Keynote Speech

Animal Rescue in the Wake of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake
Shigekatsu ICHIDA Chairperson, The Great Earthquake Animal Rescue Memorial Association

Fifteen years have now passed

unexpectedly. However, above and below the level

since the day of the Great Hanshin-seen here, the floors were not completely destroyed.

Awaji Earthquake, and today I would

According to an earthquake specialist, each earthquake

like to talk to you about the animal

has its own peculiar wavelength, and in the case of the

rescue activities that we performed

Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, the wavelength wasover the course of a year and four

such that it caused damage around this area. Indeed,months following the earthquake. We

the Kobe City officials who were working at the Kobebegan our work in a situation in which we were literally

City Animal and Pet Management Center at the time

groping in the dark, but somehow we managed to getof the quake were kept extremely busy taking care ofthrough to the end.

people day and night. [Slide 6][Slide 2] This is a view of Awaji Island back in those[Slide 7] The wall of this building also peeled off duedays. The photograph was taken from the direction of

to the earthquake, although the building itself did not

the rescue center. The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge was latercollapse. The accumulation of roof tile debris and otherconstructed in this area, and the epicenter of the Great

things falling from above reduced the width of the road

Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake was around here. Sannomiya

by about half. So although we had assumed we would[downtown Kobe] lies in this direction. I expect you canbe able to use this road, in practice it was impossible

recognize this from the topography of the mountains.

to pass though. That was the situation we were in.
Dr. Hayata, who was the Chairman of the Veterinary[Slide 3] This is the famous “Nada no Sake” brewery.

Medical Association, was very worried about the safety

As you can see, here are the remains of the storageof the associationʼs members as they tried to get aroundtanks and other structures that have been completely

Kobe City. When he moved around Kobe himself hedestroyed by the quake. These are the kinds of sceneused a motorbike. If he had tried to use an ordinary

we donʼt really want to remember. The brewery does

passenger car, he could never have managed it due tostill remain here although the facilities were destroyed.

the constant traffic congestion and large number ofIn fact, this is one of my least favorite memories.

impassable roads. Naturally, at that time we had a lotof trouble making contact with people in the areas that

[Slide 4] This photo was taken in Nagata Ward, Kobe,

were badly damaged, totally destroyed or burnt out,

where approximately 7,500 houses burned down. [Slide

and we failed to make contact in a lot of cases.

5] At the time, we watched on TV as firefighters juststood there holding hoses with no water coming out[Slide 8] This slide shows a dog gazing at us with a lookbecause the water pipes had been damaged. It was aof astonishment. This was a case in which, even thoughcatastrophic situation. The entire area was reduced toit was suffering just the same as many other animals,

burned out ruins.

it had a place with a roof over its head which provided
some protection against the elements.

[Slide 6] This is Nishi-Shimin Hospital. This hospital
plays a central role in providing Kobeʼs medical care.

[Slide 9] It may be a little diﬃcult to see, but there is a

The 4th, 5th and 6th floors of the building collapsed

Keynote Speech3dog in this photograph, one that was brought to an

the main supporting organizations, and there were aevacuation center. Initially, the animals, just like thenumber of other supporting organizations too. Whenpeople, were happy together at the shelter. Together

we look at other more recent major natural disasters

they could share a feeling of mutual safety. But after

such as those in Niigata and Hokkaido, for example,

three or four days, perhaps a week, at the evacuation

this kind of support structure seems natural, but it iscenter, inevitable issues of territoriality ‒ such asimportant to grasp that the eﬀort will come to nothing

assertions that “this is my space!” - began to occur. Not

unless there is an on-site headquarters. In the case of

all the evacuees were fond of animals so, naturally,

Kobe, the Great Hanshin Earthquake Animal Rescue

problems began to develop at this stage. It is difficult

Headquarters was established under the guidance andto incorporate the evacuation of animals into anwith the cooperation of three animal welfare-related

evacuation center unless those evacuees accompanied

organizations, namely, the Veterinary Association of

by animals and those who dislike animals are carefully

Hyogo Prefecture, the Veterinary Association of Kobe

segregated.

