Dog's With Fancy Pants

Saturday we decided to head up to Roppongi to go to the movies and see Thor.  The movie was highly entertaining: spectacular set design, cool costumes, great sound, and it was in 3D.  My only criticism - Thor doesn't take his shirt off enough.  I may need to buy a poster.

But before the movie we had a little time to peruse some of the shops and ran across this humdinger. Yes, I said humdinger.  How else can you describe Joker's, a multi dimensional capitalism feast of goods and services targeted to the discerning dog owner and their pampered canine.

First there was the puppy pit and kennel.

Or as they call it "Hotel & Doggie Cloak"

Even I was tempted to buy a small dog.

Just look at that face!

Hey, the dog groomers have a nicer bath tub than I do!

A couple of customers getting the "Joker" treatment.

Yes and after my spa treatment I'd like Perrier 

served with a lamb and rice biscuit.

You missed a spot.

The prices are as startling as the merchandise.

$250 to stay the night.  $6,000 for a bull dog puppy. 

Does the room come with a dog butler and one

 of these gem studded dog bowls?

Just look at the accessory collection!

I think Russell should have this "Fashion Gentlemen" dog leash.

Yes it really says that on the label.

And now your dog can have better jewelry than you do.

I didn't take any pictures but adjacent to the fashion boutique/state of the art grooming facility/puppy pet and kennel is the Joker cafe.  I don't know about you but my dog is always hungry after an afternoon of spa and shopping.  Isn't everyone?

Dog Days

The biggest challenge we've had since living in Tokyo has not been the language, or getting around or  even ordering dinner.  It's been finding a kennel for Ranger the Wonder Dog.  Part of the allure of living here was the idea of traveling around Asia.  But unfortunately they don't let you do that with your dog.  

There are kennels here but most of them cater to purse dogs.  They have more room for the dog's accessories than for the dogs themselves.  By Tokyo standards Ranger is huge.  He weighs 65 pounds or about 30 kilograms.   He doesn't fit into any purse and he doesn't have sweaters or t-shirts.  He's different.  He's probably the only Australian Cattledog in Japan.  Plus he has an attitude.  He doesn't really like people or dogs or things that make loud noises.  He pretty much just likes me and Russell and treats.  Or is it treats, then me, then Russell?

Back in L.A. Ranger has some pals at his day care place.  Yes, doggie day care.  They love him.  He's been going there since he was 10 months old, pretty much since puberty.  That's when we first noticed his adversity to, well, every thing.  He has some fear aggression issues.  We've spent thousands of dollars trying to get him to overcome his fear.  Now he's the best trained dog ever, sit/stay/come/heal.  But he still acts aggressively towards any one, or thing he doesn't know, which unfortunately is most everyone.

It has been a royal quest to find a place that can accommodate him.  I went on-line to find kennels.  They call them "pet hotels" here.  But the sites are all in Japanese so there's that.  The few I did find in English only cater to small,  portable dogs.  Most keep the dog in a crate, or several dogs together in one small dog run.  That definitely would not fly with Ranger Danger.

We actually found a kennel in walking distance from our house.  For a minute I was very excited.  The owner breeds golden and flat coat retrievers.  They are the most gorgeous retrievers I have ever seen.  They are snow white and heavenly.  We've gone there four times to inquire about their services.  Most of the time the retrievers greet us but the attendants just ignore us because we don't speak Japanese.   I can't tell you how awkward it is standing there for several minutes while they pretend they don't see you even though all the dogs have come over for the once over sniff test.  The one time they finally did acknowledge us we asked for a tour and they declined.  They keep telling us to come back when the owner's working but he never seems to be working.  From what we witnessed, however, it looks like they keep the dogs in crates and make them relieve themselves on puppy pads.  That would not work for Ranger.  Good luck getting him into the crate.

