Pet Rental

[Mulboyne]

Telegraph: A dog is just for the afternoon
"Saying goodbye is the hardest part," says Saori Aya Soejima, kissing the bouncing Labrador on the nose before tucking a red leather leash into her handbag and walking away. For Miss Soejima, saying goodbye to dogs has become a regular refrain. For the past four months, she has been renting a pet dog several times a week, for periods ranging from one hour to two days. Pet rental in Japan is booming. The number of companies dedicated to renting out pets in Tokyo alone has risen from 17 in 2000 to 134 today...From dogs, cats and rabbits to birds, ferrets and turtles, an eclectic array of domestic animals are currently available to rent in Japan for periods ranging one hour to a week. And with costs as low as 1,500 yen an hour to rent a dog - the most popular rental animal - the practice is as accessible as it is popular. Janet Village in Tokyo boasts 48 carefully coiffed dogs for rent. A comprehensive canine menu is displayed at the front of the shop, displaying photographs of each animal and listing each animal's vital statistics, including age and personality traits...more...

[prolly]

they've tried this is nyc. not good for the dogs. i suppose once a confused animal mauls a toddler people will realize what a bad idea this is.

[AssKissinger]

they've tried this is nyc. not good for the dogs. i suppose once a confused animal mauls a toddler people will realize what a bad idea this is.

Do you have any links to stories about negative outcomes?

[ttjereth]

they've tried this is nyc. not good for the dogs. i suppose once a confused animal mauls a toddler people will realize what a bad idea this is.

Still going on in quite a few places in the states and the only negative press I find is people saying it is bad for the dogs, but nothing on any attacks or anything. You hear of a specific story?

http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSN2745014220070827

http://www.google.com/search?q=Rent-a-dog&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

[Taro Toporific]

Dog Rental and parks where you can rent dogs such as Fuji Subaru Land Doggy Park have been around for a decade. There used to be NekkoTama and InuTama in Futatmagawa until last year.

Then there's National Public Radio [USA] / All Things Considered (audio)Sept. 9, 2004...
[INDENT]Commentator Andrei Codrescu's girlfriend wants to play with small animals to relieve stress. They find a place to do so. He encourages more such places, as a way to keep us civilized.[/INDENT]
Andrei Codrescu claims that he has invented a entirely "new" business, RENT-a-PET(tm), and offers franchises. However the ancient FG Forum thread shows Japan's "prior art": Rent-a-dog Odaiba


And a bit off topic but fun, here's a telephone card on Yahoo!Auctions.
Click to enlarge..

[Charles]

they've tried this is nyc. not good for the dogs.

NYC is not good for any dogs.

[prolly]

nothing i have is linkable (score one for print media) but here's a thought, if you don't have the time or energy to invest in properly housing, training, and caring for a pet then you don't need a pet. i have a problem with people treating animals as accessories.i'm not your typical animals rights type but this is a symptom of the culture that breeds credit card debt, rampant divorce rates, etc. - the "I deserve it now, regardless of the consequences to myself or anyone else. I shouldn't have to sacrifice anything for what I want right at this moment".

[AssKissinger]

I think that the dogs probably really enjoy all the attention.

[Greji]

NYC is not good for any dogs.

I beg to differ Charles. Dog is good in most places, you just need to know how to baste it............

[Doctor Stop]

1. Charge dog owners to dogsit their dogs.
2. Charge non-dog owners to walk the dogsat dogs.
3. Retire rich as long as not too many dogs are accidentally lost, maimed, killed or eaten in 2.

[ttjereth]

nothing i have is linkable (score one for print media) but here's a thought, if you don't have the time or energy to invest in properly housing, training, and caring for a pet then you don't need a pet. i have a problem with people treating animals as accessories.i'm not your typical animals rights type but this is a symptom of the culture that breeds credit card debt, rampant divorce rates, etc. - the "I deserve it now, regardless of the consequences to myself or anyone else. I shouldn't have to sacrifice anything for what I want right at this moment".

I agree with you with you for the most part, I was just wondering if you had any stories about something happening. Some of the stories I linked had stuff about people getting tired of the animals right away, and how cats and dogs have the highest return rates because they are so "high maintenance" and stuff, and the usual vague quotes from people saying it is "bad for the animals" (although I have to think it's better than being put to sleep at the pound), but nothing really concrete on the impact on the animals and such.