Now I'll skip past the fact that this woman, who's deceiving looks defy her 40-something age, is walking five little dogs at once (yes there are five), and move right onto the little guy on the right. He's in a doggy bag. I don't know if this is all just lashback from Paris Hilton or what, but you see entirely too many people toting dogs around in little bags or dog carriers, or even their purse around here. More to be found here if you're interested. Moving right along:
Ok I couldn't really find a good picture, but basically another thing that I find hard to wrap my head around is people that carry their dog everywhere. You are constantly seeing people around who will walk around carrying their dog places. What the hell is the point of "walking" a dog if you're the only one doing the walking? How are they supposed to get exercise or take care of their business? Maybe they're just poorer versions of the first woman above and just can't afford the carrier, but I doubt it. And finally:
There is just a disturbingly large amount of doggy apparel out there. It might be partially because getting a dog in Japan is so expensive in the first place (most people spend at least $1,000USD just to get a pet), but many dog owners out here feel that the natural coat that God gave them is not enough, and thus must be purtified and supplimented by the oddness you see above. I cannot imagine that any dog would enjoy having this shit forced upon them, and no it is not cute. Just stop.
My thoughts on all this have led me to believe that it's an outside possibility that maybe these people are starting to think of dogs and pets in general as child replacements. People are having less and less kids lately due to lifestyle and budgetary changes... maybe pets help them fill the void and offer a less responsiblity-laden option to kids? I mean think about it: these people are carrying the dogs around and dressing them up and stuff, is it too farfetched of a conclusion? You be the judge.
I leave you with a quote:
“Dogs now outnumber children aged 10 and under in Japan — there were 13.1 million dogs in 2006. As the number of humans shrink, the dog population is growing, research firm Euromonitor said, and so is the market for dog-related products.”
2 comments:
It's funny to see that trend over here in Korea as well. All the women and their pocket dogs. I would like to see the correlation between women and dog purchases versus men and lady doll purchases.
I don't think its a coincidence that both Korea and Japan have decreasing birth rates that threaten to erase their nations from existence in the next few centuries if trends continue.
In any case, the more important thing I would like to bring to your attention is the fact that I have heard there is a restaurant somewhere in Tokyo where the owner has trained 2 monkeys to serve customers, collect money, etc. You must find this place and let me know where it is. This is of the utmost importance.
Heh... they bring them into a fairly tasty burger joint called Burger Mania near mine. Strange, they are.
p.s. Did I see you in Shibuya last saturday night?
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