The Akita belongs to group 5 ‘Spitz and primitive types’ according to the FCI classification of dog breeds.
Physically spitz breeds are very close to the wolf ancestors of dogs. Take a wolf and curl its tail and you have a grey Malamute or a Siberian Husky. Paint it red like a fox and you get an Akita. However behaviorally they are dogs and although they can be challenging to own they lack the full repertoire of mature wolf behaviors. With training they will usually learn to respect their owners and are not unexpectedly attempting dangerous challenges to move up in the pecking order at every opportunity.
Spitz breeds are square proportioned dogs with prick ears and a curled tail. The northern and oriental spitzs generally have a primitive type coat with guard hairs around 2 inches long and an undercoat which thickens in winter. The equatorial spitz have short coats.
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