City, and the Hanshin branch of JAWS, while Hyogo
Prefecture and Kobe City participated in an advisory[Slide 10] The earthquake struck at 5:46 am on January

capacity. In order to rescue animals, we of course

17. The clock in this picture was running a little

had to establish actual animal rescue centers. Of thebehind when it stopped. On January 21st, an on-site

two centers that were established, the Kobe Animal

headquarters, which was called the ʻSouthern Hyogo

Rescue Center was under the control of the Veterinary

Prefecture Earthquake Animal Rescue Headquartersʼ,

Association of Kobe City and the Hanshin Branch

was set up. We heard about this on January 22nd. In theof JAWS, while the Veterinary Association of Hyogocase of Kobe City, parts of Nishi, Tarumi, Kita and Suma

Prefecture was mainly responsible for operating theWards, (which are mainly in the mountain areas), had

Sanda Animal Rescue Center. Both of these centers were

suﬀered comparatively light damage. So the members

set up in response to a sudden emergency situationof the Veterinary Association of Kobe City got together

and we were not used to doing this kind of thing.

and decided to set up an Animal Rescue Headquarters

So we were unsure of what should be done. Underat the Kobe City Animal and Pet Management Center,the circumstances, we were able to manage thanks

which is in Kita Ward. The Veterinary Association of

to support from the Tokyo Headquarters and from

Hyogo Prefecture studied a variety of places, but they

many other directions. For instance, Dr. Baba quickly

couldnʼt ﬁnd anywhere suitable. So the Prefecture wasarrived to help us. As he had previously worked in therushed into developing its Animal Rescue Headquarters

area affected by the Persian Gulf War of 1990-91, hisin a valley adjacent to Sanda Golf Course. Kobe Cityʼ

guidance was extremely helpful and much appreciated.

s shelter was opened on January 27 and Hyogo
Prefectureʼs Sanda Shelter was opened on February 16.

[Slide 12] This is a rough map of Kobe. Here you cansee Nishi Ward, Kita Ward, Suma Ward and Tarumi[Slide 11] This is the organization chart from that time.

Ward, which I mentioned before. The Kobe Animal

Some of the names written on the chart are rather old.

Rescue Center, and the Sanda Animal Rescue Center

For example, the Prime Ministerʼs Office is written as

are located here. The epicenter of the earthquake“Sorifu”. Thatʼs how things were back then.

was located roughly here below Awaji Island. Thesedays, the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge stretches across the4This [red text] shows the Tokyo Headquarters.

straits here. This area actually sustained the greatest

Representatives of the Japan Society for the Prevention

damage from the earthquake. Here is the area where aof Cruelty to Animals (JSPCA), the Japan Veterinary

500-meter section of the Hanshin Expressway collapsed.

Medical Association, the Japan Animal Welfare Society

Although the pictures werenʼt shown very much, this(JAWS), the Japan Pet Care Association, and Japanother area was also badly damaged. An elevated section

Animal Protection Management Association wereof the Shinkansen collapsed, so if a Shinkansen train

Keynote Speech

had been departing from Shin Osaka at the time, theconstruct it. Among the ﬁrst animals brought into thisconsequences could have been horriﬁc. Meanwhile, ingreenhouse were a Muscovy duck and a monkey. They

Kobe, the homes of many members of the Veterinary

were among the animals that had been rescued. The

Association were badly damaged or destroyed. At the

ﬂoor was plain asphalt because the greenhouse was set

time, the Association had about 70 members, andup on the surface of a road inside the Kobe City Animal

approximately half of them had homes that were either

and Pet Management Center. In the background, youhalf destroyed or completely destroyed. The homes of

can see a green color. We planned to use the backthe other half suﬀered partial damage.

