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Despite recent crackdowns, pet industry still rife with problems

21 Comments

After years of complaints from animal rights activists and consumers, the Japanese government is finally adopting a variety of new measures and regulations aimed at curtailing abuses in pet distribution and retailing. Most of these laws will affect sales of dogs and cats.

An eight-page article in the monthly magazine Wedge (December) reports that a directive, issued by the Ministry of the Environment on Oct 31 and to go into force by next June, will prohibit retail pet sales after 8 p.m. The ministry's logic is that dogs and cats are diurnal (as opposed to nocturnal), and that preventing them from resting at night impacts their health. Unstated in the article, but almost certainly a factor in the ministry's action is the large number of all-night pet shops in bar districts where dogs are allegedly purchased by hostesses, who persuade their inebriated male customers to pay for them as a "gift." The next day the women bring the animal back to the store and receive a kickback in cash.

Some of the other recent measures, in the form of ministry directives or regulations, include the discouraging of mobile sales, such as at pet shows and other events, since it makes the traceability of such animals following sales to be difficult and also harbors greater risks of infectious disease. Another is a requirement that buyers and sellers must meet at the time of transaction, a move that would have the effect of prohibiting sales via the Internet. In the future animal sellers at auctions will be required to register (at present they are not required), and more moves aimed at improving transparency will be encouraged.

From the current absence of any regulations concerning the age from which young animals are taken from their mothers and put on sale, the adoption of a fixed age requirement, likely to be set at either seven or eight weeks from birth, is now being debated.

Even if the proposed regulations are adopted and enforced, Wedge notes something strange has been going on: According to a survey by the pet food association, in 2010, it was estimated Japanese owned 21.5 million dogs and cats, broken down as 11.9 million dogs and 9.6 million cats. If based on the animal's average lifespan of 14 years, this would suggest that 1.5 million new animals are distributed on the market each year. However, a jointly conducted survey by the Ministry of the Environment and pet industry groups determined in 2008 that about 170,000 cats and 600,000 dogs were sold, i.e., there's a discrepancy of approximately 700,000 animals between data from the pet food industry and those from the Ministry survey.

What happens to the 700,000 or so animals that fall through the cracks?

"It's impossible to expect to sell the entire stock," a former breeder confides to the magazine. "If a dog grows to maturity, we can reduce the sales price, or our staff will make efforts to find someone who will take them off our hands. But when worse comes to worst, we might put them in a cardboard box out behind the shop and let the animal starve to death. I've heard that sometimes the shop's staff will pretend to be the dog's owner and take it to the pound."

One problem the article acknowledges is how pet consumers are often swayed by fads -- for example, around 2000, the appearance of a cute Chihuahua in a TV commercial for a consumer loan company led to a boom in demand for that breed. But such booms can be notoriously fickle, and can result in oversupply and price instability.

Overall, Wedge's findings suggest it appears animals are being treated more humanely than they were in the past. For instance, data complied between 1974 to 2009 indicates that far fewer unsold animals, particularly dogs, are being disposed by killing them -- although the practice still continues to a lesser degree.

"If we were to dwell too much on responsibility for what happens to every single animal, we'd never be able to make a business out of it," a pet store operator told the magazine.

© Japan Today

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But when worse comes to worst, we might put them in a cardboard box out behind the shop and let the animal starve to death. I’ve heard that sometimes the shop’s staff will pretend to be the dog’s owner and take it to the pound.”

That is so sad.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

“If we were to dwell too much on responsibility for what happens to every single animal, we’d never be able to make a business out of it,” a pet store operator told the magazine.

This sounds very much like the quote from the Waseda U engineer who speaking of NPPs said,

"If we factored in every possible worst case scenario, nothing would get built."

I digress but I find this "can not" attitude worrisome.

Anyway, the family got a dog a few years back. And I was reluctant to buy from the pet shops here in Japan who don't seem to care much about the animals at all. So we tried contacting a couple of "serious" breeders directly instead, but were equally appalled with the conditions there. We finally managed to find a store that was very well managed and cared for the animals really well.

