We were captivated by the Primal Spirit of the Japanese Akita, like many before us, after watching the movie Hachiko. Sadly, no Japanese Akita’s were being bred in Australia at the time, but an already lifelong fascination with wolves, & the new found love for the Nihon Ken native breeds of Japan, led us to becoming the proud owners of a Shiba Inu we named Hachi (of course). Sadly our ‘Little Mate’ Hachi, crossed rainbow bridge on December 8, 2012. (Hachi is the numeral 8 in Japanese – where the heavens meet the earth). We believe our Little Mate sent the angels, or even his little soul came back 8 days later...as then our extraordinary day arrived, December 2012 our 1st JAI (Japanese Akita Inu), was born on our very own shores. Call me superstitious, but the figure 8 has forever since appeared in our lives as a reminder of our Little Mate Hachi...