of the greenhouse as a cat shelter so we obtained adisused net from a golf driving range and used it as theIʼm giving you this schematic description so youʼll

cat shelter partition. In any case, it was vitally important

appreciate how diﬃcult it was to get to the Kobe Animal

for us to manage the situation with what we had on

Rescue Center. In normal times, people could use

hand at the time.

trains such as the Kobe Electric, Hanshin and Hankyu
Railways or the JR line. But in the period following[Slide 14] This photo shows the scene in the greenhousethe earthquake, none of these railway lines were inafter the shelterʼs operations had actually begun. In

use. So the majority of people coming to the Kobe

principle, this shelter was for emergency evacuation

Animal Rescue Center used the JR Bantan Line or theuse, not for permanent keeping. And we had very little

Fukuchiyama Line. They would come to Sanda along

choice about starting up in this way. Our policy was

this route, which was relatively free from obstructions.

to take proper care of evacuated animals as far as was
possible, so at the very least, we took the dogs for walks

Although they had seen TV images, the volunteersʼ

every morning and evening, and the vets checked theimpression on first arrival at the Rescue Center was,animalsʼ health every day.

“This earthquake doesnʼt seem like anything special ‒itʼs just a place with a lot of animals” - or some words[Slide 15] This slide shows various scenes of volunteers

along these lines. Then, one evening after they hadtaking care of the animals. Everybody did their best to

ﬁnished taking care of the animals, the vet in charge ofcare for the animals they grew fond of or those they

the volunteers said, “If you still think itʼs all no big deal,

were best able to handle. The staﬀ worked hard day andletʼs visit the lower area of Kobe.” He then led themnight.

down there. Many of the volunteers were young sothey were naturally rather noisy, but when they reached[Slide 16] When volunteers from the Kobe Animal andthe devastated area they grew silent. Some of them

Plants Environmental College visited the shelter, they

began weeping as they came to realize how much theperformed shampoo and trimming. They also stroked

situation diﬀered between the upper and lower areas ofor cuddled those animals that enjoyed being made athe city.

fuss of, or simply waited for the less trusting animals
to get used to them naturally. It was impossible for[Slide 13] This photo was taken when we started

us not to be kind to these suffering animals because

building the shelter. Actually this is a plastic greenhouse.

they were in such a poor state. When the caregivers

We didnʼt have any chance to make preparations, so we

cuddled the distressed animals, some of the animals

had to manage with what was available. At the time,

would bite because they had not been treated in thatamong the members of the Veterinary Association of

way by their original owners. Animals that sink their

Kobe City there was only one veterinarian specializing

teeth into people usually do so suddenly and without

in the care of large animals (cattle, for example) as well

warning. Some animals, while they may grimace or

as farm animals (e.g., chickens). This vet borrowed agrowl at people, usually donʼt bite. Some behave in alarge plastic greenhouse from the JA (Japan Agriculturalvery friendly way, until they are being put into a kennel.

Cooperatives), and gathered about 20 people to help

Then they suddenly change and sink their teeth into

Keynote Speech5their handlers. There were some serious cases where,

the staff at the Center understood that people were

despite having given the volunteers ample warning,

sleeping at the Animal and Pet Management Centerand particularly where a particular dog was known totoo. After that, they helped us out by giving us blankets

have a biting habit, nevertheless a volunteer would

and many other things. That was the process we went

go into the shelter, and within an hour get bitten sothrough. So whenever I see these photos, I once again

badly that they were forced to retire from duty. We

realize just how hard things were at that time.

had some volunteers like that and it was a problem
point. Fortunately, we were mainly handling dogs and[Slide 19] This is the Rescue Centerʼs acceptancecats. But if we had been handling snapping turtles orprocedure system. When an animal arrived, first we

poisonous snakes, the situation would have bee much

would write out a pledge card and take a photograph.

more diﬃcult to deal with.

