The Akita (or Akita-inu — inu just means “dog”) is the largest Japanese breed, initially brought to the USA in 1937 by the famous deaf-blind woman, Helen Keller. This hearty animal was originally bred to hunt large game in the mountainous north of Japan, but today the Amercianized version of akita is a bit different from the Japanese strain. Akitas are notorious for loyalty to their family, but maintain a bit of aloofness (like a cat) and many are quite aggressive with other dogs if not trained well.