We rescue all suffered cats in nationalized planning area Okuma and Futaba.

Yucho bank 10130-10226141
Mizuho bank: Ikejiri Ohashi 1102690
Furusatoto kokorowo mamorukai

Petition to the Fisheries Agency about dolphin hunting, and its inside story.

We thought it would probably be difficult, and went there one hour early.
But at the reception, they said to send it by post mail. The whale fishing group won’t accept it if they don’t agree with the contents of the letter.
I explained that I told them by phone that we would be bringing this letter.
But the poor guard didn’t know what to do.
The guard called the Resources and Environment Research Division, but this petition should be received by the whale fishing group.
We waited for one hour in the cold lobby of the Fisheries Agency.
Finally a person in charge of the whale fishing group came down to the reception desk, and received the petition to the Fisheries Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
There was no receipt stamp, only his signature.
For the time being, at least we could submit the petition.
He said that normally a petition is sent by post mail.
This is the first time they have received one face to face. (???)
We were unable to document all of this thoroughly because they had insisted on a condition forbidding taking of photos or video when the person in charge received the letter.
I was surprised by their caution.
In the past, when we brought a petition to the Ministry of Environment, we took photos, and we had some time to discuss the issue.
This time, they tried to turn us away at the door, and accepted the petition unwillingly.
We were also confused about the corresponding attitude of the press club. As a citizen of this country, I feel uneasy about our nation's future.

Democracy is violated more and more.
How can the bureaucracy be so oppressive?
For the issue of dogs and cats, the people’s interest has increased, and there is a Diet members caucus for it. Also some media report about it sometimes.
But very few now focus on the slaughtered dolphins in the hidden gulf as a social problem.

The question of how we can change is tied to that of how we can explore and spread information.
Please support us.
Please give us any information.
We do what we can do.
We will never give up.
Regardless of how, we want to have them stop.




We submitted the petition about stopping dolphin fishing on February 6, 2014 to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Fisheries Agency.
It will also will be sent by registered letter.
The press conference will be at the Ministry of Environment.
We, the Animal Network Japan, consist of 157 groups from all over Japan.
Our aim, since May, 2011, has been to share information and solidarity.

We, Inuneko Kyusainowa’s main activity is to protect dogs and cats. But this time, we submitted the petition to the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Fisheries Agency, Wakayama prefecture, Taiji-cho, and the fishermen’s cooperative.

We want to let people know, in Japan and outside of Japan, that there are many people in Japan trying stop the dolphin fishing. As an animal protection organization, we especially want to show the extent of inhumanity involved with dolphin drive fishing.

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Please watch the movie “THE COVE”.

Filming of it by hidden camera was criticized.
Also theater showings of it were harassed by right wing groups.
There are some problems concerning this movie.
But in fact, this movie exposes the actual situation of dolphin fishing in Taiji, which we didn’t know was happening.

The brutality is so inhuman and cruel, they have to hide it behind plastic sheets and wooden boards.
What is happening in Hatajiri gulf is a kind of slaughter not used on cattle and pigs.
It's against animal welfare policies in developed countries.

I reviewed the material about how they kill the dolphins in Taiji, including the video, and analysis by the veterinary medicine and ethology (animal behavior) community.
“Instantaneous death” was sophistry by the government and prefecture.
Even if the highly skilled driving of a harpoon into the spinal cord of the dolphin is done perfectly, it is not possible to kill a dolphin, a big mammal, instantly. During the slaughter, fishermen must be concerned about their own safety, not theories of animal welfare.
A harpoon is driven into a head and the back many times.
The brain isn't damaged to the point of eliminating pain.
They cork it so that blood does not flow into the sea.
This extends the time it takes for death to occur.
It can involve bleeding to death in agony.
I really hope that Japan will stop allowing such cruel slaughter.

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The dolphin drive fishing started 1969. We can’t say this is "tradition".

The main purpose is not for food, but the sale of live dolphins to aquarium parks.
The Whale museum in Taiji sold them to China for 520,000 yen per dolphin. (from Taiji town office).
Aquariums should educate us about the symbiosis of humans and nature, but in fact they support the drive fishing.
The World association of Aquariums and Zoos has forbidden the purchase and import of dolphins which were captured by cruel drive fishing.

The dolphins that are chased into Hatajiri gulf are sorted by the aquarium trainers, and captured alive.
The data says that the price is about 700,000 yen for one dolphin.
The remaining dolphins are killed for food, and sold at prices less than a one-tenth of that.
The government doesn’t acknowledge that the dolphin meet contains mercury surpassing acceptable health levels. The media doesn’t report on issues contrary to national policy.

