortunately, my OH is super cool about dogs/animals in the house. I used to always think that dogs inside the house was gross, then I realised it was just that one particular dog that lived in someone's house that I thought was gross Luckily, OH is just as happy to have Kyojin inside with us. He's always been so great about my love for animals though. In the year and a half we have been in our house, I've managed to get 2 cats and a dog in. He is a super neat freak, and I am too for the most part. If we didn't have the cats the house would be a lot cleaner though. Kyojin doesn't shed, though he does leave a huge trail of drool/water from his bowl all over the place, and thinks the rug is the best place to eat biscuit bones. We vacuum and steam mop every 2-3 days.

My friends old Cav used to do that too. I can't remember if they knew why though/what exactly it was.

Can't make this one either unfortunately