huskys/akita thread

hi all is there many people with huskys akitas out there i have a purebred white husky had him 3 years since hes been a pup hes wild and crazy just wondering if they are the dog of choice for many people?

Chris_Heilong

You will find many people have Husky's here and a few have an Akita. ISDW post on these boards and she runs a Rescue for Huskies. So yes I would say there are a fair few Husky owners here.

Gerry Asstrix

Huskies seem ten a penny nowadays, everywhere I go I see little kids walking huskies bigger then them.

ISDW

Yes, I have a few siberian huskies.

I'm interested why you're putting sibes and akitas in together, they are two very, very different breeds.

adser53

tnynll wrote: »

hi all is there many people with huskys akitas out there

Are you talking about husky X akitas , now being called huskitas by unscrupulous designer breeders out for a quick buck?

If not, then how come (as ISDW said) youre lumping 2 hugely different breeds in together?

I have 2 Akitas and there are a small few others here on boards but we're vastly outnumbered by the husky owners

i thought the difference between the 2 breeds isnt much am i wrong?

Shanao

There's a huge difference between them. Akitas are massive in comparison to huskies, I have a male who's going to be hitting at least 65-70kgs fully grown. An adult husky is rarely more than 28-30kgs. Akitas were bred originally for bear and boar hunting, whereas huskies have been primarily sled dogs. Sibes share a lineage with Samoyed and Alaskan mals but Akitas come from a very ancient line, and may be one of the oldest breeds of dog out there.

ISDW

tnynll wrote: »

i thought the difference between the 2 breeds isnt much am i wrong?

There are huge differences between the two breeds. The siberian husky is a sled dog, from Siberia, bred for pulling loads on sleds. The Akita is from Japan and was used to hunt and keep prey in a certain place until the hunter arrived I believe. Very, very different temperaments and views of the world:D

Tripp

I would hate to see a husky & akita cross, both have very bad habbits and combined it could be a disaster. But yeah i agree with all of the above

Shanao

There is actually a guy breeding so called huskitas, and I met one about two weeks ago when I was out with my fella. The owners said they had an astounding amount of problems with him and said next time they get a dog, they're going to get a purebred akita instead. Lovely looking dog, but I cannot understand the mindset where we must make hybrids and charge hundreds for them? He basically took two spitz breeds in the hopes that they're 'wolfish' offspring would rake in the euros.

Shanao

That's him alright. Leave our akitas alone!!

I'm also getting sick of the people shouting, "Look, look its a Hachi!!" whenever I'm out with my fella. I dread to think how many people have gotten akitas in the past few months cos of that damned film. Great story and all, I read about it nearly ten years ago now I'd say, but suddenly everyone wants in on the breed because of a movie.

Zapperzy

Shanao wrote: »

That's him alright. Leave our akitas alone!!

I'm also getting sick of the people shouting, "Look, look its a Hachi!!" whenever I'm out with my fella. I dread to think how many people have gotten akitas in the past few months cos of that damned film. Great story and all, I read about it nearly ten years ago now I'd say, but suddenly everyone wants in on the breed because of a movie.

Sadly happens with every movie. 101 dalmations, 8 below, beethoven, marley & me etc etc.

ISDW

Shanao wrote: »

That's him alright. Leave our akitas alone!!

I'm also getting sick of the people shouting, "Look, look its a Hachi!!" whenever I'm out with my fella. I dread to think how many people have gotten akitas in the past few months cos of that damned film. Great story and all, I read about it nearly ten years ago now I'd say, but suddenly everyone wants in on the breed because of a movie.

Welcome to the husky owner's world. "its a snow dog", that and Eight Below have much to answer for.

adser53

Ah tell me about it. Between Hachi fans and hardman wannabes!
That film (not the actual story) is a curse. If only people remembered Richard Gere is for life and not just for Christmas

I work in a lot of South Dublins "rougher" areas (to put it lightly) and the amount of Akita pups I've seen with scangers in the last few months is staggering. Don't get me wrong, I don't judge by looks...I'm a young lad that's occasionally known to be impartial to the comforts of a tracksuit so I look dodgy to some. It's how I've seen these lads handle and "train" their dogs that concerns me

Tripp

adser53 wrote: »

I work in a lot of South Dublins "rougher" areas (to put it lightly) and the amount of Akita pups I've seen with scangers in the last few months is staggering. Don't get me wrong, I don't judge by looks...I'm a young lad that's occasionally known to be impartial to the comforts of a tracksuit so I look dodgy to some. It's how I've seen these lads handle and "train" their dogs that concerns me

haha hope i wasnt mistaken for 1 of these skangers since i live in south dublin :P
Thanks god there is only about 4 Akitas that go to my local park and they are all well looked after. I pity the Akita's that are only bought for show and never get walked or trained properly.

Chris_Heilong

Shanao wrote: »

That's him alright. Leave our akitas alone!!

I'm also getting sick of the people shouting, "Look, look its a Hachi!!" whenever I'm out with my fella. I dread to think how many people have gotten akitas in the past few months cos of that damned film. Great story and all, I read about it nearly ten years ago now I'd say, but suddenly everyone wants in on the breed because of a movie.

Really, Im surprised they recognize an American Akita as been the same kind of dog as the Japanese on from the film, most people are Ignorant to dog breeds is what I mean.

Welcome to the husky owner's world. "its a snow dog", that and Eight Below have much to answer for.

So thats what people are talking about when I pass them, one old lady got it right and called him an 'Alaskan'

OP, both dogs are Spitz breeds which means they have curled tails and pricked ears but thats where the similarities end.

Shanao

The amount of people who've asked me if I'm breeding the akitas really astounds me. One fella kept asking me and eventually I said, maybe in about two or three years, and he said 'Oh that'll be perfect for me, I'll get onto you then' even though I had told him that they're not for everyone!!

adser53

Tripp wrote: »

haha hope i wasnt mistaken for 1 of these skangers since i live in south dublin

That all depends, if you were one of the ones doing stuff like dragging your 3 month old pup along, slapping him when he refused to walk then poking him with your foot when he jumped up on you
The amount of people who tell me I should breed my two as well and when I say I'm not they proceed to tell me I should cause its good for the bitch to have a litter that and asking how much they cost :mad:

adser53

Chris_Heilong wrote: »

OP, both dogs are Spitz breeds which means they have curled tails and pricked ears but thats where the similarities end.

On a similar note, this brief article discussing the links between wolves and dogs and their domestication. It makes for an interesting read.
http://www.independent.com/news/2010/jan/08/14000-year-friendship/

Also...
In the year 2004 a large-scale microsatellite
study by a group of researchers from the University of Washington on the
genetic structure of the domestic dog yielded a result that surprised
even the experts.In this study 424 dogs, from 85 breeds representing all
dog breeds worldwide, were analysed with respect to their genetic
closeness to the grey wolf and finally grouped in five different
clusters. In doing so a group of breeds appeared showing a high genetic
relationship to the wolf

This image shows the groupings....