Dolphins live for about 30 years, but the average life span of dolphins in the aquariums or museums is 4 years.
When one dies, the next replacement will come from Taiji.
I have heard that all the dolphins die from stress.

In Japan, the aquariums support this cruel dolphin drive fishing.
It is important to speak out loud, and reform this system.

The aquariums and the zoos capture the wild animals, and force them to live in a small environment, and then kill them by stress.
This is nothing but abuse. Around the world, more ethical aquariums and the zoos are starting to abolish this practice.
I am wondering whether the aquariums and the museums that buy dolphins from Taiji know they are accomplices in this cruel dolphin drive fishing.

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There are several hundred fishermen belonging to Taiji Fishermen’s cooperative.
But there are only 24 dolphin fishermen. (from Taiji town office).
Most of the fishermen work with shrimp and fish. There are some people in Taiji who want to stop the cruel dolphin drive fishing.
But as they are living in a small town community, they can’t speak out against the authorities.

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We have been speaking about the issue of killing or mistreatment of dogs and cats, and dogs and cats abandoned in Fukushima.
We were not connected with the dolphin fishing issue.
But this is really a serious situation and we have to speak aloud about the cruelty and illegality of dolphin fishing.
The national government, and Wakayam prefecture, should know this fact.

It is against the national interest to continue the cruelty of dolphin drive hunting, exposing us to global criticism under the name of “traditional culture”.

This planet is not just for humans.
It is necessary to live together in piece with all life-forms.
We must immediately cease inflicting fear and pain on innocent animals.
The budget for killing people and animals, and for military or scientific (?) research, should be used for support of the 24 Taiji fishermen livelihood reformation after the abolishment of dolphin drive fishing.

Please stop the dolphin fishing.



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We sent the petition about dolphin hunting to the embassies of various nations, Vatican city, the Pope, the Japanese government, Wakayama prefecture, and Taiji fishery cooperative. Animal Network Japan, together with TNR Japan Animal Welfare Hospital and Hokkaido Nature Conservancy, sent the petition about dolphin hunting to the embassies of various nations; Vatican city, the Pope, Japanese government, Wakayama prefecture, and the Taiji fishery cooperative.

http://animalnetwork.jimdo.com/

Fukushima

February 7, 2014
Fukushima




Early morning in Naraha-machi.




As decontamination advances, black bags increase in numbers.
This is a strange site. An interim storage facility is necessary.
But it is not welcome anywhere.






At this time decontamination work is not possible, because of snow.




This is a shrine where we rescued many cats. There are still some more around the shrine.






Houses in the Tsunami area are abandoned, and snow piles up even inside of the house.






We finished the feeding activity in Naraha in the morning.
Let’s go to some other places.

Sochi Olympic Park’s condemned stray dogs ‘saved by Russian billionaire’

Sochi Olympic Park’s condemned stray dogs ‘saved by Russian billionaire’
(The Independent 10 February 2014)


Meet the Billionaire Saving Sochi's Strays
(People 28 February 2014)

Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska defends Sochi costs, saves stray dogs
(The World Daily blog 10 February 2014)

Stray dogs of Sochi saved by US athletes and Russian billionaire
(All Voices 19 February 2014)

Defend dolphins, not a ‘tradition’

Defend dolphins, not a ‘tradition’
from The Japan Times
2014.02.03


http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2014/02/01/editorials/defend-dolphins-not-a-tradition/#.UvHMPvWCiM9


In mid-January, somewhere between 250 and 500 dolphins were driven into the cove near Taiji, a small town in western Japan made famous in the award-winning film, “The Cove.” There, at least 100 of the dolphins were slaughtered for their meat. Others were packed up and sold to aquariums.

The dolphins are herded, butchered and sold every year, but this year, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, together with CNN news uploaded videos of the dolphin hunt. The video, available online, is not for the faint of heart. Despite claims of humane killing methods, the video shows the fishermen hacking into the heads and backs of the panicked dolphins, then leaving them to bleed to death, turning the entire cove bright red.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe defended the practice in an interview with CNN and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters at a news conference that marine mammals including dolphins were “very important water resources.” Suga insisted “Dolphin fishing is one of the traditional fishing forms of our country and is carried out appropriately in accordance with the law.”

