Kagetora's Pure Breed

[OreozFox]

I thought all this time that Kagetora and his brothers were Kai mixes, mostly bc of Harutora's coloration. Even after finding out Kage has apparently been stated to be purebred, it's still a bit strange to me since from what I've seen, kai kens can't be white like that. Or is there some rare coat color I'm unaware of?

I know it's fiction but still lol

[Digsu]

For what it's worth, even Chutora's sons are said to be pure Kai Kens even though they very clearly aren't. So I assume that Kurotora's sons are likewise mixes but are just called Kai Kens for some reason.

Although it is my personal headcanon that Harutora and Nobutora are actually adopted, but that hasn't really got any basis in canon so that's just me.

[Sonichu]

Yet the kurokirimaru brothers (GDWO) are said to be kai ken mutts lol
Kage may be purebred, same as chutora's sons, and just with wacky designs. The same goes for Rigel, neither Akitas nor Kishu carry the black colour gene(correct me if I'm wrong please) but he wouldn't stick out if he was tora ge #5. If all the 'pure' kais were to be realistic, we'd get very similar-looking designs and it would be too hard to tell anyone apart.
That being said, its still fun as hell to dig deep into breed lore for Yoshi's doggies lol

(source: https://kaisociety.org/breed-standard/ )

[Dragon]

For what it's worth, even Chutora's sons are said to be pure Kai Kens even though they very clearly aren't.

....*looks at Buru's and Dodo's floppy ears* ... Yeah. Pure bred Kai ken.
I feel like since Yoshi ignores mixes in GDW and just call them the breed of their fathers' (or mother in George's case), we're suppose to ignore it. It's hard to shsjvsjaa

its funny how GDWO is when mixes become more noticeable. Well, I guess in Joe's arc too but they still ignore all the mains' mixes.

[Digsu]

I feel like since Yoshi ignores mixes in GDW and just call them the breed of their fathers' (or mother in George's case), we're suppose to ignore it. It's hard to shsjvsjaa

ngl I do wonder if it's just Yoshi or if it's a common thing in Japan, since it's super blatant sometimes. Eg. in GDW, Daisuke refers to Mukku as "an Akita, though not a purebred one", and Chiyomaru from Lassie is simply referred to as a Shiba, including on a "missing dog" poster, but it's also mentioned that he's not purebred. So I do wonder if this "mixes are usually just called whatever breed they look like, unless they're mega-mutts that don't obviously look like any breed" thing is just a thing in Japan.

[Sonichu]

That could also just be easier to say. I very rarely refer to my dog as her proper "shih tzu and lhasa apso, perhaps more" mix. I think a lot of people call them by what they look like even when they are mixes. And it could be as simple as Yoshi forgets LMAO. He usually calls Weed and his kids "bearhounds" instead of pure Akita for example. Has slipped up though!
All of this would have been easier if Yoshi described dogs like "Mukku is of an Akita type".
Let's see:
-Benizakura was of "bad breeding" (unknown if this means poor fighting bloodlines or mixed)
-Rikiyou was a mix(if memory serves) despite looking 100% Tosa
-The Kamakiri brothers are mixed yet show zero attributes of their mother

(this is all going off the top of my head so correct my dumbass if I'm wrong )

[GrandxSummoner]

While most definitely not common, there are black and tan Kishu as an accepted coat as well as, sesame and red, just white being the overwhelming majority. So rigel "could" have gotten his coat from that factor. If I remember correctly I read a article that claimed kishu used to be prominently black and white was a rarity but the Japanese people decided the white was more attractive and thus bred the black out the breed in favor of the white for a long while till the colors flipped.

[Fino]

The same goes for Rigel, neither Akitas nor Kishu carry the black colour gene(correct me if I'm wrong please) but he wouldn't stick out if he was tora ge

Japanese Akita can technically be black, but it's black brindle not solid black. A very dark kurotora brindle JAI could appear almost solid black.

https://akita-inu.com/