February 22nd is ``Cat Day,'' a play on numbers.
In Tokyo, efforts have begun to adopt cats that can no longer be kept in areas affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake and find new families.
An organization that has been working to protect cats in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo for about 20 years, has been working with the Ministry of the Environment and other organizations since this month to adopt cats from victims of the Noto Peninsula earthquake.
At the organization's shelter in Tokyo, they are always caring for over 20 rescued cats, and so far they have taken in a total of nine cats from Suzu City, Ishikawa Prefecture, etc., and their health conditions have been checked at a veterinary hospital. They are holding an adoption meeting and looking for a new owner.
Among them, 11-year-old male cat "Tuna" is a rescue cat whose owner in Suzu City, who is still living in an evacuee, decided that it would be difficult to keep him and gave him away.
He has a friendly personality, was raised indoors and has a well-coated coat, and there are marks on his right leg from treatment at a hospital, indicating that he was raised with care.
According to the organization, it has been decided that they will be taking in around 10 animals from next week onwards, and issues include securing space and the cost of checking their health.
There are concerns that the number of abandoned cats and kittens that have been bred will increase in the future, and the organization plans to continue efforts to find new owners using crowdfunding and other methods.
"A cat whose owner made a difficult decision to give it away will be cherished"
Akiko Katori, Representative Director of the ``Tokyo Human-Animal Bond Welfare Association (General Incorporated Association)'' said, ``
Many disaster victims who brought their pets with them lived in their cars as evacuation centers, and protecting their pets meant that they could die from disaster-related deaths.'' It also helps protect humans from such things.I hope that by taking good care of the cats whose owners made the difficult decision to give them up, I can one day show them to people living in disaster-stricken areas that they can live happily ever after."
Challenges in living with pets in disaster-stricken areas
Some people have had to give up their pets because it became difficult to keep them after the disaster, but even if they want to keep their pets, there are various challenges to living with them after a disaster, such as problems at evacuation centers. there is.
This month, the Ministry of the Environment surveyed approximately 100 primary evacuation centers in Wajima City, Suzu City, Anamizu Town, and Noto Town regarding the possibility of evacuation with pets, and found that approximately 50% of them accepted evacuees with pets. Approximately 40% of respondents said that their companions did not come, while approximately 10% of respondents said that they did not accept pets.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, in addition to cases where evacuation shelters refuse to accept pets, there are also cases where owners are hesitant to take pets to evacuation centers and stay in their homes even if there is a risk of collapse, or disaster-related cases. This means that there are issues such as continuing to sleep in a car, which can lead to death.
In response to this, Ishikawa Prefecture has secured approximately 340 places within and outside the prefecture where dogs and cats can be temporarily kept, and as of the 17th of this month, 197 animals have been kept, of which 118 are cats. It accounts for more than
In addition, they are taking care of 64 dogs, 13 birds, and 2 rabbits.
Past disasters: Cases where pets were unable to move into temporary housing
Regarding temporary housing, local governments within the prefecture have indicated a policy of accepting pets accompanied by pets, but in past disasters, there have been cases where pets were not actually allowed to move in due to reasons such as the residents' association not being able to obtain approval for pets. It means that there was also.
For this reason, it is important to set rules for keeping pets according to the situation, such as limiting the areas where pets can be active and creating living areas only for companions.
In addition, as a daily preparation, ▽In addition to wearing a collar and lost tag, ▽Make sure your cat or dog is equipped with a microchip. ▽Make sure your cat or dog is used to being put into a carrier bag or cage smoothly during an evacuation. ▽At least 5 times. It says it is important to have enough pet food for each day, and asks people to refer to the guidelines posted on the Ministry of the Environment's website.
Ministry of the Environment HP Guidelines
“Are you and your pet okay during a disaster? Disaster countermeasure guidelines for people and pets <general owner edition>” https://www.env.go.jp/nature/dobutsu/aigo/2_data/pamph/h3009a. html
Ishikawa Prefecture is also collaborating with the Prefectural Veterinary Association to find a new owner
According to Ishikawa Prefecture, some people in the prefecture are finding it difficult to live with pets such as cats and dogs in evacuated gymnasiums, or are forced to give up keeping pets due to injury or illness.
Since there are only a limited number of facilities that accept pets for secondary evacuation, Ishikawa Prefecture works with the Ministry of the Environment, the Prefectural Veterinary Association, and private organizations when it becomes difficult to keep pets. We are looking for a new owner.
Information provided on the missing pet website
Additionally, according to Ishikawa Prefecture, information is provided on the prefectural veterinary association's website and a dedicated website for cases where pets have left their owners and are missing.
The ``disaster affected dog and cat protection information site'' lists photos, rescue locations, and contact information for protection organizations, and owners looking for pets are advised to check the prefectural veterinary association's homepage and dedicated website, as well as I would like you to contact the health center.
If cats and dogs continue to wander in disaster-stricken areas, there are concerns that their living conditions will worsen, and they will become wary of people, making it difficult to catch them.
Ishikawa Prefecture states that compared to dogs, it is difficult to tell whether cats are kept or not, and it is difficult to protect them. ``If they breed and increase in number without being properly protected, they may end up being culled.'' "If you see a cat that appears to be a domestic cat wandering around the disaster-stricken area, please contact the public health center."
Click here for the URL of the "disaster affected dog and cat protection information site"
https://veterinary-adoption.com/notohisai/
Click here for the homepage URL of the Ishikawa Prefectural Veterinary Medical Association
https://www.ishikawa-vma.org/index.php