So we’ve been planning to foster either a cat or dog (preferably a cat because we are both working and cats are known to be very independent and we both had cats before)but don’t know where to start. We’ve looked into a couple of places but we are still unsure on the best place for foreigners as well as how the procedure is done. We’ve always wanted one but now that we live in a house, we can freely do so. Question is, we have no idea where to start. If you have any experience and advice, it would be very much appreciated.
Living in Chiba prefecture in a 3DK house.
11 comments
[ARKbark!](http://www.arkbark.net/en/) very foreigner friendly, was even created by a foreigner. lots of dogs and cats looking for homes in both tokyo and osaka 🙂
Have you looked into Japan Cat Network? I volunteer there from time to time, they’re very foreigner friendly and always looking for fosters. They have shelters in Kyoto and Tokyo.
Does your lease allow you to have a pet?
Try Kawakuji Animal Rescue
Pet-home.jp is a good place to start. You can look at a ton of rescue animals from all over Japan, and find places in your area. You do have to fill out a really detailed form in Japanese and you might get rejected a few times but there are so many animals you are sure to find something!
I definitely recommend Kawakuji Animal Rescue! Everyone there is lovely
Where are you situated? Apart from Japan Cat Network I know shelters in Fukuoka, Osaka and Kyoto that are run by foreigners, although they are still very thorough about checking you out to make sure that you are committed to owning a cat. They charge adoption fees as well, but no more than regular shelters here.
Location can help answer these questions much easier.
hey me and my girlfriend in chiba have just taken in shelter 5 cats 1 week old…they are ridiculously cute..we are looking for foster parent..2 of them are already decided..not sure how to add pics here
If you, or other people reading this, do consider a rescue dog now or in the future, then being willing to travel to some of the remote islands makes it much easier for the adoption. For example, we adopted from a city pound (保健所) in a remote island in Kagoshima (had to fly there from Kansai, then travel an hour across the island by small local bus). We searched the different pounds websites first, and then made contact. Being a remoter island they weren’t as worried about the whole foreigner thing. Actually, they mentioned several other foreigners had adopted from them the same way.
We fostered two cats from Necoma. You can actually visit them and hang around the cats 🙂