At 9 years old, Meryl, first featured in Adopt Me! in March, had spent most of her life in the basement of a veterinarian's office where she was used as a blood donor.
We're happy to say she has found a new home where she can feel safe and loved.
Now rechristened as Ruby, the dog has been adopted by Peter and Kumiko Smith of Tokyo. The Smiths say they "felt a strong connection" with Ruby upon meeting her and decided to adopt.
"She met all our wishes," Kumiko says. "We were looking for a mature dog and wanted to give such a dog a happy second life. We also wanted a dog that is a good walker, because we too like going for walks."
At first, Kumiko continues, "Ruby missed her foster mom for a few days, but she gradually became more comfortable with us. We work from home full-time, so that helped a lot." And, at their holiday home in Nagano Prefecture, Ruby was able to enjoy running in the garden every day. She was “comfortable and very happy from the start,” Kumiko adds.
The Smiths have changed their lifestyle to accommodate Ruby. She has her walks every morning and evening, and sleeps in their bedroom. "We have also gotten used to her walking around at night," Kumiko says, "and to her snoring!"
And, a new vacuum cleaner helps deal with hair on the floor. Ruby has it all — the priceless gift of freedom, a home of her own and a jewel of a family.
A toast is in order for Steven Forrester, the proud new parent to Shandy and Paloma. The two young cats were first featured in the Adopt Me! section in March, but it was an online search that led Forrester to ARK in English, with what he says were "the exact cats I wanted."
Siblings that initially came from the island of Tokushima, Shandy and Paloma took time to warm to their new home in Tokyo. The first week of their stay they ended up hiding. The girl cat, Paloma, was the one to venture out first. Shandy found his courage a bit later.
“Now, they are perfectly at home,” says Forrester, who has noticed that the cats’ tendencies have changed. Paloma, who had always wanted attention, is more reserved now, while Shandy has increased requests for head scratches. Also, Shandy’s voracious appetite has quieted and now Paloma is the one who can “easily out-eat Shandy, finish off leftovers and then some.”
Although the two cats are hard to tell apart by just their appearance, their playing styles are quite different. Paloma loves more acrobatic moves such as “jumping into the air to grab cat lures, often taking off to snatch a toy from a meter above her head.” Shandy is a bit put off by his sister’s showboating. His favorite action is flopping down onto his side, and having the lure dangled over him. Unless, that is, he’s chasing after Paloma. “Then, he can zip about like a car at a racetrack," Forrester says. "It can get quite distracting at times, but it’s the reason I wanted two cats — they can keep each other company."
First featured here last October, Ocho has found a forever home in Tokyo with Nigel Bleasdale and Kayoko Nagasawa. The married couple initially acted as foster parents for Ocho when his previous home put him up for adoption following the arrival of a new baby.
“Ocho was confused when he first came (to us),” says Bleasdale. “He was nervous and seemed a bit sad.”
In those early days, Nigel and his furry friend took some time getting used to each other. When Ocho occasionally misbehaved, the United Kingdom native kept his cool and stayed patient with his new companion.
“We understood (Ocho) was stressed by the huge changes in his life," Bleasdale says. "And he always seemed immediately sorry.”
Despite those challenges, Bleasdale and Nagasawa grew more and more attached to Ocho. Eventually, they decided it was the right move to adopt.
“Ocho had become more playful and prone to excited, crazy zoomies! We couldn’t stand the thought of putting him through another separation.”
Since finding his forever home, Ocho has adjusted splendidly. He spends his time sitting in the garden or by the window, where he can bark at other neighborhood dogs. On long walks by the river, he also loves finding discarded balls and carrying them home to add to his growing collection.
Still, Ocho's addition to the family is a marathon and not a sprint.
"He sulks if he feels he isn’t getting enough attention," Bleasdale says. "But he likes to follow us around the house to watch what we’re doing, especially when we’re in the kitchen.”
At the end of the day, Bleasdale and Nagasawa are happy to take these idiosyncracies in stride. It’s all part of Ocho's undeniable charm.
Hokuro was first featured in the Adopt Me! section of The Japan Times in late November 2018. They were dark times, she’d lost her home due to an unanticipated rental breach of contract.
At long last, however, she has found a new home in Osaka and is not expecting to get the boot anytime soon. Hisae Takahashi and her husband, Satoru, adopted Hokuro along with another cat named Kinpira, who’d been dumped at a school as a tiny kitten. That cat was also featured in Adopt Me! in early 2020.
Takahashi had volunteered at ARK a number of times and spent time with both cats, but the shy Hokuro had rarely showed her true self. One day, she was thinking, “If you touch my hand, I’ll adopt you.” Sure enough, the cat came out and brushed up against her. Hokuro landed herself a home and was allowed to bring best friend Kinpira along, too!
Hokuro has since come out of her shell. “She’ll snuggle up to my husband, but I think she really loves me,” Takahashi says with a laugh. “We have an indoor catwalk and she’ll roam around on it or use it to sunbathe.” When the Takahashis come home from work, both cats greet them at the door. “Hokuro says, ‘Welcome back!’ and Kinpira says, ‘Rub my belly!’” They’re indeed a heartwarming sight. “When I get home tired from work, there is nothing better than seeing my lovely cats,” Takahashi says. “Both my husband and I couldn’t be happier!”
Eringi and Bernard were both featured in the Adopt Me! column in 2020. We can now happily say that both are living happily with Kazuhiro and Yoshimi Okamoto of Kyoto.
The couple first adopted Bernard in 2020 after losing their previous dog.
“We were mourning for quite some time,” says Yoshimi, adding that after a while they felt ready to welcome a new dog into their home. “We were shown three dogs but it was Bernard who caught our eye.”
Born to a stray mother, he was extremely timid and at first. “He was so frightened he would cower in a corner in the house,” Yoshimi recalls. Now, many months later, “he considers the whole house his playground. He’s still timid outdoors, however.”
A second dog, Eringi, joined the family late last year. He had been even more of a wild thing than Bernard and spent years longer in the shelter before being adopted by the Okamotos.
There are many timid dogs in the shelter like Bernard and Eringi. Though fine and healthy animals, their inability to appeal to many visitors on a first encounter is what keeps them without a home for so long. And, yet, a home is the very thing they most need to gain trust and blossom.
Bernard and Eringi were fortunate enough to find caring, sensitive people who saw past the shyness. We’re hoping these two Kyotoites will be an inspiration to others.
If you are interested in adopting a pet, email ARK at [email protected] or call 050-1557-2763 Monday to Saturday (bilingual) for more information. Tokyo ARK is an NPO founded by Briton Elizabeth Oliver. It is dedicated to rescuing and rehoming abandoned animals. All animals are vaccinated, neutered and microchipped. Prospective owners are requested to undergo a screening process. Web: www.arkbark.net.
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