This was very especially important and the photographs
extremely important. The reason was that it was not[Slide 17] This picture was taken on a sunny day. It

always clear who had brought a particular animal toshows volunteers taking animals out on a leash so they

the center, and whether they were the owner or not.

could sunbathe. The man standing is Dr. Hayata, who

There were many cases in which, for example, thewas Chairman of our organization at the time. He is

animal was brought in by a relative or a neighbor ofseen here giving an explanation to some volunteers,

the actual owner. We were sometimes confused as towhich he often used to do in this style.

“who on earth brought this animal in? What are wedoing?” On occasion we were asked accusingly whether[Slide 18] This slide shows some veterinarians treating

we were a proper organization or not. But when we

small animals. We would examine even those animals

had the photos, if that did happen we were able tothat were uninjured soon after their arrival at theshow the animalʼs photo and say, “this person brought

facility. This is a treatment scene. It looks as if we havethis animal here.” The person doubting us would

everything we need but, in fact, we didnʼt have muchunderstand immediately and we did not have to go into

space to work in. So when the treatment was over, we

lengthy explanation. Also, we received many inquiries

would clear things away, wipe the table clean, and thenabout lost dogs and cats. People would ask whether ause it as a staﬀ dining table. Then after the volunteers

speciﬁc animal was being kept at the Rescue Center. But

had ﬁnished their meal and the table cleared away foreven if we were given a description of a catʼs pattern,

the evening, we would lay something on the floor forand even if that was in some detail such as “a white

more comfort. At the beginning, there were no mats

bit here and yellow color there,” we would be unableor tablecloths, so volunteers would spread out sheets

to identify one individual from among so many cats.

of cardboard. At first, we didnʼt pay much regard to

However, if we had only one single photo of the animal

the situation but towards the end of the ﬁrst week, thewe could roughly understand what kind of cat it was. So

volunteers said it was too cold and asked us to please

whenever an animal arrived or left the Center, we would

do something. That was on January 22 or 23, when themake certain to take its photo and conﬁrm the identity

weather was deﬁnitely colder.

of the person bringing it in or taking it away. We also
prepared a pledge card to be signed by the person

However, we were lucky, because right in front of thebringing the animal to the Center or by the new owner

Animal and Pet Management Center was the Disaster

when somebody adopted an animal and took it away.

Prevention Center. So we negotiated with the staﬀ there

We made them a promise to take care of the animals

and asked if they had any spare blankets or similar. Theirproperly by having them sign a written pledge.

initial answer was, “You are taking care of animals so

6

why do you need blankets?” So we had to explain that

We also asked the owners about any immunizations“the animals are not staying there all by themselves. We

their animals had received and about the kind of foods

have a lot of volunteers taking care of them.” Finally,

they were accustomed to eating. But the main point

Keynote Speechwas to ﬁnd out in what way the animal had been kept.

damage. From around April, veterinarians whose

That was the point that most needed to be questioned.

homes had been totally or partially destroyed helped

According to the owners, different animals had beenout at the Center. Now that I look back on it, I feel thattaken care of in various ways. Some of the animals wereit would have been better if we had at least paid thosewell loved and taken care of properly, while others hadveterinarians a treatment fee. But in fact we didnʼt pay

been treated as so-called “watch dogs”. Consequently,

any treatment fees at all.

there were many dogs that, while they had always
received a walk in the morning and evening, and proper[Slide 20] This shows the new shelter which consisted offeeding, they had not been petted or otherwise treatedthree 2-storey prefabricated buildings. They were about

with aﬀection. So, there were some dogs at the center

situated about 20 meters high up, although it doesnʼ

that bit volunteers even when handled in a friendly

t seem that way in the images, which is why they weremanner. So more than anything else, we wanted

sometimes empty. For some reason, this ground level

information on how each animal had been kept. But

was not used. Actually, in the case of Kobe, an entire

many people who brought animals to the center

mountainside is often used for cemeteries and thiswere reluctant to tell us what they thought mightplace was one such cemetery. So we set up the shelterbe unwelcome information. Looking back, I think wethere. This is a view from the rear. Basically, the second

should have asked more about this point as well.

