Yokosuka, Kanagawa Pref., Sept. 25 (Jiji Press)–At 92, Kaori Kusakari shares her life with Purin, a 12-year-old male cat who has been by her side for years, at a rare elderly nursing home in Japan that allows pets to stay with their owners. Five years ago, Kusakari moved into the facility, Sakura no Sato Yamashina, in the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, with Purin. Residents can live with their pets at the facility, and crucially, the animals can remain there after their owners die. “Purin is always at my bedside,” Kusakari said, gently stroking him. “I feel at ease when I am close to him because we have spent so much time together.” Her relatives had searched for a place where she could continue living with Purin and found Sakura no Sato Yamashina, which opened in 2012. Currently, 13 dogs and cats live there alongside about 40 residents. Some arrived with their owners and others came through animal welfare groups. The demand has proved persistent. For five or six years, rooms in the facility’s designated area where dogs and cats can live with residents have been filled almost as soon as they became available. Michihiko Wakayama, 61, the facility’s head and a board member of the social welfare corporation that operates it, said, “Seeing residents and animals sleeping peacefully together makes me feel that opening the facility was worth it.” But not every elderly pet owner can move into a facility designed for people and animals to live together. In the city of Niigata, central Japan, civic group Doubutsu-gakari sends pet sitters to elderly people at discounted rates, helping with walks, feeding and cleaning. Working with local governments, the group also convene meetings involving hospitals and social welfare councils when it receives reports from care managers that elderly people are struggling to keep up with their pets’ needs. “Some elderly people refuse hospitalization or admission to care facilities because they do want to stay with their pets,” said Mami Miura, the group’s 62-year-old head. “In other cases, animals have died due to inadequate care.” Miura says both sides of the relationship need watching. Maiko Yasuno, an associate professor at Yokohama National University, who studies human-animal relationships, said, “Cooperation between elderly-care and animal-welfare services is essential.” “Pet owners should decide in advance what they should do if the day comes when they can no longer provide adequate care themselves” to their beloved companions, she added. For Kusakari, that question has already been answered, at least for now. Purin is beside her–where she wants him to be. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
