Woman Arrested After Pet Wolfdog Injures 92 Year Old

 

Wolfdog photo from internet, not actual animal in this case

(I’m not familiar with what a wolfdog is, but I read online that they are a hybrid mix of a wolf and a dog).

A 67 year old woman has been arrested after her wolfdog pet escaped her home in Naie town, Hokkaido and seriously injured a 92 year old woman. According to police, Motoko Okazaki allowed her wolfdog to escape her home between midnight and 1am on July 8. Later that morning the 24 kilogram wolfdog bit a 92 year old woman who was out for a walk. The wolfdog caused injuries to both legs of the woman, which required more than a month to heal. 

At the time of the incident, both the wolfdog’s indoor cage and the home’s front door were open. The pet had escaped previously, having bitten and injured a pedestrian last year.  

How much trouble is this wolfdog owner in? What do you think?

A quick google, came up with these results - 

Key Rules for Dogs in Public

Mandatory Leashing: Letting a dog roam or walk off-leash in public parks, streets, or footpaths is prohibited by local and prefectural animal welfare ordinances. 
Short Control: Leashes must be kept short and secure enough that you maintain total physical control over your pet at all times to avoid startling pedestrians or interfering with bicycles and traffic. 
Exceptions: The only legal places where a dog can be off-leash are fully enclosed, designated  dog parks. 
Cleanup Duties: Owners are legally required to clean up after their pets, which includes picking up solid waste and carrying water to rinse away urine on public or shared property.

Owner Liability and Compensation

Civil Liability: Under Article 709 of the Japanese Civil Code, a dog owner is legally responsible for tort liability if their pet injures someone due to negligence or failure to properly control the animal. 
Damages Covered: Victims can claim compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and emotional distress (pain and suffering). Many pet owners carry specific liability insurance to cover these costs. 
Criminal Penalties: If an owner acts with severe gross negligence (such as letting a known aggressive dog off-leash in a crowded area), they can face criminal charges for professional or accidental bodily injury under the Penal Code.

Another Typhoon Approaching Japan

Typhoon 25 passed through Japan last week. In my area, there was a day of rain but no real damage. As the storm moved east, it was a different story. I read 11 people lost their lives, and four are still missing. Over 10,000 homes in Chiba and Kanagawa are still without power. There are landslides and fallen trees, so it may be a while until power is restored. Water outages are also a problem. 

Typhoon 26 is now headed this way. The Japan Meteorological Agency is calling on the public to heed warnings.

The average number of storms per year in the area of Japan is 25, with an average of three making landfall in Japan.

Friday Little Finishes

Added photo - yes, this beaded fob is a loop.  It is stitched flat, then the top and bottom joined.

Virtual Zoo in Children’s Hospitals

More than 30 hospitals across Japan are giving children the opportunity to explore zoos and other destinations through virtual reality. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be a child with issues requiring a long hospital stay. This project gives young hospital patients the opportunity to interact with others, to have something to look forward to during treatment, and to ease the loneliness and isolation. 

In mid-July, 15 children aged 4 to 16 met in a playroom in Okayama University Hospital’s pediatric ward. They put on virtual reality headsets for a virtual trip to Osaka’s Tennoji’s Zoo. They found themselves in a recreation of the zoo’s African Savana area, with giraffes and zebras.  The virtual space was developed jointly by Osaka-based Kintetsu Real Estate Company and Cluster Inc., a Tokyo metaverse developer. 

Ten year old Takeru Kuwahara, who has been hospitalized since March said he was not comfortable around animals, but found the virtual experience reassuring. Yuka Kawaguchi, a childcare worker in the pediatric ward, said children who lost strength  and normally lacked the energy to leave their rooms were able to go to the event after looking forward to it all morning. Children who took part included those being treated for cancer, heart conditions, and Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease. 

This program is helping sick children all over Japan.

Work In Progress Wednesday

New start and probably a quick finish. This will be a beaded loop fob.

 

The Great Wave progress

Comparing the finished piece on the package, you can see it will look better after the outlining.

The Paisley Purse - I haven’t worked on this for a very long time, but there is a good reason. The little clear rings that get covered, were lost in my apartment. They should have been in the bag with the rest of this project, but they weren’t. The bag of rings is little and from time to time, I looked in little places. Finally, I found the little plastic bag inside another little bag that was in another unfinished project. I want to get back to working on it again and hopefully finish it.

Bears, a Boat, and Some Trains

(Not the actual bear in this post)

I read in the news that a bear climbed into a moored tuna fishing boat by its gangway about 8 pm and fell asleep. The report said it later went overboard around 1:30 am and disappeared in the sea. This happened in the city of Shiogama, Miyagi Prefecture in northern Japan. Three crew members on the boat were able to lock themselves in a room and were not harmed.  

On Saturday, in Iwanuma, Miyagi, a train struck a bear, causing a temporary service suspension. None of the passengers or crew were injured, but the bear was killed. The bear became trapped under the train and it took about two hours to remove the animal. Trains in both directions were stopped and 490 passengers were delayed.

National Park Quilt A-long, Block 3 Double Pin Wheel

I read about this interesting quilt-a-long on this Piecework magazine website. This article directs participants to the Park’s Website for instructions for blocks 1-6. 

The third block is the Double Pinwheel. There are step by step instructions, as well as diagrams, photographs, and stories. I am using small scrappy pieces of fabric that I have and am hand sewing the blocks. I have to say, the instructions are good, and there are a couple of videos explaining how to cut the blocks with both a rotary cutter/ruler and with templates and scissors.

Trash Talk

 Please take your trash with you.

Silver Week 2026

Today begins a rare five consecutive day holiday in Japan. The last Silver Week was in 2015.  The third Monday in September is always Respect for the Aged Day. It is a Happy Monday holiday, meaning it falls on a Monday and not a fixed number day. The Autumn Equinox holiday falls on the day of the Autumn Equinox, which could be September 22 or 23. 

So, how do we get to five consecutive days from these two holidays? The first two days are the weekend, Saturday and Sunday. Monday is Respect for the Aged Day. Japan has a special holiday rule - a day that falls between two holidays becomes a citizen’s holiday. Since Wednesday is the Autumn Equinox holiday, Tuesday is also a holiday. 

Trains run on either a weekday schedule, or a weekend/holiday schedule. All five of these days are the weekend/holiday schedule, which means fewer trains during the normal “rush hour” times. Public offices, banks, and post offices are all closed, but other businesses are usually open. Most museums in Japan are normally closed on Mondays, but when Monday is a holiday, they are open and they close the next non-holiday day. Usually that means Tuesday, but since Tuesday and Wednesday are also holidays, Thursday becomes the day they are closed. 

Unfortunately, Typhoon 25 is heading straight for Silver Week, so that may affect our holiday plans.

Friday Finish - Padded Covered Hangers

I bought some plain metal hangers at Seria (set of two hangers are only 100 yen). First, I covered the hangers by hand sewing some leftover batting, then covered the batting covered hangers with fabric. I like how they turned out.