But if I ever get another dog it will be from the shelter.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Should have done the shelter route.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

cats are diurnal (as opposed to nocturnal)

Our cat hasn't read that instruction manual. It's only after the lights are out that she starts chucking her toys around and chasing round and over the bed after imaginary mice. (I think - hope - they're imaginary)

On a serious note, it's well past high time something was done about pet shops and the way animals are sold in Japan. Closing pet shops after 8pm is a start - I'll be happy when pet shops sell only food, toys and equipment and the whole 'business' of raising animals for a market dies a death.

Does that figure of 700,000 animals falling through the cracks mean that roughly half the animals in pets shops end up not sold and disposed of? Horrifying. It should be illegal to breed animals without a license, all animals registered and microchipped so that people who abandon them can be traced and punished. Those with a history of too many early/unexplained deaths should be banned from owning animals for life.

“If we were to dwell too much on responsibility for what happens to every single animal, we’d never be able to make a business out of it,”

Admitting he works in an irresponsible industry where anything goes in the name of a quick buck. Scum.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

@MaboDofu

As I said, if we ever get another dog it will be from the shelter.

But I think many people who are getting their first dog, worries about going the shelter route. And feels it is more appropriate for "experienced" dog owners.

The dog we finally ended up getting was getting close to the age described in this article as being 'unsellable', so I like to think we still ended up with a slightly positive karma account deposition.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Ok, so I read trough that article once more and something is not right. I agree that the pet industry is pretty crappy and I am sure that many unsellable pets gets killed, but the conclusions drawn in the article seems all backwards.

Even if the proposed regulations are adopted and enforced, Wedge notes something strange has been going on: According to a survey by the pet food association, in 2010, it was estimated Japanese owned 21.5 million dogs and cats, broken down as 11.9 million dogs and 9.6 million cats. If based on the animal’s average lifespan of 14 years, this would suggest that 1.5 million new animals are distributed on the market each year.

Ok, so you have pet food industry data indicating that 1.5 million new pets reach the "pet food consumers" (which I guess would equal the pet owners) right?

However, a jointly conducted survey by the Ministry of the Environment and pet industry groups determined in 2008 that about 170,000 cats and 600,000 dogs were sold, i.e., there’s a discrepancy of approximately 700,000 animals between data from the pet food industry and those from the Ministry survey.

According to the above, the pet industry sells about 770 000 animals a year right?

And there is a discrepancy of about 700 000 animals. I agree.

What happens to the 700,000 or so animals that fall through the cracks?

Well wouldn't the the logical interpretation of the above be that no animals falls trough the cracks. Rather 700 000 animals seem to be sold to consumers which are not accounted for.

I guess some possible reasons could be.

-A huge black market

-'Unplanned' puppies and kittens

-Overfeeding makes the food stats skewed

-Pet food is used as filling in all gyoza (I am joking, at least I hope I am)

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Now I see I read it wrong - 1.5m more animals, of which the pet industry supplies 'only' 770,000. Seems pretty obvious the difference is 'amateur' breeders and folk who can't be bothered to spay/neuter. Of the four dogs I've lived with in Japan, one came from a reputable breeder, one was a rescue from a pet-shop and two were abandoned strays, which would fit the pattern of roughly half being unaccounted for. And I've lost count of the number of waifs, cat and dog, that I've picked up and found new homes for.

In addition to the shelter, there are sato-oya-sagashi sites on the Internet overflowing with animals needing a forever home. Our current dog and cat both came from there.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

@Cleo, I don't think it was so much a case of you reading it wrong as the original article writer seems to have misunderstood what the numbers meant as she uses the phrase "What happens to the 700,000 or so animals that fall through the cracks?" to bridge to the next section of the story where she talks about the killing of 'unsellable' pets.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Yeah Squid, that's what threw me......

0 ( +0 / -0 )

So many people view animals as an accessory or something 'cute' and afford the said animal no rights what so ever. Appalling really.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Whilst they are at it, they should also do something about the cruel living conditions of those pets in the shops. After that, I would like to see laws that protect those pets from their careless owners. Keeping a dog chained 24/7, never taking it for a walk is so cruel, those people deserve a prison sentence in my opinion.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Do you really want to know what happens to some of the 700,000?

WARNING: contain disturbing images.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/10/23/dog-death-row-sunday-mirror-investigation-reveals-250-000-cats-and-dogs-are-gassed-each-year-in-japan-115875-23506961/

0 ( +0 / -0 )

@KuroShadow

That is so sad in so many ways.