On my daily dog walk I started asking anyone in the park with a dog larger than a Prada handbag if they could recommend a kennel.  Most of them just looked at me like I was odd while I tried to keep Ranger from snacking on them.  Walking your dog is like being in a special club.  The only dues required are you have to own a dog and a leash.  You end up getting to know all the dogs and their owners when you see them on your daily route.  I'm hoping Ranger will eventually start looking forward to seeing a few of his Asian neighbors.  Currently he's either indifferent (generally towards dogs smaller and less significant than himself) or openly hostile.  For some reason he hates white fluffy dogs. Don't ask me why.

It used to be he only disliked small white fluffy dogs.  But there's a giant white Pyrenees here.  Whenever he sees this guy he goes ballistic - full fur bristle, bayonet tail action and of course, the ominous growl.  He's all talk though.  The minute I let go of the leash he'd fold like a cheap deck of cards I know.  But I'm not going to take the chance.

The dog Ranger doesn't like.

He looks nice enough to me.

Maybe he smells funny.

His owner is wearing a mask.

I'm thinking about writing a children's book based on Ranger's experiences.  Each dog will be a different character.  So far my favorite is the giant boxer dog whose tongue is always lolling out of his mouth to one side.  There's a story there.

Finally a British guy, who was walking two large Springer Spaniels, told me about this place called "Tom Sawyer."  I went online to try to find it to no avail.  After much consternation I persuaded Russell to ask his Japanese assistant to look it up in the phone book.  Turns out it's not "Tom Sawyer" like the Mark Twain fictional character but "Tom Soya" like the Japanese guy who breeds Great Danes but doesn't speak any English.  No wonder I couldn't find it.

This was our excursion last weekend.  It took all day. Turns out Tom Soya is a twenty minute cab ride from Narita airport.  But it took 90 minutes to get to the airport using local trains.  Usually when we go to the airport we take the Narita Express train which takes 30 minutes.  But it would have cost us $135 for the train and taxi ride, just to see a kennel.  I'd rather spend the money on sake.  As it was it still cost us $90 to check it out.   But we're glad we did.

We discovered the kennel is located in the countryside a short distance from the airport.  Before they built the airport here, Narita was an agricultural area.  In fact the farmers protested the construction for years.  The kennel owner actually drove out to meet the cab driver at a crossroad so he could lead the way back to his place.  The kennel is nestled between a bamboo forest and rice paddy fields.  It's quite picturesque.

It was surreal.  In the cab on the way there, as we passed the verdant landscape dancing with dragonflies, I realized this is the first time since moving to Tokyo I have ever not been in the city surrounded by towering grey buildings and concrete sidewalks.  Just for a few moments I felt - wildly free.

We were greeted by a cacophony of Great Danes.  There must have been twenty-five of them each in their own dog run situated around two large yards.  Mr. Soya apologized for not speaking very good English as he showed us around the property.  He took us to the less occupied area where a gigantic Great Dane kept jumping up to maul me, um I mean, "welcome me".   He was taller than I am.  In spite of his enthusiasm I don't think he was all that friendly.   The dog; not Mr. Soya; he was very nice.

Mr. Soya showed us the indoor/outdoor run Ranger would stay in.  It was located between the lascivious Great Dane and a panicked Cockapoo.  The Cockapoo was the only other type of dog in the entire establishment.  I think he was the only paying guest.  The poor thing was yelping.  He must have been lamenting, "I'm surrounded by slobbering giants; get me out of here!"

Each of the runs opens up into a large play area where the dogs are released twice a day to play. I can just imagine Ranger being released to "play" with the Danes.  "Who let the dogs out!"  Oh would that be a sight.  He could surprise me and actually like it.  It could happen.  His first buddy at the day care was a gigantic mass of fur called Chubaka.  Aptly named he looked exactly like the Star Wars character and had the same churlish personality.  But Ranger loved him.