ﬂoor was used for cats. Roughly, there was one window
for each room, and ﬁve of the rooms were used as cat

After this kind of procedure was finished and therooms. Cats infected with FIV or FELV were isolated

animals were judged OK for the time being, theyfrom the other cats in a different room. The first floor

received a physical examination. Then, provided

was used for kennels with paddocks at the front andthey were free from abnormalities, the animals were

back. This is the front entrance. We had to put this sort

given a distemper vaccine, (and in springtime wereof fencing all over in order to stop dogs from runningalso vaccinated against rabies). With that procedureaway and to guard against the risk of somebody falling.

completed, they were accepted into the shelter.
Animals found to have something wrong with them

[Slide 21] This is an inside view of a paddock. The space

were given a variety of examinations. Simple medical

is quite broad and we thought it would be better to put

examinations could be performed at the Center, but forsand on the ﬂoor. We did this and we housed dogs that

x-rays or ultrasonic scans, etc., the Center facilities were

got on well with one another. In cases of dogs that were

inadequate at the time so the animals were taken to a

incompatible with others, we would only put one dog

veterinary hospital. It was very important for us to ﬁnd

per paddock. From around this time, both the dogs andout whether an individual animal needed surgery or

the staﬀ began to feel far greater calm.

had a contagious disease. If the latter was the case, theanimal had to be isolated of course, whereas if surgery[Slide 22] This is the cathouse on the second ﬂoor. Even

was required this was performed at the veterinary

though they were kept in cat boxes, some cats could

hospital.

get along with each other and others could not. So
we would take out a group of cats that showed some

However, at the time, because all treatment wascompatibility with each other and let them play aroundvo l unt e e r- bas e d , e v e n wh e n a n i m a l s r e ceived

for an hour. Then we would put them back in theirprofessional surgery all we veterinarians ever received

boxes and take out another compatible group. The

were a few words of thank you. Although our group

volunteers did this constantly almost all day long.

and other veterinarians were able to carry out these
activities, each one of us had sustained some level ofNow, this window faced towards the west, so the room

loss due to the earthquake. Most of us had homes andwarmed up in the afternoon sun. This was ﬁne in winter,

clinics that had been damaged, in some cases heavy

but it became very hot in the summer. So although it is

Keynote Speech7not shown in this photo, an air conditioner was installed

A little before the Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake

as well as the extractor fan. We made this extractor

struck, there had been an earthquake in Miyagi

fan ourselves but later found it was too dangerous toPrefecture. One person carrying out rescue workuse. Some of the Veterinary Association members withafter that disaster told us that she came across many

practical skills installed a net over the window and a

rescued animals with digestive diseases. I think thatcover on the extractor fan. We all worked hard to ensure

when animals are under stress, signiﬁcant increases insafety.

digestive diseases can be expected.

[Slide 13] This is the examination room. It was set

This [same] slide shows diseases among the dogs at

up inside a transport container. The shelter and thethe Center. As one might expect, digestive diseases

reception area I showed you before were a little

were extremely common, although there was a highdistance apart. So we made this simple examination

incidence of respiratory diseases too. I think stress has aroom in the upper area. By this time, the animals had

considerable eﬀect in damaging the health of animals.

calmed down for the most part, so we considered thislevel of facility to be suﬃcient.

[Slide 26] The next slide shows the numbers of dogs
brought to the Center. These are the numbers brought[Slide 24] This chart shows the kinds of diseases orin, these are the numbers taken away, and these are

symptoms suﬀered by cats with abnormalities and thethe average values. As you can see, February, March

numbers of cats with each symptom. The number-one

and April marked the peak time for accepting animals

category was digestion diﬃculties such as diarrhea andat the Center. The prefabricated shelter was completed

vomiting, as might be expected. Of course, there werearound May 12. Also, we continued rescuing animalsome cats infected with FVR, etc. Part of the problem

victims of the disaster to the end, but we did not takewas that some other organizations brought us cats thatin so-called “ordinary” animals ‒ that is, dogs and cats

had watery eyes and runny noses due to FVR telling us,

no-longer-wanted. So gradually the number of animals“Because your place has veterinarians, we are hoping

taken began to taper oﬀ.

