Just back from my morning walk around the neighbourhood through Heiwa Park (peace park) and the eucalyptus plantation (the eucalyptus are being grown for the koalas at the zoo). I am still trying to understand the significance of the humble cat to the Japanese. It can be difficult to have a pet in Japan, people live so closely together and most apartment blocks do not allow them. Dogs seem to be trained not to bark, even the smallest terrier. Most dogs are tiny, special breeding produces miniature dogs. In Japan there are miniature dachshunds, corgis, chihuahuas and tiny terriers of all varieties. Many dogs, some would describe as nothing more than a football. On my walk, I pass a grown man in his suit with three cats around his feet. One is a kitten. The kitten sits on his leather shoes. The man feeds the stray cats as if they were his own. He looks at me as I pass by. What is he thinking? I guess I should say, "aren't they cute", "kawai desu ne". Does he come down here to this park to feed these cats everyday? As a Melbournian I can hear 774's Dr. Hugh say they should be destroyed, but this man, feeding these semi-tame, wild cats treats them as his own. He is feeding them commercial cat food and they are living here in the peace park. There are cats like these all over Japan. Another 300 metres along, a well dressed lady gets out of her brand new Toyota and produces bread crumbs for another group of cats, some with deformed stumpy tails. Six plump, wild cats scurry over for breakfast.
When we first arrived in Japan these cats seemed deplorable. They still seem deplorable, but now at the least we have an understanding that they provide a soothing comfort to many in Japan who come to feed them and treat them as their own. In Asian culture the cat is more than just a wild pet living in the park, but their true significance is still something that we do not understand. If you can help us to understand the significance of the cat, please post a message or send an email. Why are there cats waving their left hand, some their right? Why are there art exhibitions devoted to the cat? Why is there a street in Tokanome, a pottery district near Nagoya completely themed on cat art?
