Maruko's story!

We have just had news in of Maruko being returned to her owners!!!

I am so happy, I cried. Her owners had lost everything on March 11th so Maruko was sent to the pound. They were ready to gas her, when JEARS stepped in and begged and pleaded to rescue her from her evil plight. Now, six months later, she can be reunited with her family!

Here is her story on youtube - 

Kate wrote about her as she was there to meet her and follow her story.

Please read all about it on her blog -

 Maruko's story - Part 1  & Maruko's story - Part 2

Earthquake Pets: Beating the heat!

Please read Kate's post about time at Heart animal shelter, Tokushima. Also included are tips on how to deal with the crazy heat.....¬

Earthquake Pets: Beating the heat!: We lucked out! There was a typhoon on the horizon a few days before we headed up to Tokushima. It miraculously dissipated before we got there...

(My) Tohoku update

Being back from holiday is great. feeling so ready and refreshed to do so much.As I wrote before, there was to be one promise and that was 'my pace'.Sadly, this pace includes the financial path as well as the mental one.

If I could have it my way, I would be back now to help this weekend. But, such things are not possible.

Work, Elbi, many personal projects (work related) and then some visitors too, all stop me from dropping things and going up north.

So many people are helping and this is great.

We have a plan to go up (my husband and I together) once again in October. There is a long weekend, and we can devote more time to the work needed.

In the meantime, there is still plently to be done from Saitama. JEARS is still running strong and we must update the facebook page almost daily. The animals are all being cared for by amazing people who still need our support.

Sadly, Susie had to return to the shelter she came from. Having two dogs completely opposite to each other was difficult. She needed walking at 5am, Elbi just wanted to muck around. He never accepted her, she never responded to his play requests and subsequently hit back one time damaging his eyes (now recovered - phew).

The shelter is is at, is HEART, Tokushima. I have mentioned it before (one of the 3 JEARS shelters). We promised to go down and help at the shelter, but I just checked the flights down there and it isn't cheap, so we may have to wait until we have a longer break in order to use the time more wisely.

In the meantime, we are still collecting donations

JEARS HOME PAGE

and you can read about all the updates on our facebook page.

JEARS on facebook

Volunteering at Heart Tokushima

One of the JEARS team members spent some time at one of the JEARS shelters (remember, there are 3 in total).


Junko went to HEART TOKUSHIMA. Here is her blog where describes her time there. The blog is in Japanese, but there are some pictures too. She talks about the dogs who are so eager to go out for walks. All they want is the love and attention from the volunteers. She also talks about Maruko, who was rescued from the rubble after 11 days following the earthquake.


Here is Junko's blog - Junko's blog from Heart Tokushima


If you want to know more details, just ask!!


 Want to volunteer at JEARS? CLICK HERE.

Elbi & Susie

Well, it has been just over 2 weeks!

There has been progress! We have established routines, ignored & fixed the previous issues and overcome any potential problems with either the neighbours or the dogs themselves!

She was barking and even howling at the start, scared of separation or wary of noise. Even the past couple of nights, she was barking at 1am!! Aaarg, Susie, what is wrong? I think it was either food or pee related, so last night, I made sure she was OK and, indeed, there was no barking! Phew. We could all catch up on our sleep!

From a ditch, Susie has travelled the lengths of Japan - I met her in Niigata, after she was found in Fukushima and taken to AFN. From there, she was transported to Heart Tokushima, where she was spayed and eventually then driven up to Saitama. She has certainly travelled further than me these past few months!

And, now, look at them!! These dogs get it better than us!

This is last weekend, and, weather permitting, this is what we have to look forward to this weekend as well!

Elbi is 16 months old, so he still has a big puppy element to him. I think he loves Susie, but he really wants her to play with him. She, on the other hand, just wants to sit back, preferably ON you and get tickled! She is a big baby at heart, but very different to our other +10kg baby of muscle!

They walk relatively well together, that is, when Elbi isn't pulling!

But, he is learning from her too. He is sniffing a lot more. She follows her nose like a real dog. He does what he pleases! But, now he sniffs more. This isn't always a good thing! lol

Sometimes, her nose takes her north. I wonder how much of home she can smell...or is it just the local talent?!

She loves to run and I think that off her lead, she would just go. Elbi tries to run, but he is only small and gets out of breath a lot quicker. Sometimes, he just needs a break en route!

Right now, it is 7.30am and both dogs are completely conked out after their beautiful morning walk. We went out around 5.45 (!) and it was already very warm. I am also pooped, but must now get ready for work!! lol

Have a great day!

www.animalwalktokyo.com

So, today was the animal walk! The sun came out, as did many, many people, animals too, all to support JEARS! Thank you!!

I got to meet the organiser, Brandy and also another JEARS helper, Kumi!




So many animals were there with their owners. I wish I could have brought Elbi, but the journey would have been too long for him. And, I had no transport for Susie, so it was just me and my human friends.

Registration was ¥2000, all of which of course went to support the animals. The turnout was great! The facebook event had 25 confirmed, but there were most certainly more people than that!


We were each handed a map and a JEARS information leaflet and we were ready to go, after the fashion show, that was!



Given the heat, even at that early hour, it was difficult to dress the dogs in much more than the fur they already had, but there were a few clad especially for the occasion.




I think Brandy's dog was a favourite of mine, given the fact that he looked like a potential best friend for Elbi!

There was even some colour co ordination. This dog on the right, called Spike, had a gorgeous turquoise scarf on to represent the animal walk group's colour!


The dogs in the prams were adorable too, in a monster-y kind of way! Lol



One lady had designed her own T-shirt for her and her dachshund.





It just goes to show that people do care. She was also handing out flyers to help try and raise awareness amongst the Japanese people about animal shelters. So many animals are dying in Hokenjos, yet people still shop for pets like they do accessories.

Someone even brought their cat along!



All in all, the walk was a great success. We also got to meet a lady, who can help us with some more publicity. I will post the finished article here too once it is done!

It wasn't a long walk, but for some animals, it was hard work in the sun of early June.











Thanks to all those who took part! Thank you to Brandy for organising the event! I can't wait to do it again! We need more of these fun fundraising events, things that many people can enjoy, but that also give them the chance to support those in need!

Otsukaredesama to the animal walk group!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:代々木公園、東京、日本。

JEARS WISH LIST

JEARS WISH LIST ON AMAZON

JEARS now has a wish list, for those who want to donate, but don't know what to choose, how to send it, etc etc.

Amazon can do it all for you!!

All cards should work, so please click away!!!

THANK YOU!!!

Pictures..The JEARS flyer

OK, so, yesterday I had my first success (apart from my work, who who probably drawn by some sort of obligation).

Here is the flyer at the local supermarket....I had the chance to check it today and unlike the pet store, they have actually put it up!!

And as for my day?

Well, Susie arrived! Our little survivor friend from the north!!

By now, she has travelled around more of Japan than most of us! Remember, I had met her in Niigata? Well, she had come from Tohoku before moving there. And then, she was taken to HEART, Tokushima. now, finally she has been delivered to us! Bless her!

Here is her meeting Elbi. We are sure they will get along.

There may be a small adjustment period, but she loves love, just as much as Elbi, so we will be sure to give it and share it!

It is great to be able to be part of the continuing JEARS story.

If you are reading this and know someone able to foster or adopt, please contact someone at jears - foster@jears.org

The JEARS flyer

They accepted my flyer (you know the one to collect donations), at the local supermarket!!!!!

And it only took two members of staff and a phone call to a third!!!

I was so taken aback when the lady came and said it was OK that i was all about ready to take the laminated flyer back from her and out it in my bag!

This is such a good thing for us. Remember I have said earlier that the flyer was nowhere to be seen at the let store where I they accepted it. And remember there have been a couple of pointless rejections. This could be a turning point!

Now, if word can spread...

Also in the good news stakes today, we got a phone call about Susie! They will try to bring her tomorrow from Heart. (Tsunami survivor! I met her at the end of March on my first trip with JEARS, she was in Niigata at the time.)

Things are very exciting indeed!

And this weekend, we will have our food drive for the animals,so let's see how much we can collect!!

Rest assured there will be plenty of pics! Here is another one is Susie in the meantime.





- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Kasukabe,Japan

Pets in Fukushima

This is a harsh reminder of the reality residents of Fukushima face.
This video is in Japanese with English subtitles.
Yoshida San, speaks very candidly about her situation. She is right, Japan should be a respectful country, however, these incidents prove it is not so.
Owners will be allowed to go get their pets now, but not until Mid-May.
The government has left these creatures to STARVE. There is a rally today in Tokyo for animals lost and animals still suffering. If you can show your support, please do

Details are here - http://animaldemo.blog.fc2.com/

And, as Yoshida San requests, please continue to support the animal welfare organisations in Japan, JEARS is one of them! Thank you! (https://www.facebook.com/AnimalRescueJapan // www.jears.org))

Today isn't a public holiday

So, I had a plan for the morning and I had help from Susan M's husband ( Heart, Tokushima) who was calling up the Aigo centre on my behalf. They were ready for my visit. It was not officially a public holiday today, so it was a good day for action

Apparently, we had already visited this centre, but it doesn't hurt to go and explain and to give more leaflets etc. With the new base in Sendai, it was important for these people to know that there was more help nearby. Face to face makes such a difference and now that we have a base just down the road, it is important that they know that, any animals in need can come to us.

The centre was nice, there were dogs outside, almost 40 we were told. They also have ponies and a goat as is is used as an educational trip for school kids. I do think goats are the best and cannot wait to have a farm with a few!

The dogs there had mostly come from Ishinomaki, and apparently had owners. We sat with the man in charge (Takamura San?) and talked a lot about rescue operations in general and what would happen to these animals. The aigo centre is a no kill centre, but the animals are often handed to the Hokenjos and this is where the animals are given one week to live and gassed if noone comes to collect them.

It is very important we establish good ties to all these places so that they know we are there. It has to be said, though, that intervention is hard. People follow the rules so closely that it makes our work even more difficult.

So, after a long chat and even some green tea, Fumiko and I headed off. I was lucky to have her offer to drive me for without a car in Sendai, it is not easy to get around, especially at this time.

When Fumiko heard that I needed to be in Shichigahama next, she offered, once again to take me there, one way only this time because she had to work. Work was apparently 'on the way' although, I realised that it wasn't and I also made her late. But, such was her generosity, it was 'daijyobu' (alright).

We drove for a while and even got lost towards Tagajo town. As per usual on these road trips, the destruction we witnessed was insane. Left and right, houses were left bare, trucks crumpled and belongings scattered everywhere.

We eventually found the right coastal area, I recognised the gas station from the day before. As we drove up a little in the direction of Fumiko San's house, I noticed a dog chained up to a really badly damaged house.

He looked very hungry indeed, and the house was not habitable at all. There was the 'unsafe' sign too.

I got some snacks for the hungry dog who had no water in his bowl either an then, just to the side of the house, I saw a lady doing her laundry, I think.

I was amazed that someone would be here.

She explained to us that she took care of the dog and she eventually told us that this was her house.

Now, to give you some idea, the downstairs had been torn through by the tsunami, the windows were smashed, the walls cracked, yet she happily stated that they were living and sleeping upstairs.

To paint the picture further, In front of her house remains the space for the three houses that stood between hers and the coastline. Needless to say, they are there no more.

I persisted with questions, 'what can I do to help you now?' ' can I clean?' 'can I give more dog food?', All my questions had good intentions but felt so weak. She laughed them all off insisting that she was ZEN ZEN DAIJYOBU!, FINE!!!! She made ME to appear the one in need!

She was a lovely lady. I had a big bag of dog food to share with this neighbourhood, so I was very happy to offer her some. She was clutching to the bag tight in this picture.

Namiko San, the lovely obachan, hopped in the car to guide us up to Fumiko's house. My directions were shot and she was of way better strength, I was still holding back tears, while she wore a great big smile!

Yumi came to collect us, we dropped the lovely Namiko San off and went back to Yougai.

The team were cleaning out the hut and the warehouse today. I joined in for a while. The pomeranian would be coming to Fumiko's house at 3pm, and then we would all head to the vet together. I have been put in touch with Sasaki Sensei. He has been helping out a lot with animals all over the affected areas. We would meet him later.

The hut that you can see in the top right corner had been completely displaced by the water and everything inside the hut and the outhouse had been soaked and ruined. We were helping to remove item, dry and dispose of if needed.

At around 3pm, we headed back up to Fumiko's house.

There to meet us along with Fumiko was the dog and the family, mum and two daughters. We discussed the situation wit the dog in more details. I had been emailing and talking with Sasaki Sensei and he had given me some particular questions to ask. The Dog, Marron chan, was barely eating and since the quake had been sick a lot. We had to take him to see Sasaki Sensei, all the way in South Sendai.

