Health officials rescue 164 malnourished dogs from tiny, dirty house in Japan
Japan is seeing an increase in animal hoarding cases, many relating to pet owners living in strained conditions
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Animal rights groups and health officials rescued 164 dogs from extremely poor conditions in a cramped house in Japan in what is considered one of the country’s worst cases of animal hoarding.
The animals were found in the city of Izumo in western Japan where they lived on shelves or under tables and chairs in a 30 square-metre (323 sq foot) house. The dogs were mostly malnourished and infected with parasites.
The information reached animal rights groups in mid-October after a complaint by neighbours.
Kunihisa Sagami, the head of animal rights group Dobutsukikin said: “The entire floor was filled with dogs and all the floor space you could see was covered with faeces.”
Public health officials first visited the house seven years ago after getting complaints from neighbours about the noise and bad smell but the owner refused to let officials investigate at that time.
The three people living in the house said they could not afford to spay and neuter the dogs, so they kept getting more of them.
Ms Sagami said the family has agreed to give up the dogs and his group would look for foster homes for them after they got medical care.
Cases of animal hoarders in Japan, who live with a large number of pets, are increasing and gaining attention.
In August 2019, 163 cats were rescued from a Tokyo apartment packed in a 11 square metre space. According to the environment ministry, in 2018, 120 cities reported a total of 2,064 complaints about animal hoarding, many involving pet owners living in difficult conditions and unable to spey and neuter animals.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments