Pets in Japan

Japanese like pets. Many Japanese keep cats, dogs, fish, or birds as pets. Because most homes are rather small, they generally prefer smaller animals. You don't see many very large dogs in the cities. But people do keep small dogs in their homes or yards. Fish and birds are convenient pets for apartment living.

Japanese are kind to animals. In general, Japanese treat their animals very well. Supermarkets have large pet food sections, as in the West. Japanese feed pets well, take them to the vet when they're sick, even bury them in pet cemeteries when they die.

Japanese have two kinds of dogs that they think of as native to Japan. One is the Akita dog, from northern Honshu. The other is the Tosa dog, from Shikoku. The Akita dog looks like a German shepherd, and the Tosa dog looks like a boxer.