This would have been an easy trip had it not been for the traffic and the mistake in the address!!

I slipped up a digit and got us lost just around the corner from where we needed to be. We were almost running to another vet, such was the need to see one, but that would have been bad.

I backtracked and found on my phone a mobile number. we were in!

He was a great vet, saw to Marron chan and gave him some meds and snacks, and spoke with us for a while about his work. He has a folder in his clinic with all the media related articles that exist re. his work in the earthquake relief. Amongst them are some letters of thanks too from international vet organisations. We were very honoured to be working with him. He accepted our JEARS leaflets and added them to the collection.

So, today was all about establishing contacts and joining forces. People helping each other, whether direct or indirect. Without each other's support, things are more complicated. Let's keep helping each other.

Location:Sendai & Shichigahama, Miyagi

Jears articles

http://moderntokyotimes.com/2011/04/07/japan-earthquake-tsunami-and-nuclear-crisis-the-animals-need-saving-too/

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/8688742-japan-the-animals-need-saving-too/content/76891881-jears-logo

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Location:春日部市、埼玉県

JEARS, Lending a hand.

DAY ONE

I went to Niigata to go and help with JEARS, the animal rescue team set up to help those animals suffering after the tragedies of 3/11.

Today, I get to meet the JEARS team and work through the logistics of the day.

Reports come in regularly of cats and dogs found, missing or even floating on debris. JEARS tries to respond to all of these.

The tragedies that Japan has suffered are unbelievable and so many people have been affected in so many ways. Lots of these people have pets too. What happens to them at times like these?

That's where JEARS comes into play. JEARS is the product of three animal rescue groups, joining together to offer extra help for the animals affected by the events of March 11th and its consequences.

An earthquake is enough to scare a creature for life, (heaven knows our little French Bulldog is very on edge when anything moves these days) let alone witness a tsunami. The animals emerging from these disasters come in all shapes and sizes and temperaments.

Each animal has its own story and you can read about some of the rescues on the page

www.jears.org

The best plan of action for my first day with the organisation was to head to Animal Friends to load the truck with food, so we were prepared for the next day.

Animal Friends is based in Niigata. they have a shelter there, housing many of the rescue creatures. The other two organisations (Japan Cat Network and Heart Tokushima) also house some of the rescue animals.

I took a quick video of the area, which is beautiful; the surroundings are perfect for the animals and they are all so happy to be looked after there.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiHpTRmUvNc

The dogs are taken out regularly for walks and I was lucky enough to walk this little lady.

She had been found by the side of the road and it was only after a bit of food that she was able to get up to walk with the JEARS team.

She is so docile and sweet. I really hope her owners find her or she can find a lovely home.

The animals looked happy and it was so lovely to see them all.

So, our mission was to get food!

And, that we did. We have all sorts of food, wet food, dry food, tinned food, thank you to all those who have donated!! And of course we have snacks too. Chuck cleaned the back of his truck to prepare it for the load.

With this food, we would be able to feed the animals at evacuation centres, give to those who are unable to buy supplies in local stores and, of course, feed the animals we might find on the streets.

We were ready for the day ahead. Being based in Niigata means that the road trips to the affected areas are long, very long. They stretch across to the other side of the country, so we have to be up early each time, and brace ourselves for a long day.

DAY TWO

This is my first trip out with the team, and I would like to point out, that as I talk about the length of the day in the car, please just think about the members of Kinship circle and JEARS,

who, have been hard at work since March 11th. We are entering our fourth week since the quake, so that is a hell of a lot of kilometres covered by car.

We had 3 teams out on Saturday. One car headed up to Minami Sanriku and Rikuzentaka to deliver food, especially for a bunny rabbit! and to rescue a cat! One lady thankfully survived the tsunami with her 3 cats, but, in the evacuation centre, her pets were not allowed. She had been keeping her cats in her car until she found out about us! We were able to take two of the cats earlier in the week and today, they were one step closer to being reunited. This car (Chuck's truck) was starting in Niigata, heading up to Iwate and then back down the coast to evacuation centres in Fukushima. It was going to be a long day for them.

Another car went out following up on reports of animals wandering the streets, simply abandoned in the sheer haste to leave their town, or told that their pets could not travel with them, they knew nothing better than to untie their chains and hope that they would go and find food themselves. I believe they picked up two dogs and one cat from this journey. Well done! Sadly, I don't have the pictures, but some of the rescues are blogged on www.jears.org and www.kinshipcircle.org/disasters/japan_quake/notes.html

Our car headed out to scan districts for any signs of life and to also speak to members of the public, to make them aware of what we are doing. It is important that people know who to call and the methods of help available.

