2 dogs to 3?Japanese Akita?

[Lochnessgiraffe]

We currently have 2 dogs and my dh has fallen in love with the Japanese Akita inu.
I have 2 questions
Does anyone have one what are they like?
What's the biggest challenge of going from 2 dogs to 3?

Thanks

3 dogs is a pack and a lot different to having two, and thats without it being a notoriously difficult breed. Id think carefully. 2 dogs is a great number

I agree that three is very different to two, regardless of breed.

I walked three dogs from the same household up until May when, sadly, one of the dogs passed away.

I can't tell you how much easier it is to deal with just two of them. Their behaviour is better, they listen better, they're calmer in the house - it's quite surprising how different it is (and how quickly it changed).

I would think long and hard about going from 2-3, especially with shiba/akita type breeds.

And in Japan they used to be known as nanny dogs
I hope that's irony. No fucking way would I leave a small child unsupervised with a guarding or fighting breed.

We have 3 dogs and it's fine. They have a very clear order amongst themselves, and the younger two are decently trained (and the old one is deaf and creaky so is let off any of that). But they are all the same approximate type, which was never bred for aggression.

I find it interesting on these threads about large potentially aggressive dogs, that someone posts that the breed are known as “nanny dogs” - as if you would leave a defenceless child alone with one 🙄

I’ve 3 dogs , by accident..2 were relatives dogs that would of gone to rescue had we not taken them in..there was a lot of pressure to take them in …it wasn’t the best decision I’ve made for the family .but the dogs seem happy .
But it was very difficult going from 2 to 3 ,the new dog weed everywhere for the first couple of days ..I’d never have a dog again after this ,has totally put me of dogs ..3 is hard work and not fun

I also hate the 'nanny dog' expression too. Such a load of crap.

Anyway Shiba Inus are absolutely fabulous little dogs, just stick with what you have/know! Yes they may share the Akita's aloofness but that is where the similarity ends.

Just a quick Google of Akita brings up multiple cases of people being mauled by them and some deaths in the US and the UK. Why would you take the risk? Just why? It seems like asking for trouble to me.

I wouldn’t leave a child with any dog. Even my daft 11 yo labrador. There is no such thing as a nanny dog.

We had one. He was the most beautiful dog I've had the pleasure of living with.

We had other dogs and cats who he adored and would protect with his life but he was raised with them. With unknown dogs (and people) he was much less reliable. He could never be off leash and guests had to be given strict instructions on how to interact with him for their safety (basically don't unless he came to you).

They need experienced owners for sure but I don't think they're devil dogs they're being made out to be on this thread. Mine was solid with his family (kids, cats, kittens and all). It was only strangers he could be reactive to and only if they got into his space. You could walk him past other dogs on a leash without him reacting.

I have 3. All of them get on together great but I wouldn’t want 3 again! Not unless one was ancient and didn’t need walking or something like that. I’m lucky in that I have an old boy who does not require much exercise and prefers to keep himself to himself but making sure 3 have equal attention is hard.

It’s mainly walking thats the issue. Walking 2 is a dream compared to 3 and mine are all very well behaved. If one reacts, they all do. If one barks, they all do. 2 wander off and one lags behind and I have to catch the faster ones and wait for the slow one.

If I have 3 at heel and a random dog walks up I’m tangled up and it’s a huge pain.
You can’t train 3 at once, so it meant 3 separate walks for a long long time. Also double training classes for me which was expensive, luckily my third didn’t need any extra training or it would have been worse.
You can’t take 3 dogs out in public either, not if you want to make it enjoyable. Most camp sites etc only accept 2.
I didn’t realise how much work a third would be either. Once you’ve groomed two and have to begin the 3rd it becomes tedious.

As much as I would love another dog when one goes I don’t think I would replace it and I’ll just stick at 2.

Breed wise I wouldn’t want an Akita with other dogs due to the dog aggression, the shiba wouldn’t stand a chance.

Interesting comments. I know we need to do research so it's just a possibility at the moment

@Lochnessgiraffe

We currently have 2 dogs and my dh has fallen in love with the Japanese Akita inu. I have 2 questions Does anyone have one what are they like? What's the biggest challenge of going from 2 dogs to 3?

You asked for information on japanese Akita it would be helpful if posters said they actually owned one rather than "know" of one. We all know a dog that's badly behaved or aggressive. I own an American Akita a multidog and multipet household. The American Akita is bigger than the Japanese. Mine is a lovely dog. He was a rescue so had a few issues that training sorted as previous owners were complete tools. The Akitas that I know are friendly. They need excercise and stimulation. Don't listen to those people who have never owned one. Personally 3 dogs are a handful and they will take a few months to settle. You need to know that your other dogs are friendly before introducing another dog and that goes for any breed. He's the most obedient dog I have owned.

