The Lives of Pets, Part 2 -The Power of People

Steady efforts to protect dogs and cats

One group is working to reduce the number of dogs and cats that are put to death. The group looks for new owners for the animals held at the public health center. Thanks to their efforts, the percentage of dogs and cats put to death at the center declined from 72.7% in fiscal year 2006 to 37.2% in fiscal year 2009.

Another activity, called "Community Cats," is involved in the steady effort to prevent stray cats from having kittens and the members share the responsibility of taking care of the cats until they die. Such an effort naturally takes time to produce results. As background to this activity, we can point to the tendency for cats to have many kittens. When a cat reaches the age of just six months, it can become pregnant. Once cats begin mating, they invariably conceive offspring. Cats can give birth to kittens two or three times a year, and each litter can produce up to eight kittens. But feeding these "poor kittens" just leads to an increasing number of kittens. And this results in the deaths of more kittens due to disease, traffic accidents, or at a public health center.

As one example overseas, we took a close look at measures enacted in Germany to deal with this problem. With 270,000 dogs and cats put to death each year in Japan, we hope our coverage will offer ideas that can help to address the situation.

"Cat feces smell." "Someone left food for the cats in front of my house." These kinds of complaints are heard by public health centers. "Community Cats" is a way to resolve such difficulties in the linked lives of human beings and cats.

In this effort, cats are cared for by a group of people, not a single specified owner, as "local community cats" and the group provides operations to the cats for the purposes of contraception and castration. Whether a cat is recognized by the group as a "community cat" or not is an important aspect of the program.

The "Community Cats" idea began in the city of Yokohama in 1997. One area had became a breeding ground for stray cats due to an abundance of garbage from restaurants, and this situation led to a host of complaints from local residents. Under such conditions, a staff member of the ward office suggested the "Community Cats" idea. The idea involved the cooperation of volunteer citizens, a veterinary hospital, and an administrative agency.

The system was launched with a council that was formed in 1999. It consists of groups that care for the cats, a veterinary hospital, as well as residents who have been troubled by the cats' behavior.

Community cats eat food provided by a member of the group. (Photo courtesy of the "Community Cats" council in Yokohama)

The groups caring for the cats abide by guidelines established at the council, which include provisions for feeding them at the same times and locations, cleaning up the feeding locations, and maintaining sanitary conditions by preparing litter boxes. When they face criticism, as in complaints of "Don't feed them, it makes for trouble," the group members seek understanding by explaining the guidelines under which they care for the cats.

The veterinary hospital offers operations for contraception and castration at low cost. A subsidy system is in place to cover these operations since such procedures are effective in maintaining the current number of cats and resulting in lower numbers in the future.

At present, there are 27 groups providing care for about 380 cats. The number of complaints involving cat feces has decreased in the areas where these groups serve. Yukiko Sato, 40, a veterinary nurse and a member of the council, said, "The key to the system is the cooperation of people who don't like cats." On the other hand, she told us, "It takes time to produce visible results. Without continual effort, we wouldn't be able to maintain the system for long." (Masahiro Mikoshi, 17)

"Paw's Heart" is a group that looks for new owners for dogs and cats that have been brought to the Hiroshima City Animal Control Center. In fiscal year 2009, Paw's Heart handed about 100 dogs and cats to new owners they found through networking, its website, events, and other means.

The group was founded in 2007. They began their activities by putting up posters of a "lost dog" around the area where the dog had been found. In 2008, they launched a website. The group now has 10 members.

Money is needed to maintain the group's activities. The members take charge of dogs and cats and provide them with care until new owners are found. They must feed the animals and bring them to a veterinary hospital for health checks. Each month they take part in flea markets in the city to earn money to support their activities.

Members of the group sometimes find a box with a cat inside left in front of their houses or receive calls informing them of a cat with a physical impairment that has been abandoned. A representative of the group, 46, shared the group's distress, saying, "We've found a lot of new owners, but we can't keep up with the number of abandoned cats and dogs. It's endless."

What gives joy to their work, though, are the moments they see dogs and cats welcomed into a new owner's home as a member of the family. The most difficult times are just the opposite, when animals that couldn't be found a new home, despite the center's hopes, must be euthanized. Older dogs, in particular, which are brought to the center because of their advancing age, are hard to place with new owners.

The percentage of dogs and cats euthanized among all pets at the center in fiscal year 2009 was 37.2%. The figure has gradually declined since fiscal year 2007, but zero is still a long-range goal. The members of Paw's Heart are eager, without exceeding their limits, to continue doing their best for abandoned animals. (Arata Kono, 13; Arata took the photos for this article, too)

A dog is fed by a representative of Paw's Heart at her home

In Germany, there are facilities called "tierheims," which are like public health centers in Japan. Tierheims hold pets and other domesticated animals that have no owners and take care of them until new owners can be found. The animals are never put to death. There are about 900 tierheims in Germany.

Most of these facilities are run by animal protection groups and supported by donations from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and subsidies from autonomous bodies. Tierheims have staff and volunteers with special expertise in the breeding of animals and they work in cooperation with autonomous bodies.

For new owners without any experience in keeping pets, they suggest taking in a grown dog. Grown dogs are well-trained and they can easily adapt themselves to life in society. In cases where new owners can't be found, the animals stay at the tierheims until they die. German law prohibits animals from being put to death, so they won't be killed unless they are suffering from a terminal disease.

Moreover, animals generally can't be bought and sold at pet shops in Germany because a law which protects animals specifies that animals must be kept in a place with suitable space. As a result, it is illegal to put animals in small cages. When people want to get a pet, they look for advertisements in newspapers or websites or they ask breeders or tierheims.

Dealing with dogs and cats under 12 weeks of age is avoided as they are not yet old enough to receive vaccinations and the early weeks are an important time for dogs and cats to learn how to become social creatures by playing together with siblings.

Dog owners are required to pay a "dog tax" to the autonomous bodies where they live. The amount of tax differs depending on each of these entities. A portion of this tax is allocated to purchase bags and garbage cans for dog feces. The tax system is designed not only to bring income to the autonomous bodies, but also to effectively control the numbers of dogs and maintain order in the environment of the towns. (Minako Iwata, 17)