Akita

Known to be very loyal to their owners and very intelligent. They tend to go into greeting over drive when owner and pet have been separated for a while. They make good pets for homes or appartments as long as they get regular exercise. Because of their thick coat, they require regular grooming and shed heavily in warm weather. Due to their size and desire to play, care should be taken around small children. Additionally, unless they are properly socialized, they may exhibit aggression towards other small animals and dogs of the same sex.

I had an Akita growing up. She was a sweet loving girl, but she was hard to train and loved to bark all night. At the time we had her I was really into obedience training.. so her faults weren't for lacking of trying to correct them. I ended up having to place her with another family. They brought her back about 3 months later saying she was too much to handle. We finally found her a home with a business owner. He worked out of his house and wanted a barker. She was perfect and they loved her!! I wouldn't put this dog on my list of "must own breeds" but if you are looking for a dog to alert or protect. This is your perfect dog!

Oh, WOW! What can I say about the Akita. I had an Ex who's parents had an Akita as a guard dog at their business/residence. He was an absolutely WONDERFUL dog. He slobbered, and was big, but was very loving. Loved other dogs, loved kids, and loved new people. His huge size made him intimidating, but he was a GREAT dog. I would own one if I could. The only bad thing is that they shed horribly, as would any cold weather coated dog would in the coming of summer. Akitas were bred as a Bear dog, and I LOVE their personalities. They have the cutest faces too. So I say they are GREAT dogs. If you want a smaller Akita, let me tell you, Females are smaller than males. Wow, such a great breed of dog.

My partner and i bought an absolutely gorgeous akita puppy 2 years ago and she has grown into the most loving, sweet and funny companion. Keiko is very dominant and likes to show other dogs who is boss, but she is never aggressive and is very well behaved when other people's badly conditioned dogs snap and snarl at her (i find jack russels the worst- and my mum has one!!) but i never blame dogs for being bad- with any dog, but especially with dominant breads such as akitas, you need to show them who is boss and never let them get away with bad behavior. keiko knows never to play tug of war with me as im only small and she would hurt me, so she has to sit and give me the toy if she wants to play. we are still working on her not pulling on the lead, my main gripe with any large breed of dog is that they are so strong i have difficulty holding on if they want to go! but that is purely our fault for being rubbish at walking to heal with her. keiko loves people old and young- she will giv... Read more

As others have said, I don't care for the Akita dogs.  The only ones that I have run into were extremely unfriendly and could probably terrorize people/other dogs.  Obviously, depends a lot on the owner but overall, these huge dogs are pretty mean.  If I ever own a castle, I'll have an Akita or two guarding it.

Imperial dog of Japan. They're fairly territorial, loyal, intelligent and protective of their owners. They are clean in their habits. I think they need obedience training when young. They are beautiful dogs,

These are a dog not for the faint of heart. My family had one when I was a young child and he was definitly my best friend. Unfortunately through bad breeding some do have aggression problems and absolutly MUST have exceptional socializing and training. However for those with good training skills these are fabulous companions and are gentle, loving, incredibly smart and affectionate. They do need ALOT of room and are escape artists

My Akita is the sweetest most beautiful dog ever. The loyalty of this breed is not surpassed by any other. However, if u r plan to own this breed, make sure that u check out the breeder u plan to buy from as they can be difficult & scary if they do not come from a good line. They also need 2 b socialized a lot & at a young age. This is the only breed I will purchase... But again, u need 2 b willing 2 spend a lot of time with ur Akita when it is young.

I currently have an Akita. This is my second Akita. The first dog was from a breeder. The second was a rescued dog. In my experence with Akitas have been positive. They are great with people and children. Both dogs lived with cats with no problem. The only negative experence is they do not get along with other dogs ( Current Akita only likes one dog in the neighborhood ) and they shed very bad about twice a year.

A guy I used to work with had an awesome Akita.This was the best dog I ever met!She was very well behaved,sweet as pie,and absolutely gorgeous.She also looked fierce enough to command respect and was a good watchdog.

My sister owns an Akita and it's got a wonderful disposition. She has a very sweet & gentle personality, and is so wonderful and patient with the 3 young kids in the household... She is such a beautiful dog.

my uncle had one and it was so lovely and sweet, and died cos of old age. it was really a good guard dog, so i give it a 5

These are the WORST dogs anyone could ever own!! They are totally unstable and aggressive! Last summer in Edmonton about 5 CHILDREN were seriously attacked and injured by Akita's. I know some has to do with owners and breeding..blah blah blah...are they really worth the risk? I DON'T THINK SO!

I have an Akita and he is the best. We got him this summer and he never fails to amuse us!!! He chases cats for fun and never catches them, but still tries. he is loyal and very cute!

Akita's are a great friend that are always there. They will love you to death. Very powerful and dominant. If you ever get one, don't ever feed an Akita with other dogs around, but they do get along with other dogs even potbellied pigs.

O.K. I am quite sure the 2 previous commentors are referring to our old Akita! He was a wonderful dog for us (and us alone)..he was so protective of us and our kids that is was impossible to have company come over and keep him in the house. They are loyal to the extreme. I suggest an Akita for a single person who can give it all the love and attention that it so desperately deserves and needs. Another thing, we adopted him and you can never be sure how dogs were treated by previous owners. Even though we had to give him up..I still feel he was a good dog (for the right person and situation!)

I have met one of these dogs and it was not so friendly, in fact, I have probably never been afraid of a dog as much as I was afraid of this one in particular. I know he was a good dog for the owners, but not really to anyone else.

One of the few dogs I have ever been truly afraid of. These dogs can turn on you and don't ever trust them around small children.