Japan has one of the highest numbers of community cats (“stray cats”) among developed countries, and every year thousands of cats and dogs are still euthanized using public tax money.
I tried discussing this issue in Japanese social media, but the moment you talk about structural reform, people get angry.
If you say “We should reduce stray cats through national support,” someone replies “Don’t use my taxes!”
If you say “We need microchips, registration, proper monitoring,” someone replies “Cat owners should fix it themselves!”
If you talk about reforming kill shelters, others say “That’s just idealism.”
It feels like any attempt to change the status quo is rejected, no matter what the proposal is.
In many countries (UK, Germany, Netherlands), animal welfare is handled with:
・Mandatory microchipping
・National pet registration
・Strong penalties for abandonment
・Government-supported TNR
・Proper funding for shelters
・Public education campaigns
These systems drastically reduced stray populations AND tax costs.
So my question to an international audience is:
Why do you think Japan reacts so negatively to reform, even when reforms would reduce long-term costs and suffering?
Is it cultural? Social? Psychological? Political?
I genuinely want to understand this through international perspectives.
by 404nanashi
29 comments
Worker’s rights, women’s rights, same-sex marriage, bodily autonomy, privacy, customer protection, animal rights, environmental concerns, press freedom… you name it. Japan lags behind in most of these, and often quite significantly so.
I think it is cultural-political, or whatever the right term would be. As in, both culturally and politically, Japan is a pretty conservative country. And it shows in all of the above and more.
Changing anything that’s part of the fabric of a society is very hard, people hate change. But with anything conservative, you’re playing the game on ultra hard mode.
Just think about how impossible it seems to convince Americans that they would be better off with a health-care system like the one you find in most of Europe (or even here), for example. We _know_ that it would benefit everyone, yet people will get upset if you even suggest it.
One thing you should know about Japan, they LIKE the status quo.
They DO NOT like change.
The idea is that : “It has always worked that way, so there’s no need to change it” , always and forever.
Also you’re bringing attention to something bad about Japan, so their knee-jerk reaction is, “No, you”. “Why are you bringing attention to this?”
Never forget about their kanpeki no hito (Ohtani): And how instead of actually talking about what happened, they didn’t mentioned him again until the escape goat took the fall and everyone forgot.
They do not call him kanpeki no hito anymore… because they know. But they won’t say. But they know. But they won’t say because any Japanese shame brings shame to everyone, so they keep it quiet, hidden.
They hate you’re pointing out a problem, and it’s easier to shut you down than to fix the problem. (Isn’t it always?)
But on top of that please know: They actually do not care about animals at all. If you haven’t visited a zoo in Japan, you don’t understand how incredibly cruel they are to animals. I’ve asked real actual irl Japanese (about 300 of them) about animal cruelty in zoos and their answer was: “That’s not true. Zoos are good for conservation.”
They really like the status quo.
I guess today you learned how conservative Japan really is. Look at all the pet cafes, most of which would be illegal in other countries as they’re not suitable for the pets/animals held there.
But on the other hand, Japan is doing better than most if not all other countries in Asia in this regard, so they don’t stand out (negatively), so they see no reason to change anything.
Microchipping is mandatory for sale of cats in Japan.
https://reg.mc.env.go.jp/english
edit: [Enforcement began in 2022](https://www.env.go.jp/press/press_04439.html).
Is there a source to show how many feral cats are in Japan? I think it’s hard to get that number.
I think traditionally, pets in Japan are kept outside. Especially outside of the big cities and if they weren’t sprayed, then of course it creates the problem of increasing the cat population.
The situation used to be a lot worse before. I remember seeing a lot in Tokyo 10-20 years ago but it’s a lot less now.
I’d say flip the question around, why are many Western countries so ahead of the rest of the world regarding these topics. Unfortunately proper animal welfare is the exception, not the norm. Japan is just doing the same as the majority of the world.
People have a fucking weird approach to animals here. They “love” them but in many ways, this is a thoughtless society when it comes to animals. The many animal cafes come to mind, monkeys at festivals, the state of some zoos and more. I really hate it.
Despite the image of a “clean” Japan where everyone is super nice and respectful, I think it just comes down to selfishness in the end. Japan is very hyper-capitalist, and people hate having what they perceive as their own shit fucked with. See examples such as the annoyance people have with the public presence of children.
