The big bold Japanese dog Akita are well known for their loyalty. As originally bred to guard royalty and nobility in Japan, they are also used as track dogs.

These breeds need early training to make a wonderful companion in the family. Here are some methods, strategies and techniques which will make you easy to train your new pet.

When to start Akita’s training?

Akita are one of the most lethal breeds of dogs. So, the training should start by the time your pup is about 7-8 weeks.

You can train your new pet by the time you bring them home. They can learn things like “sit”, “jump” and “fetch” very easily because of their inborn intelligence.

An Akita puppy sitting on grass. Image Source: The Straits Times

Where to start the training of Akita?

The very first school where your pup can start his/her training is your home. Training starts at your house when you play with your pup making him/her to learn new things.

Until Akita reaches the right age for formal training, your home is the best school for your pet to learn. However, you can take them to the backyard if you have one big enough.

When the Akita reaches the perfect age to train formally, you can take them to puppy kindergarten and involve them in obedience classes. This will help them in developing good manners and socializing with other dogs properly.

How to define task for your pet?

With no doubt, it is the hardest thing for every pet owner to define the task for their pet. It becomes more tough to define tasks to your Akita as they are big, bold and independent.

Though the breed is known for its intelligence, it however makes it difficult to give the commands to the dog as they are stubborn and independent.

An Akita Dog Training. Picture Source: 17 Barks

According to Wagwalking, you should train your Akita with peanut butter or another delicious treat so that he/she can be muzzled for safety if necessary during training. 

You should know what motivates your Akita. If he/she is focused on something unwanted, find a food that he/she is very fond of in order to distract her.

If your Akita has very strong guarding instincts, you don’t have to face difficulties in training your dog when to be angry and when to control it.

The Training Process

There are a few training process that you must follow in order to train your pet properly.

Alpha Dog or Dominance

Alpha dog or dominance depends on the habitual pack mentality on creating a relationship of appropriate submission and dominance. The Akita see their family as a pack and follow social hierarchy like wolves in pack.

According to Dogtime  ,when the dogs start to think themselves as an alpha they need to learn to respect their owners as the alpha.

Training an Akita Dog.

Some methods used in this process are understanding dog body language and responding accordingly, going first when it comes to eating, entering or leaving rooms, projecting confidence and authority or walking on leash.

Generally with alpha training, you cannot allow your Akita to your bed with you, also don’t get down to your dog’s eye level as you are the alpha and you are the dominant.

Model-Rival or Mirror Training

The model-rival method of training your dog depends on the fact that they learn from observation. By being a model of good behavior or a rival to compete for resources, dogs learn to mimic behaviors.

So you must have another human act as the model, praising your Akita for completing tasks on command or scolding them for unwanted behavior. The dog, as an observer, learns what to do correctly from the model
(you).

Two Akita Dogs in the park. Photo source: ihc2015.info

Mirror training also relies on the same principle, using the dog owner as a model, then offering rewards for mimicking good behavior. It uses the dog’s natural habits to operate socially instead of working against them.

Electronic Training

Electronic training refers to the use of an electric collar that delivers a shock when a dog is not performing a desired task properly. You can used it for training your Akita at a distance when a leash can’t be used.

For example, shock collars can train your dog stay within the boundaries of an un-fenced yard. Also, there is less risk of your dog getting hurt by a choke collar or other mechanical devices.

This training method can cause a lot of unnecessary pain, both physically and psychologically, for your dog. So, be careful while using it.

Strategies and Techniques For Easy Training

It is obviously difficult to train if you have a Akita dog. A dog so big, bold and independent can acquire stubbornness in a small matter of time. Akita dog may become the alpha dog when it comes to training.

Here are some techniques that’ll probably help you train your dog a bit easily.

Avoid Punishment

Punishing your dog increases his/her anxiety and stress level. It makes him/ her to loose trust on you. So punish your dog less and provide his/her desired food items in order to keep his/her mood on while training.

Make Training a Habit

You don’t expect your dog to learn stuffs quickly when you provide him/her training once a week. Make training a part of your dog’s daily routine in order to train him/her fast and efficiently. Commands like “sit” and “go” should be regularly used as they are the basic things.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BneewG_nReC/
Akita dog playing with water.

Go Slowly

No living being can learn a lot of new things at a time and do it properly without flaws. Despite your dog’s intelligence, you can expect your dog to learn 10 commands a day. You just need to go slow, one command a day with perfectness and that’s how your dog is going to learn.

The bottom line is that the behavior you show towards your pet matters the most. No matter how hardly you train them, if you don’t act like a friend or make them feel that training is fun you cannot have a wonderful companion in your house as you wanted.

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