As we were being escorted out I couldn't help but inquire Mr. Soya whether or not he had any puppies.  He is a breeder after all.  He didn't understand very much English but everyone understands the universal word "puppies."  He proudly showed us to the far side of the kennel where he uttered an encouraging word and out tumbled six Great Dane puppies.  They were three months old and almost as big as Ranger. Their paws were huge! They were adorable, even more so because their ears had just been snipped and were all bandaged up.  Clumsy and still doltish they lumbered over to the fence to administer sloppy kisses.  It was the highlight of the day.

Russell said, you just HAD to ask about puppies.  No duh!

That sealed the deal.  Large kennels, play area AND puppies.  If this guy, who is shorter than me, can handle Great Danes, who are as big as Russell, he can handle Ranger.  We gotta come here!  At least any time we're flying out of Narita.   Course we would need a car cause I'm not paying the ridiculous pick up fee.  For 35,000 yen (each way) they'll pick up or drop off your pet.   Translated to American dollars that's approximately $840 USD roundtrip, not including the nightly kennel fee.  Geez! For that price I could fly him to L.A., put him up at his usual kennel, and still save money.  The nightly fee is $85, more than three times as much as his usual $26/night stay at Crossroads Pet Resort.  Yikes!

Later at home we investigated car rentals.  Interestingly they actually rent cars by the hour here.  It makes sense.  You don't really need a car in Tokyo except for the occasional trip to Costco or Ikea, or weekend getaway.  It's ridiculously expensive to own one.  They won't even sell you a car at a dealership until you can prove you have a parking spot.  Parking spots go for $500+ a month.  A month!  Which is probably why you see such high end cars here like Ferrari's, Porsches, Maserati's, and my personal favorite, Aston Martins.  Ridiculously rich people are the only ones who can afford one.   But for the equivalent of $63 USD we could rent a car for six hours and take ourselves to the airport and Ranger to the kennel.  That sure beats the $250 (one way) taxi ride or the $420 (one way) kennel delivery fee.

Now we just gotta get drivers licenses.  The adventure continues....

Entrance to the kennel.  Those are rice paddies in 

the background flanked by bamboo trees.

Entrance to one of the kennel areas.

Welcome party.

Yes you can see into his stomach 

just past the bone crushing fangs.

OMG!  Adorable!!!

Can we take one home?

I'm sure Ranger would LOVE him.

Mug shot.  Both sides.

"Hey, come here.  I got something to show ya"

Station domination advertising.

They do this in America a lot.

Advertising! It's everywhere.

Odd.  Danish windmill in the Japanese country side.

Not odd - overcast - again.

Who needs a menu when everything is displayed.

Japanese coffee shop in the airport where 

we had lunch.  Just look at the selection!

After a long day on the train you gotta have

a Suntory and soda.

Served on electronic coasters that change colors

and illuminate your glass!

They should play disco too!

I had grilled eel on rice with cold soba noodles with sauce.

Russell had tempura, sashimi, rice, custard, fried tofu and miso soup.

AKA Japanese happy meal.

Dogzilla Takes Tokyo

The strange rash that was getting progressively worse, and looking suspiciously like hives, before we left L.A. has finally vanished.  I've stopped itching and started sleeping again.

Let's just say I was a little more than worried about Ranger-the-Wonder-Dog, aka Menace-to-Society, making the trip to Tokyo.  Nothing else concerned me. Heck I agreed to come to Tokyo sight unseen.  I had no problem finding an apartment, grocery shopping, navigating the subway alone, even opening a bank account.  But getting my dog over to Tokyo safely was my number one concern, and for the past six months, obsession.

If you read Menace Meets Microchip, posted July 2nd, you know how it all began.

When Ranger became USDA approved, (I know, sounds like a piece of meat) ten days before we departed, a thin veil of duress was lifted temporarily.  Maybe it had something to do with meeting a young Japanese girl who was in line with me at the USDA.  She was trying to bring four dogs into Japan and her flight was leaving in two hours.  Her dogs were already at the airport while she was trying to secure approval.  Holy schnikies!!!

