About the Kishu Ken

Kishu Ken are a medium sized Nihon Ken that was bred to hunt boar and deer in Japan, and has been used by some hunters here. The breed comes in white, red, red sesame, sesame, black sesame, and formerly black & tan. Unfortunately, black & tan is considered functionally extinct. The breed also comes in pinto, but that is a faulted coat color in the country of origin. Kishu are overall an outgoing breed with people and children, but can be fierce with animals they do not live with. They can successfully live with prey animals if introduced young, and I have kept mine with both cats and rabbits successfully. They are notoriously nicknamed the "Kiss-you Ken", as they inevitably will give kisses to anyone they meet. They can vary from appropriately aloof to strangers, to extremely people outgoing. The breed can have reactivity to dogs, especially in adolescence. I highly recommend training early on to at least achieve neutrality towards other dogs and to work on impulse control. The breed can also occasionally have same sex aggression or dog aggression, but this is more uncommon. Kishu Ken adore working with you and learning new things. You can learn even more by clicking the link below that will take you to the National Kishu Club website.