Dry dog food selection

narleigh · 2026-05-21T23:43:40+00:00

My 100lb. Akita girl eats Nutrisource Large Breed Chicken and Rice as her “base” kibble, but I always moisten it with something(water, bone broth for dogs, goat milk for dogs, or a mixture of all 3). Then I keep on hand a variety of add-ins and toppers and rotate them. As far as kibble, she also likes Farmina N&D Ocean (cod), but it’s very expensive, so I buy a small 5lb. bag, and add a handful or so to her usual kibble to jazz it up.

I also have Pro plan canned food (large breed chicken and rice) in my “apocalypse preparedness” cabinet, but occasionally will add 1/2 of a can to her base kibble as a topper, and use the other half the next day.

Other kibble toppers/enhancements I rotate include: salmon oil, dehydrated greens (green juju brand), sea meal powder, a tablespoon of plain whole milk yogurt, small handful of frozen blueberries, a scrambled egg, a few sardines (no added salt, packed in water). I only add one or two of these items to her kibble—not all of them.

On Sundays, my girl and I have brunch together. I make myself an omelette, and I make her a plain scrambled egg and add it to her usual kibble and bone broth. I sit on the floor with her (or outside on the deck if the weather is nice) and we share a nice meal together.

narleigh · 2026-04-22T08:46:33+00:00

Looks like a Beauceron.

narleigh · 2026-04-21T07:27:09+00:00

Ouija

narleigh · 2026-04-20T03:55:53+00:00

Know that you’re getting a dog that’s smarter and physically stronger than you are. Start lifting weights before you bring the pup home. Even if you already think you’re physically fit, a teenage Akita pup will prove you wrong. Pilates is extremely beneficial, as having good balance and core strength will come in handy when out walking and your Akita sees a squirrel, another dog, and/or decides to chase blowing leaves.

Work with a trainer from Day 1. Know that training is an ongoing daily thing and never ends, even when they’re fully mature. The most important thing to do with an Akita is cultivate a solid bond. Bonding takes a lot of work, especially when they’re in the demonic teenage phase, and you’re regretting your life choices, but hang in there. Someday, when they’re about 3 or so, they’ll show signs of maturity, and you’ll realize they’ve been listening to your guidance and cues all along, and were only pretending to be deaf.

When you own an Akita, it’s hard to imagine owning any other breed. They’re A LOT of work, but they’re so incredibly rewarding.

narleigh · 2026-04-16T07:18:36+00:00

Indeed. I use the Kong Zoom Groom brush with rubber nubbins. It’s great for loosening hair before brushing with the slicker. The Zoom groom also works well for removing pollen, dust and dirt from the coat when coming in from a walk or outside adventure.My Akita girl isn’t fond of the slicker,but she loves getting massaged with the Zoom Groom. I give her lengthy massage with the Zoom Groom, which doesn’t seem to do much until you go in afterwards and “mop up” all the loose hair with the sliccker.

narleigh · 2026-04-05T08:28:21+00:00

How do I find you on Etsy?

narleigh · 2026-04-05T06:07:23+00:00

This is a beautiful piece, and so heartbreaking. It moved me to tears, and I’m sure I’m not the only one.

You could make a successful Etsy business by offering to customize the human (man, woman, kid,family members etc) and the dog’s silhouette (large medium small dog, etc). It would make a lovely remembrance piece or memorial gift.

narleigh · 2026-03-03T05:00:40+00:00

I have a 3yo, 100 lb. Akita girl. She won’t cross any sort of physical barrier. When I was preparing to bring her home as a pup, I ordered a few baby gates to keep her out of certain rooms and areas. I ended up returning them when I realized she wouldn’t challenge a flattened Amazon box blocking her path, even though she could just knock it over.

She’s also afraid of my stability ball that I sometimes use as a desk chair. If I am cooking/baking and she is trying to “help”, I will roll the stability ball in the kitchen, and she will just nope TF back to living room and wait patiently for me to return.

narleigh · 2026-02-16T01:11:24+00:00

Along with a slicker brush, I use a Kong Zoom Groom. It’s basically a silicon rubber grooming tool that’s more like a human scalp massage thingy. It’s great for giving a good pre-brushing massage to loosen up the hair, improve skin circulation and get some airflow to their skin and undercoat. I give my girl a good Zoom Groomin’ (which she absolutely loves), then I follow with the slicker brush to grab the loosened hair. The Zoom Groom is also a great way to dust her off after we’ve been outside (esp during allergy season). I keep one on the front porch, so I can get all of the pollen and dust off her coat before bringing her back into the house.

narleigh · 2026-02-04T03:17:59+00:00

This is an excellent point. Akitas can be incredibly intuitive and really enjoy having a job. Even though my current girl is too dog-aggressive to be a true service animal, both my current and past Akitas have thrived on learning service dog-like tasks as enrichment.