It took me two trips to get Ranger stamped APPROVED.  Even though Russell had gone to the quarantine office at Narita airport twice and literally sat with the quarantine officer for an hour reviewing the paperwork and procedures, it was not enough.  I was revoked when my rabies certificates were not signed by the veterinarian who administered them.  The doctor's stamp was not sufficient.

And the twenty-something community college office girl at the animal hospital, where I was trying to secure the signatures, was not helpful. My businesslike approach did not sway her to demonstrate one ounce of concern much less sense of urgency.  "Yeah, (bubble gum snap) I'm not sure this is going to get done tomorrow."  Only bursting into desperate tears helped.  I should try having an emotional outburst more often - it works.

Course it didn't help either when an American girl behind me, the second time I was at the USDA, told me she didn't have to observe the six month quarantine because her husband is in the military.  Apparently you can come over with just two weeks notice if you're enlisted, can prove your dog has been properly vaccinated and promise to keep the dog on the base.  WTF?

I tried to crate train Ranger before we left.  He had never even seen a crate much less rode in one before.  After three months I was able to feed him in the crate with no problem but it wasn't like he was going in there on his own and reading Dog Fancy.

The day finally came and we packed up our three suitcases, case of wine, Ranger and dog crate.  My whole family showed up to see us off.  My sister and niece took a second car and escorted us to the airport.  I was a nervous wreck.  Ranger was curious.  I think he thought he was going to daycare.

Ranger and I waited outside Tom Bradley International Terminal while Russell checked in.  My sister and niece stayed a safe 20 feet away and shouted encouragement.  Ranger watched the throngs of people walk by and eyed them suspiciously.  Then we switched and I went into the terminal to check in.  The woman at the gate exclaimed how much my husband cares about our dog. "He's so concerned; he really loves that dog doesn't he."  I almost burst into tears.  God, I love that man.  The past few weeks he'd been very stoic and exacting.  Ha - the truth revealed.

Then the time came to put him in the crate and close the door - a first.  I held my breath. He went right in.  Then the time came to take him through TSA.  The crate had been sealed shut with plastic stays but they made Russell cut it open again to ensure it was free of explosives.  I'm surprised they didn't give Ranger a body cavity search, or Russell, for that matter.  Russell was pissed.  He had to take Ranger out again and get him back in again and reseal the whole thing.  The second time wasn't as easy.  Ranger didn't want any part of it. Finally Russell had to pick him up and shove him in.  Then the Wonder Dog was rolled off into the underbelly of the airport.

If I could have I would have flown in cargo with Ranger.  Heck I napped in the crate to show Ranger how it's done.   I could do it.  It was excruciating not knowing if he was OK.  But he was great.  He didn't bark, or growl.  He didn't even bite.

But I did.  The flight was long, especially when you're sitting next to the commode.  It really pisses me off (pun intended) when you pay over $4,000 for a business class seat only to be seated next to a lavatory that reeks of urine.  When I asked the flight attendant if it was going to smell like that the entire time she acted like she couldn't understand what I was saying.   The next minute she was offering the NY Times and USA Today, orange juice or champagne in perfect English.  Uh Huh.

Turns out she was the head flight attendant in our section.  She ended up serving us, probably because my growling.  Needless to say my wine glass was always full.  Hey, it was medicinal.  But even the heavy doses weren't calming me.

In spite of the stench, JAL was great about Ranger.  At the gate they insisted we sit in the priority waiting section and the manager personally checked below to see that Ranger had been loaded on the plane and came and told us herself.  Ranger was the only animal on the flight.  Well, besides the German guys sitting behind us. When we landed several flight attendants waited for us to get through customs so they could tell us Ranger had made it safely, had in fact already been unloaded, and we could pick him up at the animal quarantine desk after we retrieved our luggage.  How nice is that?