you can do something about it.” As a result we had agreat many cats coming down with runny noses and[Slide 27] Here we see the situation for cats, which wassneezing and had some real problems.

similar to the case with dogs. Up to this point in time
[on the chart], a great many animals arrived and the

Additionally, unexpectedly, there was a lot of eyenumber was particularly high in February. But after thatdisease. At the time, visitors to the Rescue Center would

it declined in this way.

sometimes comment on how nice it was that we had
a big blue sky above us. Of course, it was only that the[Slide 28] This data shows the number of treatments

sky was clear on that particular day, and that is why

carried out at the Rescue Center. Naturally, the greater

it looked so blue. But the reality was mostly different.

the number of animals taken in, the greater the

Down in the lower sections of Kobe, houses that had

numbers treated increase. It is true that from May, themostly or totally collapsed in the earthquake were

number of animals at the Center and treatments did

being broken up and turned into rubble. When large

decrease but this compares to an earlier period when

numbers of such houses are torn down, even despite

we had to treat 40 or 50 animals per day. Moreover,the sites being sprayed with water, thick clouds of dust

after the animals were taken into the prefab housing,are produced. And this was happening all across theetc, they seemed to be calmer.

city. So the dust clouds were everywhere and, with8

our animals exposed to such an environment, it was

In total, we treated more than 8,000 individual animals.

only natural that there would be a huge increase in

At the beginning, among the members of the Veterinary

respiratory disease and eye disease.

Association of Kobe City, there were only about 20 toKeynote Speech30 people who were able to work on a volunteer basis.

appreciated all the help we had from Hyogo Prefecture

The other vets had almost no means of taking part inand Kobe City, but the people who came all the way

rescue activities because their own homes or hospitals

from Yokohama, Tokyo and many other distant places

had partially or totally collapsed due to the earthquake.

to help us in the ﬁrst few months until April were also

By April, when their own situations had been resolved

invaluable. They regularly came when the Center was

to some extent, we could ask these other veterinarians

extremely busy and formed a superb workforce.

to participate in our rescue activities. By this time, thenumber of vets we needed was not so large, so theAnother great workforce came from among theCenter was able to function with two or three vets fromsubstitute veterinarians, to be specific, the so-called

the Veterinary Association of Kobe City. Later, thereʻassistant directorʼ class. We really appreciated theirwere three or four volunteer veterinarians available toassistance. On the other hand, the more senior ʻdirector

help on a rotating basis, so we asked others to help outclassʼ of the substitute veterinarians each had theirabout once a month and made a schedule accordingly.

own way of working and were very fussy. They would

However, even as late as April or even May, the roadorder our people to “do something this way” or “dosystem had still not been fully restored. So when ourit that way,” and never asked the local veterinarians,

volunteers traveled to the Rescue Center from places“What do you need us to do? Please tell us.” In contrast

in the east end of Kobe, such as Nada or Higashi Nada

the assistant director substitute veterinarians always

Wards, the round trip ‒ usually a half an hour drive -asked us “how should we do such and such?” and thencould take up to four hours due to traffic congestion.

followed our instructions. So they were very easy toThis meant that if we asked a veterinarian to be on duty

work with and we appreciated their help very much.

from 1pm to 4 pm, they may have to leave home at

Although some of them could only work up until April,

11am because the road trip could be expected to takethey were very helpful in being able to work while thetwo hours. Upon arrival, they would work until 4 pm

Center was at its busiest. After that time, the amount of

without eating lunch. And if the work involved time-treatment decreased gradually.

consuming surgery, etc., they might not be able to leave
the Center until 5 pm or later, with a journey home

