It's when the vet stands the dog up and blows out the coats of high shedding breeds...

Done at home



And at vet



Usually twice a year when the dogs blow out their coats to help prevent matting and whatnot. Very common in Shibas, Akitas, Malamutes, and Huskies around here.

Also, I confused Huskies with Akitas with the sledding thing, excuse me for that error.

Akitas are double-coated-- they have a protective outer coat and a downy, fuzzy, insulating inner coat. Like all double-coated dogs, they 'blow' this inner coat, but unlike some, they do it twice, not once, a year. The inner coat comes out in great tufts and flying fur clouds every time they shake, and it'll happen whether you take them to the vet or the groomer or not! Daily brushing is essential to keep the hair down, or if you're unlucky and have one who was never conditioned to like being brushed, you just have to put up with the mountains of hair. 'Blowing' is only the most dramatic of shedding; they shed all the time, 24/7 365.

Akitas were originally bred as estate and hunting dogs, used for hunting large game such as bears. They were high-status dogs: time was, you could only have one if you were a Daimyo (a feudal lord) or similarly highly ranked. Not only can they and do they live indoors, I would say they must. They bond strongly with their people and want to be around them. They do not do well being kept outside in a kennel. They don't do well being cooped up all day either, especially if you have to leave them alone. If they don't get a decent amount of exercise and sufficient time with their people, they can become bored and destructive, and they are really really good at destroying things. Training and socialisation are extremely important, but like a lot of the large Spitz types, most of them don't really go in for tricks. Also, same-sex aggression is an issue with them: they don't generally get along with another Akita of the same sex, so you have to watch that.

Oops, sorry mj, you got there before me! Thanks!