Akita Debate

Come and vote for the pros and cons of akita here

800px Dogs Fighting by Pauwel de Vos The HermitageAccording to a 2008 research conducted by the universities of Pennsylvania and Taiwan it seems that our beloved akitas are the most aggressive towards other dogs.

It's although very interesting that the research doesn't mention any hierarchical social structures, leaders of the pack, dominance etc. On the contrary, they mention the purpose that each breed was bred for. This comes to no surprise for us, since humans have used dogs for thousands of years against other animals, dogs (in dog fighting) and even against other humans.  

      ‘‘Snaps, bites or attempts to bite’’    
  n Stranger % Owner % Dog % Rivalry %
Akita   99 3 (3.00) 1 (1.00) 29 (29.30) 5 (7.10)
Pit Bull 132 9 (6.80) 3 (2.30) 29 (22.00) 11 (11.50)
Jack Russell Terrier 78 6 (7.70) 3 (3.80) 17 (21.80) 7 (11.10)
Australian Cattle Dog 136 13 (9.60) 2 (1.50) 28 (20.60) 5 (4.90)
Chihuahua   56 9 (16.10) 3 (5.40) 10 (17.90) 2 (4.80)
Dachshund   68 14 (20.60) 4 (5.90) 12 (17.60) 5 (8.80)
English Springer Spaniel 57 2 (3.50) 2 (3.50) 10 (17.50) 4 (9.50)
German Shepherd 292 13 (4.50) 6 (2.10) 48 (16.40) 13 (5.80)
Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier   216 9 (4.20) 4 (1.90) 35 (16.20) 9 (5.20)
Boxer   70 4 (5.70) 0 0.00 11 (15.70) 3 (5.30)
Australian Shepherd 177 11 (6.20) 1 (0.60) 26 (14.70) 10 (6.50)
Border Collie 163 13 (8.00) 3 (1.80) 22 (13.50) 7 (5.10)
Doberman Pinscher 144 8 (5.60) 2 (1.40) 16 (11.10) 4 (3.40)
Beagle   63 5 (7.90) 5 (7.90) 6 (9.50) 4 (8.00)
Great Dane 53 3 (5.70) 1 (1.90) 5 (9.40) 2 (4.90)
Airedale Terrier 66 3 (4.50) 1 (1.50) 6 (9.10) 2 (3.60)
Poodle   169 2 (1.20) 0 0.00 13 (7.70) 2 (1.40)
Rottweiler   210 10 (4.80) 2 (1.00) 16 (7.60) 2 (1.10)
Cocker Spaniel (American) 107 5 (4.70) 6 (5.60) 8 (7.50) 4 (5.20)
Golden Retriever 181 2 (1.10) 1 (0.60) 13 (7.20) 3 (2.00)
Collie   132 2 (1.50) 3 (2.30) 9 (6.80) 2 (1.60)
Portuguese Water Dog 75 2 (2.70) 0 0.00 5 (6.70) 2 (3.30)
Mastiff (English) 126 3 (2.40) 1 (0.80) 8 (6.30) 5 (4.70)
Rhodesian Ridgeback 69 1 (1.40) 0 0.00 4 (5.80) 1 (1.70)
Siberian Husky 54 0 0.00 1 (1.90) 3 (5.60) 1 (2.10)
Bichon Frise 65 3 (4.60) 1 (1.50) 3 (4.60) 2 (4.20)
Bernese Mountain Dog 67 1 (1.50) 2 (3.00) 3 (4.50) 1 (1.60)
Brittany Spaniel 66 0 0.00 1 (1.50) 3 (4.50) 1 (2.00)
Labrador Retriever 349 8 (2.30) 6 (1.70) 15 (4.30) 6 (2.20)
Havanese   73 2 (2.70) 0 0.00 3 (4.10) 1 (1.80)
Shetland Sheepdog 57 2 (3.50) 2 (3.50) 2 (3.50) 2 (3.80)
Whippet   59 0 0.00 1 (1.70) 2 (3.40) 1 (1.90)
Greyhound   62 1 (1.60) 0 0.00 1 (1.60) 0 0.00
                   

 

The research concludes that besides the hereditary reasons an important role in aggresiveness plays the environment. They also mention that these results cannot be used as criteria to prevent attacks from any breed.

The research PDF can be found here

Photo by jorunngro