My wife and I had been waiting a long time for the perfect dog for us. We desired a dog that is handsome, calm, dignified, quiet, protective, good with children and not too noisy. Then we found the Akita Inu. This breed with its distinctive looking face,powerful well proportioned body and amazing coat draws a lot of attention. The Akita Inu fitted our requirements perfectly.

We eventually adopted a male; a red/fawn coloured dog who we named Aki; meaning bright autumn. And the beautiful colour of his coat reflects the warm tones of autumn. We adopted him at eight weeks of age. He is now 18 weeks old, and he is so beautiful with a loving personality; he loves lots of cuddles. Aki sleeps on the floor near our bed, and most nights he will wake one of us up by placing his head near our pillow, wanting a cuddle.

Aki is almost too smart. Two days after bringing him home he learnt to open our back sliding screen door. He quickly learnt to sit, drop, stay and eat on command. Aki loves to play, and many times throughout the day he will bring a toy over and push it against our leg, to get our attention so he can play a game of fetch. The trainer at puppy school said that Akita’s are very intelligent dogs, and that Aki is one of the smartest dogs he has had at his school. We are very proud of him.

A number of times a week we take Aki to an off-leash park and he loves playing with all

the other dogs, regardless of the size or breed of the other dogs, he just loves to play, and is never aggressive. We need to thank Arlette, the Akita Inu breeder, for allowing us to adopt our dream dog.

We found Arlette to be a very responsible breeder with integrity and honesty to match.

Her dogs are pedigree pure bred, with links back to Japan; the origin of this breed. Arlette maintains her kennel in excellent condition and looks after all her dogs with loving care.

When we picked up Aki we could see he was beautifully cared for, both physically and

psychologically. Arlette’s attention to detail is remarkable and she is very knowledgeable about dogs’ development and care. The adoption process was conducted in a friendly and professional manner. We couldn’t be happier with the process and with Arlette, because she made the adoption a joy. We recommend Arlette and her kennel to anyone who wants a perfect dog from a breeder with an outstanding reputation.

When the time came for my wife and I to become the proud adopters of a second Japanese Akita Inu as a companion for our female, Kokoro, we came across Arlette’s website and reached out.

For the months that followed we spoke at great length with Arlette, not only over the phone but also via social media, regarding what would be a suitable companion for Kokoro. Despite being interstate, Arlette was more than happy to go to the effort of watching videos of Kokoro in various settings to assess what personality type would be the best match. From the beginning Arlette was very open with us that if none of the current litter’s personalities matched with Kokoro that she would advise us to wait. My wife and I greatly appreciated this approach as we felt that a great deal of care and consideration was being taken to choose the perfect match Furthermore, we had narrowed it down to wanting a brindle boy this being the only criteria in addition to a suitable personality.

From the time the litter was born Arlette was assessing their personalities and keeping us updated weekly with progress photos. At the 7-week mark we knew which brindle boy was most suitable and at the 8 weeks mark we welcomed Hunter into our lives.

Hunter has been with us for 6 months now and we couldn’t be happier. He arrived a super-happy, healthy and confident little man. He is very outgoing and equally happy running around the park or cuddling up on the couch watching TV. He and Kokoro love to play together and there is nothing we enjoy more than watching them ‘Akita Dash’ around our backyard playing tag. We have kept in close contact with Arlette and she’s always available via phone, text or social media with any questions we have (not only regarding Hunter but Kokoro also).

Despite us already owning a 9-month-old Japanese Akita at the time of adopting Hunter, we felt like complete novices when speaking about the breed with Arlette, such is the wealth of her knowledge. This in addition to her obvious love and devotion leaves us with no qualms in recommending her as a breeder of choice for Japanese Akita Inu’s.

We have been following the Loyal Shadow Kennel Facebook page for quite a few years before making our choice of adopting a Japanese Akita dog from them. As we live in Tasmania, it was great having the opportunity of knowing the breeders and their dogs through photos and videos.

 The breeders provided thorough information on the breed by phone. They clearly explained all the challenges and delights of having this unique breed as part of our family. Arlette spent a great deal of time talking with us to the phone or video chat in many occasions and guide us on how to make our house more puppy friendly before Naruto's arrival. 

They provided constant updates throughout Naruto's early development with photos and videos and Arlette created a group chat with other future owners to share experiences and progresses. She also organised for us the puppy flight from Sydney to Tasmania and the service was great! She gave us fundamental tips on training and any challenge encountered with our puppy and we are still in touch with her and send her frequent updates on Naruto. 

Our puppy is just the most amazing dog! Since he came to live with us Naruto was already perfectly toilet trained by Arlette and he would go on the grass by himself. He's extremely quiet, calm and independent. He never broke, damaged or chewed anything. Naruto is great with our two cats, with kids, people and most importantly other dogs. 

We strongly recommend the Loyal Shadow Kennel to anyone who would like to have a Japanese Akita becoming part of their family!

We got our boy Nunu from Arlette in November 2017. Arlette is a reliable breeder in NSW. She is responsible and caring person. 

Nunu knew from early on how to use the toilet when we received him at 8 weeks old. Through lots of correspondence and phone conversations with Arlette, I was worried about Nunu and Arlette drove all the way to my home to teach and guide me how to take care of Nunu. 

Arlette is a good person and friend. She always shares training tips and important information all the time on Facebook groups and through private chats.  She is a true Akita expert.

As is the case with most large dogs, owning an Akita Inu is not for everybody. It takes knowledge and dedication to truly raise an Akita to be loyal and obediant. Fortunately with Loyal Shadow kennels you can rest assured that you have all the knowledge available to you to assist you with raising an Akita. 

With constant updates, pictures and information on how your pup is doing from birth through to the night before you pick him or her up, you know that your new companion has been raised with love and care from the get-go. 

Any questions you may have, any advice you'd like to receive can always be obtained either from the breeders themselves, or the multitude of Akita owners they will connect you with via Facebook. You will be recommended a basic diet, tips and tricks on how to train and even grooming tips. After I picked up my pup I knew all I needed to raise him, and was assured that anything else, should it come up, would be answered as well.

Just be prepared to have an extra shadow everywhere you go. They'll follow you through the house, around the yard, and even watch you while you're where they can't get to. They'll be patiently waiting for you at the door when you get home too.

I can't recommend Arlette Rial enough to anybody interested in adopting Akita Inu breed, or even just learning more about the breed.