When I finally saw him, sitting lopsided in his crate, wearily leaning against its side, he looked tired and his eyes drooped as if he were drugged.  Our veterinarian and the USDA do not recommend drugging an animal during flight, especially a twelve hour one.  We agreed.   The number one cause of death in dogs during air travel is sedation.  He was not sedated.  I was.  He didn't bark.  Not even in the hour and a half taxi cab ride, or in quarantine.  All my worrying that he would be rejected at the airport and have to spend days, maybe weeks, or worst of all -  be sent back to America, was thankfully unwarranted.   It only took thirty minutes to get him out of quarantine.  The biggest challenge Russell had was getting Ranger back into the crate after he took him out to read his microchip.

And then we were finally home.  We were all exhausted.  I tried to take him for a quick walk so he could relieve himself.  He didn't.  In fact he didn't pee or defecate the fourteen hours in the crate either.  He'd been holding it for more than fifteen hours.   He didn't drink any water either.  A few minutes later Russell took him for a walk.  He went.

The next day I took him on a tour of the neighborhood. I could practically hear him sniffing his way through the environs.   "Hmmmm, interesting, interesting, very interesting, WTF is that!"  The first couple of days he wouldn't eat his food, unless offered a treat (of course - hypocrite).  He wouldn't leave my side.  He wouldn't go into the backyard unless I accompanied him.

At first I took him on a different route every day trying to acclimate him to the neighborhood.  But he didn't seem to be getting any less apprehensive.  Last week he tried to sample the local fare - an apologetic Japanese man who had the audacity to ask if he could touch my dog.  "Please to touch your dog?"  I tried to tell him no, the dog is not friendly, but unfortunately he didn't understand and kept approaching.  Ranger lunged at him and snarled, which sent the poor guy into a frenzy of bows as he tried to back up frantically while muttering what I think must have been apologies.  I wanted to run after him.  I should be the one to apologize for Ranger's bad manners.  I felt bad.  

So now I take Ranger on the same route so he can familiarize himself with the smells and way.  We basically circle the large park near our home.  There are lots of parks in Tokyo but many of them don't allow dogs.  He's still very anxious but doing better than I thought he would.  In L.A. we would take him to Marine Stadium near our house which has a large open green space and throw the ball for him to fetch.  As long as the ball was in play Ranger wouldn't pay attention to anything else.  Well, except for little white fluffy (aka punt kick) dogs.  For some reason he hates them (that's funny so do I)  and did try to attack one once.  It was rather comic really, the owner literally twirled the dog in the air, like a tetherball, to get it away from Ranger-it-looks-like-a-snack-can-I-eat it?

In LA people would walk by and he would pay them no mind but they were ten yards away. In Tokyo the propinquity is intense.  People are walking right next to you.  I find if I walk him fast enough he can't fixate on any perceived threat.  He has literally walked within inches of people in Tokyo.  My California neighbors would never believe this.  He's reformed!  Don't count on it.

There is an open field (unbelievable) near our apartment.  On the weekends Russell and Ranger jump the four feet retaining wall, Ok, Ranger jumps Russell labors up it, and Russell throws the ball for Ranger.  Strangers wall by and eye them suspiciously.  It's just a matter of time before they build something or we get busted.  I'm not sure what getting busted means but I'm anxious.

Ranger is clearly starting to feel comfortable at home now because he's getting bossy.  When he thinks I've spent too much time on the computer he paws at me.  When this doesn't work he starts barking at me.  Hey, I'm the boss here!!! I think.

The dog bed I bought for Ranger's new home finally arrived two weeks after we did.  The bed only cost me $617.00.  Actually the bed cost $165.00 plus shipping to Tokyo.   $600.00 was a steal compared to the $1,079 UPS or Mail Boxes etc, was going to charge me.   It was too large for JAL; they only accept 62 linear inches.  You see it's larger than 90 linear inches.  The United States Postal Service wouldn't even delivery it.  Oh yeah, I know all about this crap now.  Height plus width plus depth equals linear inches.  After exhaustive investigation we went with  Nippon Express.  They offered door to door service which was actually quite convenient.  So if you ever need to get something large to Tokyo, try them first.

