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영어

The longevity of people in Japan is on the rise these days. Moreover, there are more and more nuclear families. In other words, there has been an increase in married couples living on their own or a single person living by himself or herself. One can say that there has been a reduction in the social exchanges with relatives which had been made possible by the traditional network of relatives. Furthermore, in the new residential areas, there has been a reduction in the “regional network” which constituted the social exchanges locally, as provided by such organizations as the neighborhood associations. In such an aging society, there has been an increase in the middle aged and elderly people who are psychologically isolated, due to the lack of social exchanges. In other words, people have become more and more disconnected to other people. On the one hand, there is a large percentage of those in their fifties and sixties who keep dogs as pets. My presentation is on the investigation I have conducted by interviewing the elderly who own large dogs that require walking. Its objective is to shed light on the social exchanges facilitated by their dogs. My investigation confirmed that a “‘ketien’-network” had been formed among “fellow dog-walkers” who engaged in the exchange of information on how to keep dogs (Okada 2006). Furthermore, I discovered the existence of the “KOU” (lectures) entitled “classes on aging dogs” in which people learn how to care for aging dogs. What deserves attention is the fact that the network of dog owners made possible by their beloved pets do not disappear even after the latter's death. It has continued to bring these elderly people together. In the aging society that we have now, we hope that the bond made possible by having dogs as pets will continue to contribute to the good health and longevity of both human beings and dogs.