Their argument that the force of tradition justifies the herding, capturing and slaughtering of dolphins is a flimsy one. Many past cultural practices, such as slavery, bordellos and beheading were stopped for ethical reasons. Tradition and culture are forces that change in accordance with new scientific understanding and evolving ethical standards. In addition, the Taiji hunt didn’t even become institutionalized on a large scale until 1969, so its roots are quite shallow.

Their argument that the slaughter adheres to principles of the law is equally questionable. Veterinarians and behavioral scientists who viewed the covertly recorded video contend that the killing method used in this year’s Taiji dolphin hunt would not be permitted in any slaughterhouse in the developed world.

Indeed, it is open to question whether the method would be acceptable if used to slaughter cows or other livestock in Japan.

Japanese law states that all methods of killing livestock should reduce the animals’ suffering as much as possible. The method of sending “fishermen” into the water with knives to stab the dolphins, clearly evident in the video, does not begin to meet that guideline. The desperate flailing of the wounded animals and the long time it takes them to die go against the accepted animal welfare standards employed in advanced societies.

Japan has already stopped invasive research and other harmful practices on species such as chimpanzees. Intelligent animal species have always held a special closeness to humans because of their intelligence, capacity for suffering and complex social relations. Dolphins are even known to commit suicide when distressed or confused.

Japan has another tradition, one of deep respect for nature and the creatures in it. That tradition would be much easier to defend. The dolphin hunt is an inhumane practice that should be stopped.

Helpful supplies: have any shochu bottles?

January 30, 2014
Helpful supplies: have any shochu bottles?

The drinking water for cats is the water which we bring, and rain water.
A washbowl from a 100 yen shop is used for water.
It gets damaged from long time use.
Then we have to change to a new one.




The plastic water tank is too heavy.4 litter Shochu bottle is very convenient.
No! I didn’t drink it.
I don’t drink, so it is not so easy to find empty shochu bottles.
If you have one, can you please give it to us?






Big towels are also necessary, for wrapping the capture cage to avoid the coldness.
Packaging tape and magic markers are also necessary, to stick onto the capture cage, to keep records, to avoid mistakes.




This day, 4 volunteers acted together.
We stopped by all points and finished a bit early.
So we picked up garbage in Tomioka town.




Donated plastic bags of 20L, 30L, 45L can be used for repacking the dry food.
The big ones, 70L and 90L, can be used for garbage.






We have so many donated materials.
We are using everything effectively.
Thank you so much.

Fukushima afflicted cattle

Fukushima afflicted cattle

After the disaster, stray cattle were lured with a little food into the fence.
After that, they were left, even in the rain or snow.
They starved in the mud and died.
However some volunteers are still taking care of few cattle.
I am frustrated about not being able help them.
But we, Inuneko Kyusainowa, also think about other animals, not only dogs and cats.
I donated a little money so cattle can avoid snow and rain, and also eat some food.
Please think about them, and the volunteers who deal with that, and support them.

★Furusato and Kokorowo Mamorukai
https://www.facebook.com/friends.fumane

Came back from Fukushima.

January 23, 2014
Came back from Fukushima.

Thank you for your donations and support, and for the food.
This activity is physically and mentally so hard.
But with my fellows, we rescued some cats and came back safely.

On the way back to Kawasaki, I heard the radio news that construction of the Interim storage facility could begin as early as April. I was thinking it would be after a year.
So we must focus on the area where they are supposed to construct the Interim storage facility.
From April.........

The Headquarters for the Relief of Animals in Emergencies has remaining donations of 200,000,000 yen, why don’t they use this for rescue activity for afflicted animals?


















Okuma-machi along route no.6.When we pass Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant, my partner took a photo and gave it the title “Yui and Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant".




The radioactivity level is getting lower than before, but it's still difficult to live.




The water was frozen so hard, we moved the water bowl under the sun for cats to drink.




Where is the food box?

It’s been pushed for 10m.I thought the wild boar had been killed, and less remained now.
But I saw so many wild boar in each town this time,.
Their reproductive power is so strong.




Put the food box back and fill up the food.






Thank you for sending us this plastic stocker.
The rat comes into the house easily, even when the door and window are closed.
They chew on anything.
The house is full of rat’s soiling and the smell of urine is awful.
Of course we can’t leave the food.
But we need to stock the food whenever we can.
So this plastic stocker is really helpful.
But I am wondering if they can chew through it too.



Close the lid carefully.
Maybe it will be ok for a while, until the rat learns a new trick.
This is like a competition in ingenuity.