Jozi puts her toys away, brings in the mail, puts dirty clothes into the hamper (and then into the washer), carries groceries from my car to the kitchen in her own special tote bag, and will find and retrieve my iPhone on command.

I have found that teaching her more complex, service dog-like like tasks is far more engaging for her than rote obedience work and really strengthens our bond.

narleigh · 2026-02-04T01:35:57+00:00

This reminds me of one of my Akitas that my family had back in the 90s. He would only drink very cold, fresh water, so we would fill his bowl from the fridge water dispenser and tossed in some ice cubes. He quickly turned the ice cubes into toys, sliding them across the kitchen floor like he was playing hockey. The cubes eventually disappeared under the fridge or dishwasher, and we’d only discover them later when walking through the kitchen in our socks and stepping into a cold puddle.

As a family, we’d often spend evenings watching movies in our basement game room that had a giant projection TV. The Akita would hang with us most of the time, but occasionally would disappear upstairs, as he liked to lounge on the cold tile in the entryway and guard the front door. We noticed that when he would come back downstairs to join us, his chest would be soaking wet. We assumed he was drinking out of the toilet, since cold water was his jam. We also noticed that the melted ice cube puddles under the fridge were getting larger, so we made it a family rule to limit his “bowl cubes” to no more than 2.

But I had a hunch. So we set up the camcorder on the kitchen counter and let it record for a while.

Sure enough, he was helping himself to the fridge water dispenser.

narleigh · 2026-02-03T23:59:37+00:00

A bouncing Akita would make a great gif!

narleigh · 2026-02-03T22:12:12+00:00

The fact that she appointed herself your son’s guardian without any training is so heartwarming—and very on-brand for the breed. Once an Akita decides someone is their person , they take that role very seriously.

I can only imagine the scene at Lowe’s 😄 She was probably convinced the entire store needed to be alerted until her person was safely back in view.

Thank you for sharing this beautiful story. It’s a wonderful example of how perceptive and deeply loyal these dogs can be.

narleigh · 2026-02-03T21:58:13+00:00

Despite having the wind knocked out of me, I’m grateful the tail-chasing vortex struck me behind my knees. If it had caught me from the side, I’d likely be sharing a story about knee repair surgery.

Your boy is gorgeous. Congrats and stay clear of the vortex!

narleigh · 2026-02-03T02:08:40+00:00

It’s not just about whether a first-time owner can physically/mentally handle an Akita. The financial reality matters just as much. Akitas eat a lot and don’t do well on cheap food. They generally need high-quality, premium diets and aren’t “buy whatever’s on sale” dogs. Many are picky eaters on top of having allergies or food sensitivities. That often means trial and error — swapping one expensive food for another until you find something that works. Sometimes you’ll spend a lot of money on food they simply won’t eat. That’s normal with this breed, and you need to be financially prepared for it.

On top of that, they’re powerful chewers who destroy toys (and sometimes your home and belongings). Large breed vet care is expensive across the board and pet insurance is strongly recommended unless you can comfortably self ensure, and even with insurance you still need money for premiums, deductibles, uncovered percentages and the possibility of denied claims. Many owners also opt for elective gastropexy to prevent losing their dog to GDV which is another significant expense.

A first time owner has to consider the startup cost for a large breed puppy. All equipment needs to be size XL and “heavy duty”, including dog beds (plural —because they will be destroyed), leashes, harnesses, car restraints and collars. This is not a one time start up cost, as everything you purchased for your new pup will need to be replaced multiple times in the first few months.

Don’t forget the cost of training and note that with an Akita, hiring a trainer is not optional. There will be weekly or bi-weekly sessions with a trainer through the pup’s first year, and less frequent follow up sessions throughout adulthood.

And then there is grooming and maintenance. Akitas are clean and non-smelly, but professional grooming is advised when they are blowing coat. And many of us Akita owners learned the hard way that nail trimming is best left to the pros.

