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THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE AKIKYO AKITA DOG STANDARD
AND IT'S PROGRESS TO THE PRESENT TIME
By Katsusuke Ishihara (Director and Judge of the Akikyo Club)
(AKITA KEN TOKU HON, pp 90-98, 1953, AIKEN NO TOMO Editorial Dept.)
The Akikyo Club had it's first meeting on November 20, 1948, in Tokyo. Immediately after this, there were several board meetings held to discuss the management and planning of the oncoming dog show. It was decided to hold the First Akikyo Show on April 3, 1949, at the public square behind the statue of Hachiko by the Shibuya Station in Tokyo. Preceding the opening of the dog show, a board meeting was held on March 20, 1949 to adopt what is now the Old Akita Dog Standard.
On April 2, 1949 (one day prior to the dog show), the judges from the Akita Prefecture participated in reconfirming it as the Akita Dog Standard for the Akikyo Club. However, the financial means were very limited, since the first meeting, and we had difficulties in having the standards printed for distribution to the general membership. Therefore, the judges and part of the membership had to be content with notes. By 1954, when the Akikyo Club was well established, there was much clamor by the Akita dog breeders that the Old Akita Standard was difficult to understand in many places.
Requests were made by many for a more simpler understandable explanation.
Therefore, several sectional meetings were held among the judges, in order to revise the Old Standard, so that it could be understood by anyone and not only by the judges or by a part of the membership. After much review, and discussion, the Revised (Present Akita Dog Standard) was introduced on December 10, 1954.
THE OLD AKIKYO AKITA DOG STANDARD
(Adopted on March 20, 1949)
THE REVISED AKIKYO AKITA DOG STANDARD
(Introduced on December 10, 1954)
The present characteristic Akikyo Standard was produced following the foregoing course of events. But until then, the Old Akikyo Akita Dog Standard, as well as the Standards of other organizations were both brief, and depending on the method, there was the great tendency to produce dogs resembling other breeds, which is undesirable.
Our determination to have as our goal the reappearance of the old classical Akita dog, by continuous self-examination and intense study of the Standards, resulted in the creation of the present condition. By improvment and reform, we are admonished from wandering from the overall appearance and characteristics of the Akita dog.
It is our earnest desire that others will pick up this earnest appeal of the entire Akikyo Club membership, whose goal is to acquire as aany Akita dog-like Akita dogs which are the living cultural assets that are rich in the classically simple features.
I do not believe that the Akita dog became smaller due to the wishes of dog fans in the cities. In the rural areas, dog fans were asking for better dogs, not because they preferred smaller or stylish dogs. [Read more]