It took us a good four or five hours to drive to Fukushima. There were many pit stops, adjustments to the plans and a little getting lost along the way too.

We were armed with a Geiger counter, and each had a mask, just for extra protection.

It was difficult to navigate the whole time as various roads were closed because they led to the exclusion zone or they were damaged after the quake.

We spoke to a photographer, who informed us of animals within the zone simply roaming aimlessly. he was a kind soul, and gave them some bread that he had carried with him, but these animals were still there, in need of shelter and in need of food.

And, a lovely couple we met, who owned their own beautiful Labrador, Ruka told us they they had seen a dog dead on the road just the other day and that they had heard of more near the zone. Such were the tales of sadness, being reported to us all daily. We bear them in mind for the next day's planning. Today, we couldn't go and we had to scan the coast and inland for any signs of animal life.

What we witness along the way, is really hard to describe. Of course, I have seen the reports, the videos, the pictures, but still, to see it in real life just breaks my heart even more.

I blogged it all on the long journey back.You can read about that here

http://leonorasophie-everyday.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/searching-for-animals.html

There is also a selection of pictures here -

bb

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvgvZOZZ8WM

It is still hard to fathom, how the apparently beautiful, deceptively calm waters in the distance could cause all that damage.

We passed so much debris, so many clothes scattered along muddy rice fields, so many smashed up cars, that finding an animal would have been a miracle, but we were still hopeful.

Along one road, we heard barking, so we backed

up to find a way off the main road and down through

to where the sound was coming from.

We saw 2 dogs chained up outside, but they were the lucky ones. Their owners were just returning from a food shopping trip. We chatted for a while and then offered them some food.

They were very grateful, it is really hard to come by supplies, especially in rural areas at this time.

We searched and we searched. All that is there is just rubble.

Here is a small clip to give you an idea of the road by the coast.

jgjg

www.youtube.com/watch?v=53zYgpz_S5s

Our search was fruitless, but having seen the fields of debris, it is hardly surprising. It was already time to journey back across the country.

Once again, let me remind you, that, at present, our teams are doing this on a daily basis....phew.

Reaching the hotel certainly did not mean it was goodnight after the day's hefty road trip, oh no.

Car number one were due back with the cat from Iwate!! Car number two were still in Fukushima making sure the dogs and cat would make it safe back to the shelter in Niigata.

The cat from Iwate made it back to the hotel! He miaowed a lot, but eventually settled....in the sink of volunteer Jennifer's bathroom! Thank you Jennifer! He had been in the carrier the whole journey back, sitting on Jennifer's lap. He did a few pees there too, so they both came to the hotel very stinky indeed!!

DAY THREE

The challenges for today varied.

One team headed to Fukushima again following even more reports of stray animals roaming the streets. We loaded up 2 cars full of food in order to hand out at the evacuation centres from where there have been reports of none.

(Pic - Adrienne from Kinship circle)

The team that day rescued a tired-looking, hungry dog and brought it back to the shelter.

My challenge was slightly different.

I was to help Jennifer get Shun Kun, the pee-ridden cat back to Animal friends, a mission much easier said than done!

Have you ever tried to smuggle a cat out of a hotel?

I have smuggled a hamster into a few hotels, but that is a very different story!!

Shun kun was miaowing the whole way.

We decided to take the stairs down a level to the 10th floor and then take the elevator, but would you believe it...on every floor there were cleaners, and by the time we got to floors 3,2,1,B1 & B2 , all the doors were locked!! So, back we were up to 4 again, although, someone was there, so I grabbed the carrier off Jennifer and ran up to 5th and across the corridor. Of course, he miaowed just as we went past one of the workers, but we made it to the elevator out of breath! PHEW!!

Shun kun was to be reunited with his two friends at the shelter, and his owner as soon as she is relocated. God bless her and good luck to her.

I am now going to stay and help with JEARS for the duration. We have endless plans to rescue, endless plans to help more needy creatures. We can only do this with your help too. Thank you so much for your continued support.

Much love to all the animals. XXX

((more photos here - https://picasaweb.google.com/leonorasophie/1820110404JearsNiigata#))