Even then, up until the end of May, one or two of thesetaking until 7pm. This meant they would not be able tooutside veterinarians came to help us every day. Also,

perform their volunteer duties at the Center unless theyveterinarians from Osaka City and Osaka Prefecture

took a whole day oﬀ from their regular work. Given thishelped us out over a long period when the situation atreality, we were reluctant to ask other veterinarians to

the Center had calmed down to an extent but whenhelp.

we still required some outside help. Both kinds of help
meshed together nicely and allowed us to operate

Given the tragic circumstances of the post-quake time,

successfully, for which we were very grateful. And apartthere was a certain community atmosphere underfrom these volunteers, veterinarians from all over Japan

which people felt they could not refuse if asked to help

from Hokkaido to Kyushu made eﬀorts to help us.

out. I know that because whenever we asked for help,
everybody always said, “Yes, I will be there.” I always[Slide 30] The next slide shows the places where thefelt sorry for imposing on the veterinarians who helped

ordinary volunteers came from. A surprisingly large

us. There was a peculiar atmosphere while we were

number of people came from Hyogo Prefecture. Manyrunning the Center. Looking back now, it seems strange,

who came to help lived quite close to the Center,but it really was like that.

such as from Nagata, Hyogo, Chuo, Nada and Higashi
Nada Wards. These areas were severely damaged by[Slide 29] The next slide shows the places where thethe earthquake and the local residents faced very

veterinarians and veterinary students who helped

tough times at the beginning. But by May and June,out at the Center came from. Of course, we greatly

the situation had improved to the point where many

Keynote Speech9people were no longer so busy recovering fromJanuary 27. At that time, the following story was being

the quake. Some told us they had received a lot ofcovered on TV. A pet ownerʼs house had burned down

assistance from the Center, and now wanted to help

and the owner had no other place to go. If anotherus back in return, even if only for a week or so. Others

place was made available to him he was told he would

said that they had received assistance from others after

not be allowed to bring the animal along. This was very

the earthquake, so if there was anything they could do

sad for the dog but he had no other alternative than tothey would be happy to oblige. For example, one man

have it euthanized. So he took it to a veterinary hospital

asked us, “Iʼm a carpenter. Is there anything I can do?”where the dog was put down. There was much criticism

So we asked him if he could build us a roof or constructof this decision, and we at the Center also received

other things we needed at the time. Another person

criticism from people who assumed we were operating

had come to Kobe from Nagano to do electrical workin the same way. Animal Management Centers do not

at an evacuation center for people. Then he heard thathave a very good image in the ﬁrst place. In response,

there was a rescue center for animals, so he visited us

we explained that we did not euthanize animals. Also,and asked if there was anything faulty he might be able

because of the earthquake, the Animal Management

to put right for us. At the time, the volunteers had a TV

Center had been forced to suspend its usual work

reception problem, and the fuse in washing machinecompletely. But all the same it was difficult for us to

had a tendency to blow. He was a professional in

obtain public trust, and that was distressing.

electrical engineering so he understood the problems
immediately and completed all the tasks we gave him[Slide 32] This slide shows who picked up cats from thein a single day. Such help was greatly appreciated. Since

Center. In the case of cats, the geographical spread of

the Center was in Hyogo Prefecture, large numbers of

the adopters was comparatively smaller, although justpeople living in the neighboring prefectures such as

as in the case of dogs, people living locally accepted

Osaka also came to help.

many cats.

[Slide 31] This slide shows where the people who[Slide 33] This slide shows the result of ouradopted dogs from the Center lived. As you mightquestionnaire on why people decided to adopt a dog

expect, they included people from all over Japan,

or cat from the Center. The answers included “Because

ranging from Hokkaido to Kyushu, although thethere was an earthquake” and “I wanted to have a dog/

predominant number were residents of Hyogocat” or “because the opportunity arose.” Of the almost

Prefecture. After all, 420 dogs is a large number. The

60% of the respondents who answered, “Because there

main reason why so many people from Hyogo adopted

was an earthquake” when asked, “On what did you basedogs was that they came to the Center in large numbers

your choice of animal?” the most common responseto help care for the animals. While doing so they foundrelated to their ﬁrst impression - “Our eyes met,” or “Theindividual dogs they liked, and subsequently adopted

animal came up to me,” etc. It appears that these factors

them. Another important characteristic of the Center

appeal to people most strongly.

