We have a 5 month old Japanese Akita - Yoji, he is doing really well with his training. Any advice is gratefully received. He often barks at people passing by the window/door. Is it something he will grow out of or should I be dis encouraging him myself. Should I ignore it, be telling him no or distract him. I understand that dogs bark, but, if I can ' curb ' the barking it would be better for everyone
While a dog which will bark a warning can be quite reassuring, I find that barking at everything that passes just becomes a meaningless habit, so I would be inclined to check it while he is still young. I would use a firm, No, (or Quiet), and follow it up by calling the puppy to me, and giving him something else to do - perhaps a short Sit and Wait, which needs him to be calm, but will give him the chance to earn a reward.
Whether we like it or not our Akita's are excellent guard dogs, this I don't think can be trained "out" of the Akita no matter how hard we could try. They are aware of everything around them and it seems like they are a cop who is never really off duty. When mine does what yours does, I look and see if the people look suspect to me, i.e. a crowd of noisy unpredictable youths or someone walking up the road 3 sheets to the wind drunk. If its a situation where I myself would genuinely be 'on guard' I say "Good girl" in a deep voice, meaning "thank you for letting me know" and that I concur with her assessment. If the people are no threat at all i.e. a man or women walking with their kids or dogs etc, I say "It's ok sweetie" in a much higher voice relaying to her that I feel safe and no threat exists. I'm trying to teach her how to recognize potentially dangerous situations and to ignore obvious non threatening situations. My logic here is I don't want my Akita to be friendly to all humans, simply because not all humans are friendly. I don't live on the same street as Mary Poppins so my girl is 25% guard dog and 75% cuddly goofball. In the last 2 years there have been shootings, stabbings and multiple robberies in and around my area.
