The Japan Cat Network 2012 Magnet Calendars are now in stock.
They are $8 for one, and $5 for each additional, shipping included.
Buy one for home, the office, for friends and for family, to help us fund the work we do every day.
http://japancatnet.com/support/2012calendars.html
The Japan Cat Network Inawashiro Center needs YOU. We are in Fukushima addressing the needs of the animals and their guardians coping with the after effects of the disaster. Work includes, dog walking and care; cat area cleaning and care; animal health monitoring and treatment; repair/building projects, and general area cleanup; food drop/rescue trips into the evacuated/restricted areas (we have a pass, but please bring proper personal identification); transporting animals to spay/neuter or new homes in the Kanto area; and various organizational duties.
Whenever it seems like there might be a moment’s rest, the phone rings with requests for help, and off we go.
Our tenacious team has been in the disaster area since March 22nd with amazing support from many volunteers over time, including invaluable support from folks on Camp Zama (US Army), Yoksuka Naval Base and Yokota Air Force Base, as well as local support from evacuated residents.
Now counting more than 300 animals rescued with funding given to JCN from JEARS. The work goes on even though the news of it wanes.
The work is hard but meaningful. If you are able to pitch in and contribute to the morale, that will help the work to continue.
please email for directions or more information; info@japancatnet.com
This is Temperance, before her rescue from a restricted evacuated area of Fukushima, and after. Just managing to hang in there until help arrived, she is now doing well and getting regular meals at the JCN Kansai shelter. Japan Cat Network continues to manage the ground crew efforts to feed, rescue, shelter, rehabilitate, spay/neuter, rehome, and/or release animals that have been effected by the disaster in the Tohoku area. JCN organized and has been running the intake program at Inawashiro since it started, with helpful funds given from JEARS, and we can verify that there are still hundreds of animals left behind in the small part of the evacuated areas that we have been working in regularly. Thankfully, we have many local supporters among the residents, who have evacuated but are still very invested in helping animals left behind. We are looking for volunteers to help out in Inawashiro on a regular basis, so please contact us if you might be available to come out. We’re also looking for loving foster homes and adoptive homes for rescues. And of course, lots and lots of cat food is needed to manage the 100kg+ per week food drops, so feel free to send us some, if you are able. Our Inawashiro address is:
Club Lohas
2706-1 ueno, iwasato-aza, oo-aza,
Inawashiro-machi, fukushima-Ken, 969-3141
Or, order through our Amazon Wish List.
Please take a look at a video of some of the kitties that we are regularly feeding…they are depending on us to help them get through the winter safely, and we are determined to do so. Look forward to an update on the new winter feeding stations being constructed by volunteers over the coming weeks!
Temperance says “Thank you!”
………………………………………………….
It is all about lending a helping hand (or two!) to a furry friend in need! The work that we are helping to do in the Tohoku region now has helped so many desperate animals, as well as the people who are trying to care for them. The crisis for animals there continues, as families are facing long term evacuations without proper facilities for pet care. Many people are keeping pets in their cars at evacuation centers, which at least allows pets to remain with families, but this will become even less reasonable accommodation as time stretches on and the weather heats up. Furthermore, the exclusion zone around the damaged nuclear power plant will soon be extended out to include another 10 kilometers, and many of these families are facing evacuation without the option of bringing pets. This is what families from the 20 kilometer zone faced previously, and it is why there are so many pets remaining inside that zone. We are urging people to contact the Japanese national government, and local embassies or consulates, to politely request that evacuation plans for pets be made for any future evacuations, and that animal rescue workers be allowed to tend to animals in the zone. An English contact form for the Japanese cabinet can be found here, and there is a video on Youtube that shows the last day that we were allowed into the area. One of our volunteers created a nice blog entry of the day as well.
Thank you for remaining patient with us, while we put our own needs aside and devote so much time and energy to assisting those in such desperate need in the Tohoku region. We assure you that all of our volunteers are working night and day (literally) to maintain the JCN shelter, while also working on all of the aspects related to Tohoku rescue and support. We are part of the organizational process, the ground crew, and the sheltering effort. Please keep us and the work in your thoughts as we go forward, and keep in touch with the activities on Facebook!
Our JEARS teams have been busily going out, bringing pet supplies to evacuee shelters, picking up animals needing rescue, and accepting animals that need to be taken out of control centers. The devastation in many of the areas has been heartbreaking to see. There are so many people displaced, as well as the animals that they had been caring for. We are steadily getting the word out that we can provide supplies to those who have a place to keep their pets, or we can help care for pets, until their families get into more stable situations. There are still many areas that we need to visit, so we are calling for volunteers interested in joining rescue teams. Anyone from outside the country should contact Kinship Circle, as they are helping to coordinate our international support. Those from inside the country should contact us, giving us the following information:
This is not easy work, and the days are long. The people and animals that you will meet have suffered tremendous loss. But the experience of being part of the big effort to set things right is something you will never forget. Keep up to date on our earthquake rescue and support efforts on the JEARS Facebook page, or the JEARS website and look forward to photo pages soon!