Adopting a Dog from Japan to California

I wish to adopt a dog from Japan to California. As I've always been a fan of the Shiba Inu and Akita Breeds. I've wanted to have one as a companion to my other dog (German Shepherd), but I cannot obtain one here in California unless its from a breeder. However, I do not wish to obtain one from a breeder but from the shelter. Seldom, do Shibas or Akitas show up in the shelters around here, so my plan was to get one from Japan. I adopted my German Shepherd from a shelter and I want to do the same for a Shiba/Akita. I don't care for the age, but I am curious of the cost and process required.

My plan was that a few years down I would fly to Japan and personally visit these shelters to pick out the right dog that connected well to me. However, I want to know the cost to adopt as well as the steps required to ship the dog with me on a plane to California. I also want to know how many days it would take to obtain an adopted dog from a Japanese animal shelter.

You know if you do a Google search there are plenty of Shiba Inu and Akita dog rescues in the USA, right? They might not be in CA, but if you're looking to travel to Japan, traveling to the East Coast or Mid West just doesn't seem that bad.

And then the dog wouldn�ft have to deal with weeks (months?) of quarantine.

You are likely to encounter more of �gmixed breeds�h dogs in shelters for one thing, and if you are just visiting Japan, there is no guarantee that you�fd encounter a dog that connects with you during that time. Also, yes, as the poster above me mentioned, there will be quarantine process awaiting the dog to be able to travel to the States; I hope you will find a domestic solution so that the dog doesn�ft have to be exposed to additional stress.

Also wouldn�ft there be conversations to have with the people from the shelter and papers to be signed when adopting a dog? So you�fd need to bring a translator with you to each shelter. Seems to be a complicated plan.

I speak Japanese

If you are familiar with the language, you shouldn't need this tourism website. I'm sure there would be more appropriate facebook/twitter groups and/or website catered to dog breed and shelter dogs.

If you really speak Japanese, why don�ft you google and find the shelters�f website and contact them directly?

You could try contacting ArkBark... they are a rescue and foster care group for cats and dogs with headquarters in Osaka and Tokyo. There are both English and Japanese speakers in the organization. They might be able to help further or give you some advice:

http://www.arkbark.net/en/

You should also look up the quarantine laws and costs of bringing a dog from Japan to the US and weigh them against finding a dog from a shelter elsewhere in the US. Akita or Shibas might not be as common in the US as here in Japan, but you might get lucky and save yourself a lot of trouble!

But that's the thing, they are common enough in the USA, there are just no breed specific rescues necessarily in CA. Just using Google search I found several breed specific rescues in the Mid-West and on the East coast, and it's honestly much easier to just fly around the US or even take some time off and drive and get a dog that way. Better rescues will try to match you with a dog that they think will work well with you and your home.

I do know people who have moved Internationally with pets. My Sister in Law moved from the USA to the UK where her 2 dogs and 1 cat were quarantined for a long time to make sure there was no chance they had rabies. It was a pain, but she was hoping to live in the UK permanently and was not about to give up her beloved pets of several years. I have met people who lived in Japan and then returned to the US and brought their pet cats with them, because again, they were not about to abandon their pets.

It's weird to travel to Japan JUST to adopt a pet when there are plenty of loving dogs that are the breed OP wants in the US.

Yeah but then it wouldn�ft be an �gauthentic�h Shiba or Akita from Nihon! :rolleyes:

Honestly, I just wanted an estimate cost... but u guys seem to be taking it a little further than expected... And I have checked shelters around the US for Shibas but like I said the breed itself is hard to obtain in the US due to the many requirements imposed in rescues which I understand, but the process is still incredibly hard. As its not guaranteed to obtain one from a rescue since there are hundreds of applicants for one dog in rescues and they choose homes they see fit. And I�fve had a rescue turn my application down for one person in my house having fear of big dogs. But guess what? The person in my house fell in love with my BIG dog that I got from another shelter. Since I worked it through with the shelter, but specialized rescues are hard since they impose a lot of checks.

Also I�fm not going to Japan just to adopt... I would go there for vacation and a relax trip to spend time with whatever dog I choose to adopt. Its not as simple as I�fm going there JUST for the dog. I like the culture and I wish to experience it. I don�ft really like how you�fre assuming such things.

Also I�fve checked Arkbark ty! But I didn�ft see anything on their sight in relation to outside adoptions.

When it comes to the cost, the main part would be the quarantine and transportation, so I doubt many people here on the forum would have that experience firsthand :)

About adopting an animal from ARK to a home outside Japan, you would simply have to contact them directly to (1) see if they have any experiences with that and (2) see if they can make any suggestions about what you are hoping to do. They are a group mainly catering to English-speaking people in Japan. Best wishes with your dog search! (From a Japanese living with two adopted and two rescued felines)

TY, AK for at least addressing the question at hand. I�fm aware of the mixed breeds in shelters. I don�ft ask for a purebred Shiba or Akita, but with personality traits and looks like one. I will contact Arkbark, in the meantime alongside other Shelters. Thank you.

For adoption itself, as far as I know, shelters/rescuers tend to ask for the cost of vaccinations, initial medical care given, and for neutering (if done at the shelter/by the rescuer), not much more than that. This is from my experience adopting a grown cat from an individual rescuer, and also from my experience sheltering & finding homes for kittens :)

In the meantime, let me ask a dog loving friend in CA if she knows anything :)

OK, I just checked with my friend in CA and she can connect me with someone in CA who is into Shiba rescue and fostering. If interested, please sign up with this forum as a user and contact me via Messages. Thank you.

Hello everyone, such a question is expensive is the pleasure of scribbling a dog in the saloon or is it easier to buy a <a href="https://www.bestadvisor.com/dog-hair-trimmers">trimmer </a>? Is there a line in the salons or a rating? What do you advise on Tokyo?

I mean this https://www.bestadvisor.com/dog-hair-trimmers. what be better. Just the dog owner trusts more. Or is it still better in the salon?