@CovoidOfAllHumanity And if you google you will find Daschunds top the list. The 2020 statics don't place Akitas at the top of dog attacks allpetslife.com/dog-bite-statistics/

Sitdown, absolutely. I have owned several Akitas, all brilliant loving dogs that are loyal and would give their life for you. They are brilliant with their own family and great with kids and smaller pets. Mine have always lived with cats who have always been the boss of the situation.
Most people on here believe the hype and the Daily Mail stories! Me and my akita have both actually been bitten once…by Labradors. My postman tells me Labradors are the worst for biting postmen too…but that really wouldn’t be controversial enough for mumsnet!

@WowIlikereallyhateyou I believe you. My parents' neighbour was just attacked by a Labrador who first went for her dog and when she tried to protect her dog, he viciously attacked her and put her in hospital.

Although the unfriendliest dog I personally have ever met was a Chihuahua who was hust a horrible devil dog who but with no provocation whatsoever

Who bit*

My postman tells me Labradors are the worst for biting postmen too…but that really wouldn’t be controversial enough for mumsnet!

The reason for that is because the Labrador is the most popular breed of dog in the country.

My Akita was attacked by a Yorkshire Terrier. He was on leash and "obedient" enough to listen to me when I asked him to sit and leave. His thick coat meant the yorkie was unable to cause him anything more than annoyance. The yorkie escaped unharmed.

By obedient I mean he adored me and lived to please me but in general terms if you ask an Akita to do something he will weigh up his options before deciding if it's worth his time and effort. We always used to joke that you didn't tell him what to do, you asked him nicely if he would do.

I'd have another Akita in a second. Sadly they don't come up in rescues often and the ones who do tend to have issues I don't currently have the time to deal with. As soon as I have the time to train a boisterous, teenage Akita, I will be applying for one.

If you're a dog experienced home, willing to put in the effort with consistent, positive training there is no reason why it wouldn't work.

I’m sure there are some lovely , well mannered Akita’s out there , like there are lovely well mannered representatives of all breeds but the fact remains that we have had to reinforce our fence as next doors akita is systematically chewing its way through the bottom of it . It also throws itself against the fence when it hears my dog in the garden so my husband has now built a buffer zone so that my dog can’t actually get to the fence on our side so that next doors dog doesn’t manage to bite him as she gnaws her way in . We were , before they moved in , in the process of redoing all our fencing , I’m not bothering with that side now as I would be very cross when 3k of fencing was ruined by their dog , my husband is just patching now to keep her out .

@Floralnomad

I’m sure there are some lovely , well mannered Akita’s out there , like there are lovely well mannered representatives of all breeds but the fact remains that we have had to reinforce our fence as next doors akita is systematically chewing its way through the bottom of it . It also throws itself against the fence when it hears my dog in the garden so my husband has now built a buffer zone so that my dog can’t actually get to the fence on our side so that next doors dog doesn’t manage to bite him as she gnaws her way in . We were , before they moved in , in the process of redoing all our fencing , I’m not bothering with that side now as I would be very cross when 3k of fencing was ruined by their dog , my husband is just patching now to keep her out .

To be fair we have had an ill mannered beagle next door to us in the past destroy a fence. Any dog could do that if it is not exercised or kept entertained.

@frequency I've seen a few Akitas lately in rescues I'm sure now people are going to back to work more will end up in them. Mine was a rescue he had a few issues but I have worked through them with him. They have a bad reputation usually through people who have never owned one. Any dog can be aggressive.

@icedcoffees

My postman tells me Labradors are the worst for biting postmen too…but that really wouldn’t be controversial enough for mumsnet!

The reason for that is because the Labrador is the most popular breed of dog in the country.

Icedcoffee, it doesn’t get over the fact that Labradors are not consistently berated yet cause alot of problems. The public do tend to latch on to large guarding breeds to berate. In the 90’s it was Rotties, which are fabulous dogs.

The public do tend to latch on to large guarding breeds to berate
This might be because large guarding breeds tend to lead the dog bite fatality statistics. Some smaller dog breeds might bite more often, but they are much less likely to kill you. And historically, guarding and fighting breeds were bred to fight and guard: the dogs that were bred were selected for completely different attributes than, say, collies and gun dogs. People active in the protection/ bite sports don't compete with springer spaniels and labradors. They go for Malinois and GSDs, and sometimes rotties and does (but less than they did, as these breeds have increasingly been bred away from their original temperaments).

This paper is interesting on the differences between certain breeds as regards stranger, owner and dog aggression.