Pro shogi player Kato sued for feeding stray cats at condo

Thursday 11th December, 03:18 PM JST

TOKYO —

Pro shogi (Japanese chess) player Hifumi Kato faces a legal battle with fellow residents of his condominium in Mitaka on the western suburbs of Tokyo over his feeding of stray cats, the residents’ lawyer said Thursday. The condo’s home management body and 17 residents have filed a suit against Kato, 68, with the Hachioji branch of the Tokyo District Court seeking a halt to Kato’s feeding of cats and an unknown amount of damages from him.

Kato, who holds pro shogi’s highest rank of ninth ‘‘dan,’’ told reporters he has continued to feed the cats out of his kindness to animals. ‘‘Unfortunately, I could not gain support from other residents,’’ he said, adding that he will file a counterargument with the court. The plaintiffs argue that they have had trouble with cat waste since Kato began to feed stray cats around 1993. The number of these cats once reached more than 10.

Cat waste caused the condo’s lawn to die while some cats scratch residents’ cars, they say.

The condo management body has repeatedly asked Kato since around 2002 not to feed the cats, citing the condo residents’ agreement requiring members not to do anything harassing or unpleasant to other residents. But Kato would not accept the request, the plaintiffs said.

Kato once held several pro shogi titles, such as ‘‘meijin’’ (master), ‘‘judan’’ (10th dan) and ‘‘osho’’ (king).

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Latest 15 of 58 Total Comments Show All

urufuls at 04:15 AM JST - 12th December

Since 1993?? He can be kind to animals in other places besides his condo. Change the feeding area every day and move it further away from the condo.

Does being kind to cats trump being kind to his fellow human beings?

If he doesn't follow with the condo resident's agreement, evict the guy.
Sarge at 06:55 AM JST - 12th December

"Some cats scratch residents' cars"

I betcha those are the cars of residents who don't feed the cats.
mikihouse at 07:18 AM JST - 12th December

homeless cats are filthy, destructive and health hazard. If this idiot wants to take care of these cat he better start cleaning their mess. The problem is he just feeds them and leave the mess behind. If I am his neighbor I am sure he will not be playing shogi for a long long time
gaijintraveller at 09:22 AM JST - 12th December

I have been told that the Japanese version of this story says that nine people complained, but a lot of others approved of his action.

Perhaps, the problem is a condo rules banning pets. People move to a condo where pets are not allowed and just dump them.

Keeping pets is actually good for your health. If more families kept pets, children would suffer less from allergies and asthma. Current medical theory is that introducing children to allergens early in life builds up a resistance and prevents allergies later.

"Japanese love nature." Only if it is controlled. They love kittens and puppies in undersized cages in pet shops. They just don't like nature when it is free and natural. Look at the way they treat trees. Look at the way many freak out when they see a dog not on a lead.

Animals have no legal protection* in Japan. They need help.

Kato is a humanitarian. People who don't care about animals probably don't care about and are cruel to people, too. A fine example of this is the kid who started torturing animals before moving on to other kids.

*Legally, they do, but this is a law that is not enforced.
stipend at 01:22 PM JST - 12th December

People move to a condo where pets are not allowed and just dump them.

gaijintraveller, are you in Japan? It's not like that here. Very few people have pets and cats are shunned for the most part.

I have been told that the Japanese version of this story says that nine people complained, but a lot of others approved of his action.

Wouldn't surprise me. Nobody wants to make waves, even when they understand the issue -and here most people don't.

Kato is a humanitarian.

Nope. That's perverted. He's narrow minded, self serving and he's been avoiding the important issues. Does he treat cats? Take them to hospital? Does he rehome, fix them? Attempt to educate neighbours? If all he does is feed them then yes, it is a problem.
Ranger_Miffy at 02:54 PM JST - 12th December

SPAY and feed. That's being nice all around.
japancatnet at 04:38 PM JST - 12th December

It is hard to say he is doing something great, or doing something terrible. It seems normal to me to feed some starving creature. But simply feeding is not good for the cats. If you are feeding then you are breeding. Only feeding is participating in a vicious cycle that will create even more cats, who are likely to grow up pathetically and die miserably. The only effective and humane solution is TNR (trap/neuter/return). You can find info in English at Alley Cat Allies, info in Japanese at Neko Dasuke, and you can get help in many places in Tokyo by calling the ward office. If you live in Kansai, you can get help from us at Japan Cat Network. http://www.japancatnet.com/
GW at 06:08 PM JST - 12th December

japancatnet, nice & accurate post!!

As I said earlier in this thread if yr just feeding strays/feral cats you ARENT helping your simply KILLING MORE CATS, they bred then unless somebody takes them in they end up as roadkill or starve or die of disease & lead miserable lives, not a damned thing humanitarian about feeding these cats!!
bcbrownboy at 08:58 PM JST - 12th December

Love this headline - if this is the worst we have to fear, Japan is a pretty safe country.
telecasterplayer at 12:27 PM JST - 13th December

Hey it could be worse. He could be feeding squirrels. 'Hate them bushy-tailed rats.

stipend,

Very few people have pets and cats are shunned for the most part.

Are you positive about that? "Pochi Tama" sure shows a lot of people with pets.. even in those miniature Japanese mansions. I don't live there, but on several visits I saw people with pets, especially girls with those tiny dogs. The puppy store in Roppongi always seems to have people peering in the windows.
japancatnet at 06:37 PM JST - 13th December

According to mapsoftheworld.com, Japan is the 4th most dog-populated country in the world with nearly 10 million dogs, and ranks 9th in cats with over 7 million. I believe the populations are actually much higher than that. People in the pet business in Japan would describe the present situation as a boom.

Unfortunately, only about 30% spay and neuter their cats and dogs in Japan, compared to 90% in some western European countries.
sharky1 at 03:01 AM JST - 15th December

sounds like a major cat tastrophy to me.
mrhog123 at 07:30 AM JST - 15th December

Considering what the Bill O' Fare is in Japan the addition of cat should not cause a problem.
sangetsu at 10:20 AM JST - 17th December

gaijintraveller, are you in Japan? It's not like that here. Very few people have pets and cats are shunned for the most part.

I'm in Japan, in Tokyo as a matter of fact, and pets are incredibly popular here. One cannot walk for any distance and not seeing the most common animal in Tokyo, the miniature Dachshund, being taken for a walk.

Where else but Japan are there restaurants with menus for people and dogs? The last time I went to the park in Odaiba there were 2 people there with cats on leashes. How many people in other parts of the world will go to the trouble to take a cat to the park?

It was reported a couple of years ago that there are more pets in metro Tokyo than there are children. The hair salon across the street from my apartment added a pet grooming service, so now people and their pets can get their hair cut at the same time.
cleo at 11:13 AM JST - 17th December

Very few people have pets

Not so. Even in our tiny little town in the sticks, there's a Dog Cafe, a couple of doggy beauty parlours and a couple of dog hotels. The street where I live has 19 families and 12 dogs, not a mini dachs among them. Number of kids of school age - one.