was that we didnʼt euthanize even a single cat or dog. I
can still remember one particular dog that was more like

[Slide 34] To the question “Is there anything to which

a wolf than a dog. It had a really terrifying growl, and I

you have to pay special attention?” around 60%

have no idea how we managed to get it into its cage. It

responses had nothing to report, But among the “Yes”

was the kind of dog that nobody would ever consider

answers, the specific concerns included the animal

adopting. We sent this dog to an animal welfare grouprunning way or falling sick. In particular, there are dogs

in Tokyo on the condition that they would not put itthat can be very diﬃcult to treat medically if they fall ill.

down if we asked them to accept only one animal.

These include dogs that bite when they are being lifted
onto the examination table or simply when stroked by

The Rescue Center had opened for the first time on

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Keynote Speechsomeone feeling sorry for them. Some of the adopters

of such problem dogs came to us for advice on how

Weekʼ, a series of events were held in various places

to handle their animals. So it was always helpful if thearound Hyogo Prefecture. This shows the scene of an

original owner had provided such information when

event held in Himeji, but similar events were also held

ﬁrst bringing their dog to the Center.

on Awaji Island and also up in Toyooka near the Sea ofJapan. We obtained information about these events

To the question “Do you have any trouble (withand sent volunteers to various places accompanied by

the animal you adopted)?” approximately half ofdogs and cats from the Center.

the respondents answered, “Yes.” Among the mostcommon troubles they encountered were barking for[Slide 38] On May 29, 1996, the Center finally closed

no reason, excretion problems and illness. Actually, atdown. These photos show the construction of thethe beginning, some people came to the Center andprefabs, shelter, and a plastic greenhouse. These oversaid, “I will take an old dog or a dog that has a handicap,

here show how we covered things with blankets, etc., insuch as a thin and sickly-looking one.” Their rationale

an eﬀort to keep out the worst of the cold. The ﬁgures

was that “a cute dog can easily get a new owner if I donʼshown are for the Kobe Rescue Center, but together

t take it.” So the result ﬁgures include such people, whowith the Sanda Rescue Center, we rescued a total of

adopted problem dogs.

1,556 animals.

[Slide 35] To the question “Does your dog cause[Slide 39] The book shown here details the story of the

problems?” 85% of the respondents indicated no

Kobe Rescue Center and the facts associated with the

problem. I was a little surprised by this result. Also, 77%

rescue effort. Dr. Ota, professor of veterinary scienceanswered that “things were as they had hoped” andat Azabu University served as the Chief and authoredonly 12% answered that they would take such a dog

this book. He also reported on this subject at the World“this time only”. These responses were better than we

Veterinary Conference in Buenos Aries.

had expected. Indeed, we had believed at the start that
it would not be possible to find new homes for the

So I hope that, with this talk, I have been able to give

adult dogs at all. But in almost 8 cases out of 10, things

you a full outline of the rescue activities we carried out

went successfully.

15 years ago in Kobe. Thank you very much for yourattention.

[Slide 36] This photo shows the scene when Prince
and Princess Hitachi visited the Center to offer us
encouragement. In the photo, Princess Hitachi isholding a puppy, and she took this back home with her.
The photo also shows the windbreaker that Dr. Hatata
was wearing. We felt bad about only doing animal
rescue work while continuing to receive donations,and we had heard that a group of special needs people
in Nagata were making windbreakers and shirts. So
we thought, “letʼs have our own windbreakers made,sell them, and use the proceeds to fund our operating
expenses.” So we had these windbreakers made in blue
and white, and asked people to support our work bybuying them.
[Slide 37] These photos illustrate our efforts to recruit
foster owners. Particularly during ʻBe Kind to Animals

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Keynote Speech

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Keynote Speech