barking
this may be a stupid question but do akitas bark a lot. i read somewhere that there quiet dogs and only bark when needed. is that true or does it just depend on the dog. the reason i ask is because i have a decreased sound tolerance. its complicated so i'll leave it at that.
Comments
anyway, she barked like crazy. She was fearful, undersocialized (nearly 5 mos. when we got her) so maybe it was that.
Some people say Shibas don't bark that much, but I haven't found that to be true. Mine can be pretty quite. And then they might want to stay outside and bark all night.
All dogs bark. Even Basenjis make noise, even if it is not barking. I think it is really hard to make generalizations.
I can tell you this tho, when they do bark I *HATE* their bark. Its very fast and kinda "nervy" sounding... Like they are saying "OMG I HEARD SOMETHING WHAT IS GOING ON I'M FREAKING OUT OMG OMG"... While some of our other breeds are more like "Oh No, Not My Yard Mutha F.....!"
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JA are a hunting breed, like all the NK they are silent hunters that bay their prey. Baying is basically "holding at bay" by barking - some NK "catch" too, per Shigeru's and Gen's experience (and they are the forum experts on the hunting topic).
Typically (and I'm generalizing here) dogs have 2 types of bark - a defensive bark that's low and rumbling sounding (often called a "warning bark") and a higher pitched, sharp sounding, fast bark which is the prey motivated bark - the one used while baying.
So, with that info, I will say that the Akita bark tends to be that of a prey bark - a higher pitch, rapid, energetic bark. This also means they are not acting defensively when they do the bark I mentioned above - they are "alerting", like a watch dog... which comes back to a point I have made a lot: Akita are not guard dogs, they are watch dogs.
So, looking at the mechanics of the breed, being a silent hunting breed and not a guardian breed, they tend to bark less but when they do bark it is higher pitched and faster.
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BTW to the OP I'm not talking about Akita :-) I am not fortunate to have any.
Sage barks at deer, hawks, vultures, fishers, other dogs, oddly positioned flowerpots and pants on the neighbor's lawn and makes a very broad range of noises. He is a watchdog, like other Kai. If he's barking, something really IS different, though it may seem irrelevant. His distance increasing display is very impressive and desperately urgent, but he is a panic-prone individual.
A good read: "Barking: The Sound of a Language" by Turid Rugaas- it's short but covers barking in detail and all the various patterns, tones and accompanying postures for various motivations.
The only times I've heard her bark is to initiate play with other dogs using that high pitch tone.
Even when they use the warning bark, it's extremely rare. I mean really rare. I live in an appartment and Tenshi doesn't bark when he hears noises in the corridor, he barks only when it's something new that he hasn't heard before. From this point of view JA are great living indoor.
I agree with Chrystal, Barking by Rugaas is a good read.
I have a pure breed JA, and despite being very active physically, it is very rear to hear her barking.
Adele
Does anyone else's JA bark as much as mine does? I think I got the noisy one out of the litter, lol! :P
I understand it is on an individual basis, and I guess I am just more perplexed, but I get a little embarrassed when Toki barks and howls his head off at clients coming into the apartment for a photoshoot. When they go into another room, he will walk by that room an scoff at them, like, a low bark/huff. He gets fairly grumpy. I usually have to remove him from the room we are in or else he will continue to bark and bark and bark. I know it is because he is a watch dog (a big reason why I got an Akita); he feels these barking episodes are very necessary, but how can I show him it is okay for people to enter our house when I am around?
Also, he barks at everyone on our walks in the apartment complex. Barks at people through the window. Barks at people minding their own business. What is going on thru his head? Lol!
He does fairly better when we are outside of the apartment complex, but it happens from time to time. I guess the car is his extended territory...he will bark at people on sidewalks from the car, window rolled down or not.
He does not bark at ducks, cats, birds, ect...
(I must clarify, I don't really mind the barking ever except when i have clients over. I just wanted to see if anyone else has a noisy JA)
Though, oddly enough, he is totally okay with thunderstorms.
The second time was when we were in the vet's room and he heard people and a dog coming through the doors and gave a curious bark.
A friend of mine has an AA and he hardly hears her bark too. It seems Akitas only bark when they need to.