Life with Pets

Posted June 14th, 2010 in Ume's Interests 2 Comments »

People who had/have pets may understand this, but they are not just animals who stay in your house.  They become part of your family!

I used to have two Shiba (♀:sisters) in Japan, and we were always together as if we’re sisters.  Unfortunately one of them was killed by a car accident when I was 10, but the another one lived for 18 years in my house.  These two dogs looked so alike (as they share the same mother Shiba) and my parents tried to remember which one is which by the different colored collars.  But, I could totally tell which is Mimi and which is Lulu by their faces.  🙂  They had different personalities too.

After I left Japan I couldn’t be with Mimi much, but my family took care of her well.  She was so old, but loved going for a walk (like other normal dogs) until the day she died.  It was really hard news for me to bear, and I felt so sorry that I couldn’t be there with her.  But I believe she enjoyed her long life.

I love animals, but I’m not sure if I’m going to have a pet in Perth.  As Mimi was in my life since I was 6 years old, we had such strong bond and I still think she is the best.  It’s really fun to have a pet, but very hard at the same time when they die.  

Oh, but it’s really a good thing to know that there are few things I could do to be with animals without owning them.  Belmont Pet store, for example, is looking for Puppy Minders who can look after puppies from Saturday afternoon and take them back to the shop on Monday morning. They give you a carry cage, food, etc and you just need to be available to answer your phone on the Saturday to confirm.  😀

(08 9478 3993)

By the way I love this shop “Three Dog Cafe”.  It started from America as the world’s original bakery for dogs, and now there are many shops across America, Hong Kong and Japan.  Although their products are all for dogs, they look so cute and yummy!

 

  

They even sell bagels!  Oh my gosh..

Have you watched the movie “Hachi”??  This film is based on the true story of an Akita dog in Tokyo, Japan.  I don’t know how many times I cried after watching this…  You can find the statue of “Hachi” (called “hachi-koh”) in Shibuya, Tokyo.  The statue has been the symbol of Shibuya train station for a long time.


2 Comments on “Life with Pets”

  1. 1 Megan said at 9:19 am on June 15th, 2010:

    Hi Ume,
    I love the photos and story about your dog. Some of the dogs we saw in Japan were so cute and people treat their dogs like children. I couldn’t believe all the merchandise I saw for dogs – clothes, prams, etc.
    I also love animals (too much). It is very difficult, I agree, because you can become sooooo attached to them. That is why I also no longer have any pets – too sad when they are gone.
    Now I will try to watch Hachi. I know about this dog but have never seen the statue, even though we went to Shibuya station. We forgot!!
    I hope you get an animal to love soon!

  2. 2 umepontarou said at 2:50 pm on June 15th, 2010:

    Megan,

    Japan sells many many things (sometimes things that I couldn’t imagine to exist), and prams for dogs are one of them too 😀

    I miss Mimi (and of course Lulu too) and I sometimes forget that she is gone. I feel like she is still in my house.

    Please watch Hachi. Although they changed the story little bit (as the location of this movie is somewhere in America), but the dog Hachi did exist decades ago in Japan and many people cried after reading about the news and a book about this dog.


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