Culturally, Japan has a long way to go when it comes to actual social responsibility.
You are 100% right, op. There needs to be more effort and support from the government. Thankfully, there are many NPOs that have stepped up to help with TNR, getting vaccinations done, and finding homes for many strays. My family has six cats now, all of which were strays. We have one living outside our front door in a cat house we bought. And we are feeding 6 stray cats every day. It’s expensive, but thankfully, we have caught all 3 female cats and had them spade. Still have to catch 3 male cats. We love cats and are just trying to help as we can. But most of the cost is out of our pockets.
Not wanting change isn’t just about animal welfare in Japan. Also sometimes people forget that Japan is in Asia and try to compare Japanese cultural standards to European standards.
>It feels like any attempt to change the status quo is rejected, no matter what the proposal is.
Welcome to Japan!
外国の方に日本の現状を伝えたいだけなら質問形式にしなくていいんじゃないかな。
それともし本当に議論がしたいならXと違ってredditで日本語で聞けば議論できそうだと思うけど、まぁ日本人利用者少ないか。
Animal welfare is not something on the vast majority of Japanese people’s radar.
Heck they actually cut fish up and serve them still alive in some restaurants (called 活き造り).
Because a ferret or rabbit in a cafe is 可愛い but a stray animal just trying to survive has no right to live. Better go breed abominations like pugs for obaachan’s
Watching a leg cut off a live octopus is disgusting. Can’t believe this occurs in a modern nation like japan.
Because japanese people view animals as objects that move not as sentient beings.
Environnement, animal welfare, are just not regarded as important in Japan.
Things don’t change because the Japanese people don’t want them to change. You’re trying to start from the reforms, but you need to start from the awareness stage.
Where is this social media you are talking about?
Typically most people on social media in Japan are agreeable with existing problems. Can you give me a link to it?
When animals are exploited for tourism, animal welfare is negligible. Japan has numerous cities that profit from the animals that roam freely there….. and others have (animal) cafes, zoos, farms, and (bear) parks.
Same people complaining about stray animals, will also be super happy when they visit Istanbul or anywhere in southern Europe. Go figure.
Animal welfare laws should change but the microchip and registration rule will be useless.
Pet shop, breeding farms should be banned.
Most official breeder cats will have microchips or will have and they are a requirement for dog breeders. I ain’t letting my fancy cat out of the house and he definitely has a microchip for accident. Also both fixed as I don’t want them marking. Most pet cat owners will do the same.
Puppies sold must have microchips and be registered in town hall. Do people actually register dogs? No.
Do the strays have microchips? No.
Why? Because they are the farmer, backyard, accidental stray litters that are not following this.
Just look at shelters, both cat and dog. Only a handful are full-bred dogs, or special breed cats and they get adopted quickly. 98% are mutts and mixes. Do you think a farmer will chip, vax, and register their barn cat? No. The cats are lucky to not be thrown into a ditch in a box.
My orgin country has complulsory microchip and registration. I wonder if 50% of dogs comply. Germany would be similar. If they did the same to cats, I think only 20% would be registered, mostly the fancy ones or someone who lives and breathes cat.
Stray cats in Japan live happily, coexisting well with the local community. Rather than wasting time trying to change Japan’s backward and inferior culture and living with dissatisfaction, wouldn’t it be more meaningful to live like stray cats, maintaining a reasonable distance from the Japanese people?
Germany doesn’t seem to maintain comprehensive nationwide statistics on the euthanasia of dogs and cats. As a result, the actual situation isn’t very well understood.
In Asia, Japan probably outperforms most, if not all of its peers. Globally, it probably ranks in the middle of the pack, depending on the metric.
It’s still well behind in human welfare, you can’t expect them to be bothering about animals just yet.
There’s nothing to it
Trophy hunting exists in many Western countries, but it is not prevalent or a significant cultural aspect of Japan. You won’t find a trophy hunting tradition comparable to those found in countries.
Well I wouldn’t go as far as you, but there was a first move towards morals. We may not always be the best examples, especially recently , but ending slavery, starting unions and protecting woman’s rights, were not even abstractions 200 years ago.
You guys really corner and murder dolphins and whales to eat. With a hilariously, pathetic, and obvious attempt to hide it from the world.
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