We are on our 2nd Akita. They are death on moles. Leave the yard looking like a minefield, but the moles at least migrate out to the fallow pasture.
You did have an unusual dog pack experience, IMO. Big dogs, like our Akitas, are usually confident enough that when facing down a larger dog or being territorial, one deep *WUFF* is all they do. I only get scared when a dog is on alert, has his lips skinned back, his ears up, back hair bristled and is slavering while barking/growling. Lips, hair and muzzle are the key cues, IMO. All my dogs seem to have an instinctive fear of a broom, though.
That Rottie obviously had been a pet, if it knew about cars. Sometimes I think people just can’t handle the large working breeds and tend to make them outside dogs and so, the dogs escape jail and go out on their own. Our 1st Akita was a showup and I think that was his story. Our vet was pretty sure he came from a breeder who had many different breeds and the dogs just didn’t get socialized to a human pack.
The worst thing about feral cats, for me, is that they beat up on my 15-year-old cat, although she is savvy about hiding. The late Akita was *his* cat’s protector, but would chase off any strange one. Don’t know yet about the puppy...he’s too young to have any real discernment. He is death on voles, though! We’ll see what he’s made of after he’s neutered and if he calms down enough to be allowed off leash or out of his pen. We’re planning on moving in a year, so we’ll have to re-acclimate him to a new territory, then. Once he’s 3 or so, he should be more trustworthy. Right now, he’s just lunch, so he stays inside, on leash when out or in his large pen for playtime.
Right on about the beavers. We let the local trappers set traps, not that it does much good and then we have to worry about them ourselves. Destructive beasts.
When our old guy died, the coyotes had a wake. They sang all night. Now, they know the pup is here and they are staying out of sight and are quieter. We see tracks and scat, of course, but they are warier. He’s only 5 months old, but already over 60 pounds. One day, he’ll be formidable. That’s at least a year away, though.
As a landowner, we can kill beaver and coyote if need be. Coon and possum usually don’t stick around an adult Akita, though. If they do, they quickly become chew toys.