Frustration and best upon experience?
Brad and anyone else, of the six major spitz-type Nihon Ken, which one would you say is the best to get? I'm referring only from what people know and have experienced. I would favor the Akita Inu because of the Hachi movie with Richard Gere I love so much and also because I am more of medium to large dog person.
Also, does anyone find it frustrating that sometimes something like this happens: You see a photo of a white dog. You say "Akita" but the official photo source says its a Kishu (sometimes you may be right in they misidentified the breed but it's hard to know when).
Finally, for those who have had ample Tosa Inu experience, how does their watchdog persona compare to other Molosser-type dogs like Mastiffs, Tibetan Mastiffs, Bully Kuttas, Great Danes, Newfoundland, and St. Bernards?
Also, does anyone find it frustrating that sometimes something like this happens: You see a photo of a white dog. You say "Akita" but the official photo source says its a Kishu (sometimes you may be right in they misidentified the breed but it's hard to know when).
Finally, for those who have had ample Tosa Inu experience, how does their watchdog persona compare to other Molosser-type dogs like Mastiffs, Tibetan Mastiffs, Bully Kuttas, Great Danes, Newfoundland, and St. Bernards?
Comments
I don't really understand why it would be frustrating to make a mistake about which breed is in a photo... Unless you were an expert and you made a huge mistake in public space. THAT could be frustrating :P
Also, there's distinct difference between akitas and kishus, so it's normally quite easy to tell whether the photo source is lying or not
I started to search breeds which fulfil my terms and I never even thought Nihon Kens. Until I saw pics from Kai, Kishu and Shikoku. Well, I looked information from these but forget it because it was so hard to find any breeder. I went to dog shows to see other breeds and called few breeders and asked around about these other breeds I had considered. But somehow Kai had just stole my hurt. And then I decided that this it is, my breed is Kai. And I had time four years to think is this suitable breed for me before I got Ife. Those years were worth of it, I had plenty of time to think is NK the best breed for me.
Its easy to fall in love with a dog's looks, so no blame there, but what about the Akita Inu (or your perception of the Akita Inu) is appealing to you? That would probably help. and it would also be useful to know what the dog's living situation would be like, what you want to do with the dog as far as activities, etc.
I was really fixated on getting an Akita Inu for awhile, and in retrospect, it was totally based on looks (I wanted a dog that looked like a giant Shiba! To match my Shibas!) While I'm sure I would have loved a JA if I got one, in the end, I got an American Akita instead, and I think he was a better choice for me, at least as far as I can tell from reading about people's experiences with JAs. So I think really deciding what you want in a dog and then doing a lot of time talking to people who have that breed and also meeting some of the dogs will go a long way to finding the right dog for you.
As many of the owners of the NK already know and have experienced, these breeds can be absolutely difficult to deal with. So before choosing a dog from seeing them on TV or a movie, study, understand, and make the commitment (long term) to beable to handle these dogs. I'm not a pro but I been around the Japanese breeds sine I was very young (mostly Kishu, Hokkaido, and Shikoku), and I still have really frusterating moments. Once in a while I think to my self that it would be soooo much easier if I just got a Catahoula, a cur, or a hound to hunt with. But to me its part of my calling in life and my commitment to my child hood dreams to continue the breeds intended use.
As for the Tosa, a close family friend breeds them in Japan and I think if you have not been around a breed known tobe dog/people agressive, not sure if it would be a great idea. I have been told that the Tosa can be very agressive toward other dogs, people, and children. I'm sure through good socialization, that can be dealt with but not sure if your able to deal with that. Since they are a cross breed of many non Japanese dogs to the shin Akita, they are not considered to be a true Nihon Ken although they have some what a long history in Japanese tradition.
Hope this helps
When I am financially and socially stable, the amount of dog breeds including the NK that I want would literally become animal hoarding.
As far as the Tosa, I was just wondering. Most of my experiences with Molosser-types would the kind when you are going somewhere and ask if you can pet the dogs someone has with them. Since the Molosser breeds have been used for protection for centuries, I was just wondering how the largest of all Japanese breeds (I'm including ones that are bred outside of Japan. I am also incorporating their history of not being a 100% Niho Ken. That is, it doesn't have the same spitz-type pure breed essence as the other six) compares to his cousins like the Great Dane and English Mastiff.
