Akita Inu and kids

I see a lot of people worried about the interaction between the Japanese Akita Inu and young children and they often comes with the same question:

Is the Japanese Akitainu a good family dog?

The short answer is: yes!

But before we get deeper into this topic, I want to remind you that every interaction between dogs and small children should always be supervised by responsible adults.

Dogs are instinctive animals and will react in case they feel threatened or annoyed. It does not matter its size! While toddlers and young children often do not have a sense of danger and tend to explore their environment carelessly this combination might lead to accidents if not carefully supervised by adults.

Now let’s get deeper into the topic of Japanese Akitas and Children. Japanese Akitas are great companions and amazing family dogs, they are no threat to anyone in their household including children as long as they were properly socialized as a puppies and have the correct temperament.

However, they do tend to be aloof with strangers and that includes kids.

But what is a “stranger”?

Every person or animal that does not live in the same household as the dog, will be seen as a stranger and as Akitas are very protective dogs you have to always be careful with any interaction between your dogs and strangers. So, it means that only because your dog is friendly and caring with the people inside its house it does not mean that it will also be automatically friendly and caring with your kid’s friends, your kid’s cousins or the neighbor’s kids.

Highlight: If they are not an active member of the household it will always be seen as a stranger. And strangers means: potential threat, danger ⚠.

Now a little secret I have seen many Japanese Akitas tolerate strangers way better depending on two factors, first is the dog’s individual personality and temperament, while the breed has its standard every dog has its own personal level of aggression, dominance or prey drive. Some Akitas are more sociable than others and can tolerate strangers (animals and people) better.

And factor number two is their level of socialization, the more socialized your dog is with strangers, children, animals, places and noises more it will tolerate and be calm around them. That’s why it is very important to socialize your puppy as much as you can from a very young age in order to avoid having a very aloof and difficult dog to handle with.

And finally a personal note: I raise all of my dogs inside my house with my son and have absolutely no problem or worries about them living together!