Next challenge, finding a bag of dog food larger than 5 lbs.    At Tokyo Hands, the Target equivalent, they can order it for about $200.00.  And I thought people food was expensive in Tokyo.  Ret-row.

Is it safe to come out now?

My blog partner. 

This is his water bowl.  That's his name, "Ranger" in Japanese

Thank you Kristen.

The bed(s) we brought with us.

The $600 bed.

Thank god he likes it.

The remains of his first toy in Tokyo.  It was a fighting Tiger with boxing gloves.

I think Ranger won this round.

Various toys strewn across the floor, a veritable cornucopia of fun.

Hey wait, that's a slipper, not a toy.  Bad boy!

Aren't you done blogging yet?

Menace Meets Microchip

While moving to a city you have never seen, where they speak an entirely different language and don't look anything like you can be scary, nothing is more frightening for me than moving my four year old, adored, 60 pound (the breed average weight is 40; yeah he's all muscle), Australian Blue Heeler, aka Queensland Heeler, aka Australian Cattledog: Ranger - also known as "Menace to Society,"  to Tokyo.  You see he's not........dramatic pause......nice.  He's gorgeous mind you.  I mean see for yourself.  He's beautiful.  But he really doesn't like people.....period.

So the biggest impediment to my moving to Tokyo is the ability to safely take my beloved dog with me.

Russell's ultimatum about moving to Tokyo was, "You don't go; I don't go."  Mine was, "If Ranger doesn't go; I don't go."  What we have here is a conundrum. Japan has a 180 days (that's six months BTW) mandatory quarantine for dogs and cats before they can be welcomed into the land of the rising sun.

Thankfully the quarantine can be served in the country of origin, in this case America.  But it also means the dog has to be implanted with a special microchip, (I had one installed in Russell too), undergo two rounds of rabies vaccination, even though he's had all his shots and I have all the records since he was six weeks old.  After the second round of rabies shots, blood is taken and sent to the one and only lab in the U.S., (Kansas City for some reason), the Japanese government recognizes to prove he has enough antibodies. Then, as if this wasn't already enough, you have to wait a mandatory 180 days before he can be packed up in a Japanese government approved crate and shipped over.   A minimum of 40 days prior, assuming he hasn't started foaming at the mouth and renamed himself Cujo, you get to warn Japan (probably a good idea in his case) the pet will be flying over in the next 40 days or so.  

I don't feel comfortable putting Ranger in a kennel for six months straight and leaving him behind is absolutely NOT AN OPTION.  Can you believe I had a couple of friends (friends?) suggest I just get rid of him.  I wonder how they would feel if I suggested they just get rid of their kid(s) when they become inconvenient.  That really knocked the wind out of me, especially when they suggested it on more than one occasion. It wasn't like my response was benign the first time.

What this does mean, however, is that I will be traveling back and forth between Tokyo and LA during the quarantine period.  The good news is half the time falls during the holidays so I'd be going back anyway.  When I'm in Tokyo, Ranger, also known as, the Wonder Dog, will be playing with his friends (for some reason he loves Boxers) and girlfriends (he's got a hot Australian Shepherd bitch with blue eyes named Jewel he drools all over) at his home away from home - Crossroads Pet Resort in lovely Cypress, California.  He's been going there since he was 10 months old and just starting to show his, um, aggressive side.  Believe it or not, he's their favorite now.  He's such a lover when he knows someone.

Funny, none of my friends want to come over everyday and feed him treats until he gets to know them.

Maybe it's the barred teeth and barking?

I wonder if Cesar would come to Tokyo?.....I went to his 100th show party.

What a beautiful boy!   I know, right?

Action shot

Baby photo

Oh, he's just too cute.  The puppy's pretty adorable as well.

The adolescent years..."who me?!"

But he's sooo sweet! When he's asleep!!!!

All right already; enough of the dog photos.