Brilliant! This is something we never speak about on this forum, but perhaps we should. Every once in a while, a Kai will come up for re-homing because it has become out of control, and the owners can't deal with them anymore. I think that people see Koda and May and think that they are easy dogs. In some ways yes, but in others no. They take a lot of work.
I agree with that too.
Saya is such a well behaved shiba inu well besides her dog reactive on leash, but off she is fine..
When ever Saya is out in the public people see how cute and beautiful she is, but they don't see the work I had to put into her or how she loved chewing on wood or being naughty at certain times etc.
I'm only experienced with shiba inu I've meet one shikoku in my lifetime, but it wasn't enough to get a full feel of how the breed is.
If your interested in Akita you can try to find a akita meet up or meet some nearby akita owners to get to know the breed more up close. meeting different ones is good because every dog is different and hearing each stories about their puppyhood is good..
Good luck on your search. I find Nihon ken to be the breed for me. though boxers are second.
Also, tell us what you're looking for in a dog, and we may be able to make better suggestions about which NK might be best for you...
You could always get a bunch of tattoos and a gun, that will give you a tough guy vibe and fierce protection, Lol! I kid, I kid!
I don't believe this is true. Be careful of blanket statements about a specific breed. Not sure about the Tosa, maybe Gen who has had more experience with them can chime in.
I'm not going to get into wanting a tough dog. I had Rott's that were huge for years, and people were intimidated by them. I mostly felt bad for my dogs who probably just wanted people to pet and love on them.
I've been told that many Tosa Inu are not man-aggressive at all, and so they wouldn't guard you from a human threat as much as some of the other Molosser-type breeds... But then I hear things like Gen posted, and I know of a person in town who has 2 of Tosa Inu and cannot allow them to be around strangers. So, I think it may be hit-or-miss with the breed and largely influenced by the environment. I do know of some people who use them in PP Sports too.
IMHO, if human aggression is important to you then you may want to look at non-fighting Molosser-type breeds. But if you just want a dog to look the part, and will accept some human aggression if they have it, then a Tosa is probably a good fit.
I'd love to own a Tosa Inu one day.
----
If you've ever watched mixed-breed underground dog fighting videos, and seen a Tosa fight, you know that they are very skilled fighters. They pretty much dominate most any breed, and fast too.
We have Blue, who is very dog aggressive. He's so dog aggressive that I don't feel comfortable walking him in public in case a dog pops out. Blue goes from normal goofy Blue to full-on kill mode in fractions of a second. Blue is 120lbs and not a fighting breed.
A Tosa can be around 200lbs, is selected for dog aggression, and very strong. I cannot imagine walking a dog as aggressive as Blue but with the size and skills of a Tosa. That's really not something I'm interested in doing.
Maybe you could train Blue or a Tosa out of that type of reaction to strange dogs in public. We certainly tried with Blue, I mean he's had 100s of hours of training, and most of it was geared toward reducing that reaction in him. I'm not a perfect dog owner tho, so maybe more could have been done or maybe he needed more capable handlers. I dunno. What I do know is that it makes him a lot to handle in public, it's not fun at all.
----
In my field of work I see it alot where, and this doesn't pertai to any one here, a young guy buys a pitbull, attach a 100 lb chain aroun its neck and walk around the hood to look "macho". I have my own personal thoughts on that but one could always argue the way I use my dogs, although all my hunting dogs are 110% safe around children and even infants.
Just what ever you do please choose a dog according to your ability to train it, give it loving affection, and raise a safe companion. Its a life long commitment.
However, I won't be getting one until I'm at least 30 (I turned 24 just over 3 months ago) because that's when I hopefully will finish law school. I will accept the human aggression part and will make sure I train the Tosa to be acceptable around people well.
From me looking up Molosser-type (I say Molosser proper only when referring to the ancient Greco-Roman breed and the modern version of it, the Molosser tis Epirou) on the web, that group is the most aggressive dog type.
Same applies to the Akita (American or Japanese), the Akita is a hunting breed, not a fighting breed.
The Tosa Inu is a breed that was created specifically for dog fighting. The Tosa Inu is a fighting breed.
If size and persona is all you want, why not get a Mastiff or a Bullmastiff? The modern variety of those breeds are selected to be large w/o any aggression.
----
I think you have heard about too many Roman War folklores.
Just as Brad said the Ovcharka's are not fighting dogs, neither were the Molossers. Closest one in existence would be the Great Pyrenese, St. Bernard, or Rottweiler. None of these breeds are dog or human aggressive.