I would like to add that this is not specific for Japan, many countries euthanize large numbers of pets each year. According to Humane Society 3-4 million pets are euthanized each year by shelters in the U.S for example.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

There are also mobile death trucks (NOT kidding) http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/feb/25/japan-stray-animal-death-trucks

There is also a documentary called "The last thing they see" that follows one of these trucks for a day and asks people why on Earth they would do this. Most people simply say things like 'we got bored with them.' I will not link it here because it is incredibly emotional and disturbing, but if you want to see it, a simple google search should bring it up

0 ( +0 / -0 )

It's a Buddhist thing! The West and interfering foreigners have got to undertand the way we asians roll. The whales, the dolphins, our bedroom hangups, It's all a Buddhist thing my follows victims of your right hand. There will be minor surface changes to placate the compulsive complainers, but just lip service! At the end of the day it's all about money! Our motto: No money, NO HONEY! And we all got one hell of a sweet tooth! The scam involving the hostesses and their drunk, horny, gullible victims, well what the hell has that got to do with the animal?? That dog is treated like a king, cause he's bringing in the dough to both pet shop hustler and his deceitful wenches! Like I write.... no real changes! Just lip service for the compulsive complainers. Now pucker up and give Yukio a nice big kiss!

-8 ( +0 / -8 )

This can't be true. Not in Japan. People love animals...being stacked in cages from top to bottom and the beautifully concreted zoos. Impossible. Get with the program Japan.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

1.5 million animals are sold to Japanese each year, but pet shops claim to sell only 770000. I expect many sales are not reported to evade tax as pet shops are often operated by gangsters.

It should be mandatory for all pets on sale in a pet shop to be fitted with microchips. If unchipped animals are found during a spot check the shop is closed down. Chips must be fitted by a government-approved vet and a register kept of which animals were supplied to which shop. Shops must keep records of sales; if a shop cannot account for any animals it will be closed down and/or fined.

Unfortunately, the government lacks the will to implement any of these measures, prefering to leave the gangsters free to run these sordid businesses.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Scrote, I agree with you about the microchips. It's only recently that vets, police, pounds, shelters etc., (anyone likely to handle a lost animal) have been obliged to have microchip readers, and many people still don't know about them. Chipping all animals and ensuring that the necessary paperwork is completed before any animal is handed over - including a few days' cooling off period when background checks can be done - would do a lot to reduce the number of animals that end up on the streets or in the gas chambers.

Rather than sales not being reported, I think most of the unaccounted-for animals are the offspring of the pets who don't get spayed - people either give them away, or dump them in parks. Or take them to the pound. Maybe an extra tax on unspayed/unneutered animals, or some kind of perk for spayed/neutered animals - free rabies jabs, some kind of annual lottery that only fixed animals can enter, etc., would encourage more people to ensure they didn't produce unwanted puppies and kittens, more than appealing to their (apparently non-existent) sense of responsibility.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Wow, there are some sick things going on in Japan that I didnt even know about & I thought I had heard it all before, someone needs to lock up those hotess bitches, the store owners & the p%$ks that run the clubs!

And as a couple people have very correctly pointed out the horror that is the pet industry in Japan doesnt stop once the sale is made, far too many owners are severely negligent regarding their pets.

I long reached the point where I just cant go into a pet shop & look at cats & dogs knowing the horror they have likely been thru, I just buy my food & get the hell outta there.

If you want a pet, get one or even better two from a shelter, but make damned sure you take care of them, dont become part of the problem!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Whilst they are at it, they should also do something about the cruel living conditions of those pets in the shops.

Amen - and also about the cruel living conditions once the poor pups are brought "home"!

"Shiro, this is your little dog house and your slab of concrete and the chain that will keep you here for the rest of your life. Hope you enjoy the view."

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I believe breeders in some countries refuse to sell to Japanese breeders because they know the conditions are so bad in the dog factories here.

Some prefectures actually have bins for unwanted pets. You can drop an unwanted pet in just like any other gomi.

JapanGal

"But when worse comes to worst, we might put them in a cardboard box out behind the shop and let the animal starve to death. I’ve heard that sometimes the shop’s staff will pretend to be the dog’s owner and take it to the pound.”

You say: "That is so sad."

I say: "That is criminal" At least it would be in most countries.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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