(JP) Brit devotes lifework to the abused, abandoned

[Guest guest]

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20070602a1.html

 

Saturday, June 2, 2007

 

Brit devotes lifework to the abused, abandoned

 

By MANAMI OKAZAKI

Contributing writer

 

For many foreigners, living in Japan poses a host of

challenges. Consider, however, the life of Elizabeth

Oliver, the owner of ARK animal rescue shelter, who

manages a facility that houses 300 dogs, 200 cats, 3

rabbits and one fox in a location that can be best

described as the " middle of nowhere. " In light of

Oliver's constant battles, both bureaucratic and

domestic, and her having to deal with a veritable

Noah's ark worth of life, one's own worries may loom

less large.

 

" I think animal welfare is to be compassionate, and to

treat animals humanely. " EThis is the ethos which

serenades Oliver's conscience and is the impetus for

devoting her life to the well-being of Japan's

neglected cats and dogs.

 

ARK, the acronym for Animal Rescue Kansai, is a

shelter, or more accurately a chaotic cacophony of

animals in cages, in Osaka's Myokenguchi, and is

probably the biggest and most reputable establishment

of its kind in Japan.

 

The facility aims to rescue and shelter dogs that have

been disowned or abused and aims to relocate them to

new homes.

 

The 67-year-old Oliver oversees the shelter, which

currently has a staff of 30 and divides her time

between management, which includes giving speeches

regularly around Japan, holding educational courses

and planning improvements and projects.

 

She is also known for her dedication to rescue. After

the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995, Oliver saved 600

dogs. She is also proactive in prosecution.

 

Even on a day-to-day basis, Oliver is busy hosting

celebrities and acting as a shelter and animal welfare

spokesman.

 

Her home is a small cottage surrounded by kennels and

cages, with a constant background soundtrack of

barking and howling. The closest neighbor is about a

15-minute walk away, the nearest train station about

20 minutes by car, and there are no shops in the

vicinity.

 

Given the extremes of her current life, it is of

interest to know how the British native, who settled

upon Japanese shores 33 years ago, came to lead this

somewhat unfathomable existence. She says it's mostly

due to her upbringing.

 

" I was 7, I got a pony and realized the responsibility

of owning a big animal. My mother was quite strict. If

I came home from school and was hungry, she would ask

if the pony had eaten. I learned that you always look

after your animals before yourself.

 

" That responsibility is a routine thing. If you can't

take that responsibility, you shouldn't have an

animal. "

 

Oliver was born in 1940 in Somerset, U.K., and started

her travels post studies at London University,

exploring a slew of countries before landing in Japan

in 1974 to try her hand at teaching English, at Osaka

Kogyo University. She began by volunteering at another

dog shelter, since shut down, and started ARK in 1990

with a group of friends and a few dogs.

 

Coming from the U.K., with its relatively high

standard of animal welfare, and a concept of charity

more ingrained than Japan, cultural differences were

more than a contrary annoyance for Oliver, " In England

there are dogs that are thrown away, but on the whole

there is a safety-net system. The shelter will take

them in. In Japan, the options are only two Etake

them to the hokenjo or throw them away. "

 

Oliver is referring to the usual method of pet

" removal " in Japan, which entails taking your unwanted

pet to the local-government-run pound, where they will

gas the animal (usually slow suffocation by carbon

dioxide).

 

Providing homes to animals that would probably meet

this end is a mammoth task. The biggest challenges,

however, she says, are not the animals themselves, but

the people and the funding.

 

" There have been a lot of funny people involved in

animal welfare, people who run off with all the money.

One problem we have now is three or four cases of

people taking ARK's name and trying to copy us. ARK

Angels is one. We have actually had staff here who

have stolen our mailing list, that sort of thing. "

 

" Animal welfare, you can't make money from it, but you

need money. Some people think it's a money-spinning

thing. You are putting out money all the time. It

involves a lot of time and energy. The base is

animals. The base is caring for animals. "

 

In the U.K., where animal welfare groups are somewhat

legitimized and not treated with the suspicion they

are in Japan, many of the donations come from

bequests, with some reaching millions of pounds.

Moreover, tax breaks are offered to companies wanting

to improve their corporate image by aiding charities,

still not the case here.

 

" With any kind of charity, the object is obviously not

to make money, it's not for business. But, you need

money in order to operate. "

 

Oliver believes the key to assuring ARK is successful

is having it become better known and making the idea

of adopting, not buying animals from pet shops, the

norm.

 

Oliver's future challenge is probably the biggest to

date " Because of my age, I have got to find someone to

take over ARK.

 

" It's hard to find the right person, someone who is

bilingual, who will be in Japan for a while and has a

feel for animals. "

 

For Oliver, with a life of achievements, obviously the

sacrifices are immense. Her life is hardly what one

would call comfortable. However, having established an

institution that saves hundreds of lives, alongside

the challenges are the joys.

 

The result makes it worth it, she says. " It's really

nice when an animal that has had a really bad start in

life gets a new home. "

 

Web site: www.arkbark.net. Tel: In Kansai call (072)

737-0712; in Tokyo (English) 080-6146-3889, (Japanese)

080-6517-8913