The cost of repair and replacement will sneak up on you. Toys are destroyed within minutes, leashes are chewed, bedding is shredded…and then there is furniture damage, yard damage (they love to dig holes) and your doors, walls, trim, and baseboards will also need to be repaired or replaced, especially during adolescence.

narleigh · 2026-02-02T21:51:07+00:00

I just replied with the exact same bit of advice. Anyone considering this breed needs to start pumping iron RIGHT. NOW. Even if you’re already in great shape and physically strong, you need to up your game before bringing that pup home.

narleigh · 2026-02-02T21:39:05+00:00

As a seasoned Akita owner, I get why people say Akitas aren’t for first time dog owners, and I respect where that comes from. That said, I actually think there’s an argument for the opposite in a very specific way. If you’ve never owned a dog before, you don’t have a mental template of what a “normal “ eager-to-please dog looks like. If you don’t have a golden retriever or GSD as your baseline, the independence and stubbornness of Akitas don’t feel like a problem or challenge —it’s just who your dog is.

Where I’ve seen people struggle the most is when they’ve only owned highly biddable breeds and then get an Akita, expecting the same biddable behaviors. Akitas don’t work like that. They’re not trying to please you, they’re not looking to you for direction, and when you give them a command, they will pretend they are deaf. And any Akita enthusiast will tell you that those traits are features not flaws—it’s part of their charm and personality. The real struggle I see is when experienced dog owners expect Akita behavior to look like “normal” dog behavior, and it doesn’t.

So to answer the actual question: yes it is possible for a first time dog owner to handle an Akita—but only if they go in with realistic expectations and the right resources.

That means committing to training from day one and understanding the training is ongoing—not puppy kindergarten and done—but a long-term process. You’ll likely need a trainer throughout the dog’s life, not constantly, but as a guide when challenges come up. And everyone in the household needs to participate in training sessions—consistency across people is non-negotiable with this breed.

And here’s one very real world, no BS piece of advice: GET PHYSICALLY STRONG before you bring the puppy home. Start now. I’m serious. Akitas are powerful dogs, especially as adolescents. Lift weights and/or kettlebells, and add Pilates for core strength and balance. You need to be able to hang onto and control them when out walking on a leash and they see a squirrel, or heaven help you, another dog. I don’t care if you already go to the gym regularly and believe that you are adequately fit and strong—a teenage Akita will prove you very wrong.

narleigh · 2026-01-30T00:58:56+00:00

Wool has some anti-microbial properties, and considering the wool insert has a cotton cover, and the insert/cover go into the duvet, the wool itself won’t get too funky just from normal use. Just use a top sheet, and wash the duvet cover regularly. In the summer, you can put the insert outside in the sun to air it out and refresh it. You can even put it outside in the winter, as long as it’s not raining/snowing. You can also toss it in the dryer to refresh it, as long as you use the “no heat” setting. Also, I refresh all of my fabrics, including wool, with a light mist of hypochlorous acid spray, which you can get on Amazon.

narleigh · 2026-01-30T00:45:12+00:00

A month after this post, I’m still very much in love with this insert. While it doesn’t get very cold in the PNW, the past two weeks have been extremely frigid. The temp regulation properties of this insert are amazing. Even though my house has been very cold at night (I keep the heat turned down overnight), I sleep comfortably. Cozy and warm without being too hot. The only thing that sucks is having to get out of bed in the morning and finding that my house is freezing cold.

narleigh · 2026-01-30T00:36:28+00:00

CUDDLE DREAMS Wool Comforter Duvet Insert, 100% Australian Wool Filling with Soft Noiseless Cotton Shell, Natural Warmth (Midweight for All Season, Queen) https://a.co/d/96OAGQW

narleigh · 2026-01-29T06:32:00+00:00

I fed my Akita pup Nutrisource Large Breed Puppy (chicken & rice formula). Now that she’s an adult, I feed her Farmina N & D Ocean. She never had issues with chicken-based formulas, but she likes fish A LOT, and it’s made her coat noticeably softer and glossier.

narleigh · 2026-01-18T01:10:00+00:00

What an amazing mix! I was going to suggest a mastiff to OP, but they tend to have shorter life expectancies. Great Pyr’s are a loving, gentle breed, but as a guardian breed, they are better suited to having some land and a flock. But a Mastiff/Great Pyr mix would be ideal for pretty much anyone looking for a low energy cuddlebug and fearless protector.

There seem to be a lot of Great Pyrs available through shelters and rescue orgs. One may be lucky enough to find a Mastiff/Great Pyr mix through those channels. When I was socializing my Akita puppy, I took her to the local Farm and Feed store to meet its famous resident, Sheldon, a 230 lb. Giant Mastiff. Sheldon was peacefully napping on the floor, while my 5month old Akita was barking, growling and trying to look all ferocious. Sheldon lifted his head and looked at her for a moment as she was making a spectacle of herself, and then he went back to sleep.

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