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Pit bull leaps to rescue
Anthony Romaro got the scare of his life Wednesday night when two Akita dogs, each weighing about 100 pounds, attacked him near his best friend's home in Coral Springs.Read entire article here.Witnesses said a 2-year-old pit bull named Missy played the part of hero during the attack.
Akitas, Chows, Sharpeis are dogs in the veterinary world that are blacklisted as being automatically bad during a visit. I have met a sweet Akita named Bear, I have had the pleasure of working with a Sharpei named Kat, that was a cuddle bug, and I have met a super sweet Chow named Chewie that thought he was a Great Dane. You can never just 'label' a dog, you have to take into consideration of who they live with, what the living situation is and how they are cared for. That plays a huge part in the attitude they develope. If all else fails, yes you can blame bad breeding.
I've been told there's two Akita bloodlines...one bred for fighting and one for show. Ours came from the show bloodline, and is a real sweetheart. But she is very suspicious of strangers, and I could see her, under the right circumstances, attacking someone....so we watch her very closely until we're sure she understands the new person is not a threat to her "pack".
But I think you're right. A lot depends on how a dog is raised.
Posted by: Rita on November 12, 2003 08:37 AMyes, environment has an influence. However, genetics and instinct almost always trump environment. There was a study commissioned recently here in Rhode Island, by the city of Pawtucket because of the alarming increase in dog attacks. They used the results of the reports to actually try to ban the ownership of pit bulls.
I have to find the report again, but just quoting from memory: Pit Bulls represented more than 60% of the increase in dog attacks in the state (it was something like a 35% increase from the previous year).
I'll see if I can find it again.....
I know people who swear by their pits, rotties and Akitas but they all scare me. They are genetically bred killers.
Posted by: Jim S on November 13, 2003 10:04 AMI have 2 dog one full sharpei and one half sharpei half yellow lab mix. The full sharpei is the nicest dog in the world and loves people and children. The mix is more protective than the full breed. Although, I have never owned a pit bull I have always wanted to because they are VERY NICE dogs. I have only had great encounters with them.
Posted by: Dawn on August 15, 2004 08:08 PMI have a 14 month old Akita named "Katana." He is the most sweetest dog ever. I truely believe that a dogs action is a representation of their home environment. My Akita has been through 2 training classes and is very well behaved. He does not like strangers, but this breed is well known to be protective of thier family. So, I think anyone thinking about purchasing an Akita should do their research. This is not a breed you can just feed and keep outside with no attention. They require lots of training, love, and attention.
Posted by: crystal on May 11, 2005 12:55 PMI have to agree on checking into the breeders. We bought a male akita in 99 and on his first birthday he was diagnosed with the worst form of hip displasia when we confronted the breeder the gave us a "replacement" claiming he was pick of the litter. we were a little scared with the thought of taking a new puppy as it had the same father as the first and now he to has bad hips. i hope people interested in akitas check every aspect of the breeder they are considering
I have to agree on checking into the breeders. We bought a male akita in 99 and on his first birthday he was diagnosed with the worst form of hip displasia when we confronted the breeder the gave us a "replacement" claiming he was pick of the litter. we were a little scared with the thought of taking a new puppy as it had the same father as the first and now he to has bad hips. i hope people interested in akitas check every aspect of the breeder they are considering