Your browser does not support JavaScript, or it is disabled．Please check the site policy for more information National Report Kyoko Numata came under criticism for trying to save a retired racehorse from the slaughterhouse The naysayers said her endeavor was meaningless because it did not protect all of the horses who chairs the Retired Horse Association (RHA) continued her low-key efforts that made her a pioneer in protecting the horses with unexpected help from a popular video game her potential successors are also trying to rescue the retired racers which is dubbed the “hometown of racehorses.” The ranch features a sprawling pasture where many retired thoroughbreds and foals roam The 7-hectare former farm was leased and reopened in 2020 by Yasuyuki Kawagoe a former stable hand at the Japan Racing Association The Northern Lake ranch is caring for six horses a five-time champion of Grade One stakes races in and outside Japan the stallion would intentionally step on people’s feet seemingly as a prank Taiki Shuttle appears to have lost that naughty side Another gentle horse at the ranch is 26-year-old Meisho Doto who won the renowned Takarazuka Kinen competition The horse is so calm that he does not care when a cat named Meto rests on his back Kawagoe and Sasaki focused on protecting a lesser-known horse Kawagoe was in charge of handling Kirishimano Hoshi The horse never won a JRA competition but persistently performed at the Sonoda Racecourse in Amagasaki until she reached a relatively old service age of 10 Sasaki said she gained “mental encouragement” from Kirishimano Hoshi and her drive to keep running year after year After caring for G1 champions Zenno Rob Roy and Zenno El Cid he learned that a company employee and others were buying a retired race horse to keep at a ranch “Although horses brought many benefits to me I had done virtually nothing for them,” Kawagoe recalled “The (sale of the horse) made me aware that I had mistakenly believed I was something greater.” Hoping to “return a favor to horses,” Kawagoe looked around for Kirishimano Hoshi He found that she was kept at a stock farmer’s facility despite needing 500,000 yen ($3,700) to 1 million yen a year for a place and other costs to keep her and all face the inevitable future of being forced to retire when they can no longer beat their rivals Only a few of them can peacefully live out their natural lives Retired racehorses are difficult to retrain for pleasure rides Older horses are often plagued with nagging injuries so many are slaughtered for food and other purposes where she was forced to broker a deal concerning a violent-tempered horse “I felt uncomfortable with the possibility that the horse would be put down,” she said Numata and her supporters decided to take care of a single horse Despite hearing repeated criticism that she was not saving all the retired racehorses Her endeavor gained the backing even from people who are not horse-racing fans The work prompted the JRA to take such measures as providing subsidies to support retired racers The movement was pushed in part by the popularity of “Uma Musume Pretty Derby,” a video game featuring “horse girls” often named after legendary Japanese racehorses The RHA collects donations on the birthday of Nice Nature who gained attention after finishing third in the Arima Kinen competition for three straight years Only 200,000 yen was collected from 48 individuals in the first drive five years ago But 54 million yen was donated from 17,000 people this year to celebrate the 34th birthday of Nice Nature The RHA also receives messages of encouragement from people who found out about the issue through the video game “I learned about (Nice Nature’s) achievements through ‘Uma Musume’ and believe more lives can be saved,” one message read The donations will be used for retraining retired horses under a “re-employment” project The RHA is now keeping as many as 103 retired horses Around 3,300 people in Japan and overseas support the association as members There are also 40 affiliated farms and schools in Hokkaido Numata plans to create an environment where horses are essential for people She wants to establish a mechanism in which horses can generate profits at their new workplaces without volunteers’ help Although she said her final goal is to protect all retired racers she remains fully focused on a single one in front of her “I will be building relationships that make both humans and horses happy,” she said Niigata farm rescues retired racehorses from sad homestretch Tighter rein on racehorses after a string of runaway cases Information on the latest cherry blossom conditions Please right click to use your browser’s translation function.) A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II In-house News and Messages No reproduction or republication without written permission Rampant Yezo deer have been causing major problems in Hokkaido with the animals eating farmers' crops and causing traffic accidents following years of unchecked population growth and a lack of local government assistance according to experts and local community members indigenous to Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido and a decrease in the number of deer hunters have contributed to a population explosion having previously been in danger of extinction during the Meiji era (1868-1912) Sharp increases in the deer population during the 1990s prompted the Hokkaido prefectural government to begin strengthening efforts to cull them since around fiscal 2010 But problems emerged over the illegal dumping of the slaughtered animals' unwanted carcasses and organs The hunters responsible for shooting them complain about a lack of government assistance The Yezo deer population peaked at an estimated 770,000 in fiscal 2011 and had been on a downward trend but it has since rebounded and has grown in recent years Damage caused by wildlife to the agriculture forestry and fisheries industries in Hokkaido totaled 5.45 billion yen ($40.40 million) in fiscal 2021 with deer accounting for more than 80 percent of the total causing 4.48 billion yen worth of destruction Over 70 percent of the damage caused by deer in Japan's agricultural industry occurs in Hokkaido the prefectures with the largest amount of deer-related destruction outside of Hokkaido are saw approximately 210 million yen in damage less than one-twentieth of the amount of Hokkaido the number of traffic accidents involving deer in Hokkaido reached a record of 4,475 the number of deer in Greater Sapporo has also increased in addition to the eastern part of Hokkaido," said Hiromasa Igota associate professor of game animal management science at Rakuno Gakuen University in Ebetsu Sapporo is the capital of the island prefecture The erection of fences to prevent deer from entering agricultural fields to feed alongside hunting to curtail their numbers are the only measures available for mitigating damage to farm products and preventing traffic accidents The hunting of Yezo deer is permitted during designated periods in certain locations "licensed hunters" can be commissioned by local governments A prefectural government official said Hokkaido has "produced some good results," with about 110,000 deer killed by licensed hunters in fiscal 2021 to address the excess numbers more than 100 were found in the town of Akkeshi Authorities believe that in all of the cases the deer were hunted elsewhere and dumped in the locations after being slaughtered Hunters are required to bury or take the butchered remains of the animals with them There is a risk of luring brown bears to national forests where much of the illegal dumping occurs Although the prefectural police often conduct investigations to find the culprits they are often unable to determine who carried out the activities since the deer are killed and slaughtered deep in the woods who has hunted deer in the town of Ikeda for 35 years and heads the local branch of a hunters' association in Hokkaido "Support from the prefectural government is inadequate processing the rest of its remains at prefectural facilities An average 100-kg deer will produce around 60 kg of remains The prefectural government set up four free-of-charge deer processing stations on a trial basis in 2011 Although they saw more than 200 people using their services while open "The stations were originally funded by a government grant it is difficult for us to continue operating them," said the prefectural official But Misaka is hopeful the situation will improve with additional government support "Illegal dumping will likely decrease if low-cost disposal areas become more easily available," he said To have the latest news and stories delivered to your inbox Simply enter your email address below and an email will be sent through which to complete your subscription Please check your inbox for a confirmation email Thank you for reaching out to us.We will get back to you as soon as possible A robot that succeeded in traversing the park with the help of the people who traveled My daughter wore a miniskirt, so my father hired a hitman and killed my daughter Apr 14, 2009 13:43:00 in Note,   Web Service