In these charming videos and photographs of a couple of celebrity travelling tabby cats in Japan, we see them walking on a leash very effectively. I have noticed that the harness for the lead does not hug or press against the body. The harness goes around the neck and under the front leg armpits. No part of the harness goes over the trunk of the cat’s body. I believe that this is important in freeing up the cat to walk normally and not respond to what I’d call the ‘Thundershirt Syndrome’ where the cat goes silly and flops while refusing to walk. I have asked the owner to tell me where they bought the harnesses! I want one for my cat.
Having got that observation out of the way you have to be impressed at these two charming and apparently well behaved rescue cats as we are told that they misbehaved when left alone with a cat sitter before their human guardian decided to take them with him.
Their names are Daikichi aged 13 and Fuku-Chan whose age is 7. Their loyal and imaginative human guardian is Daisuke Nagasawa whose age is 50. He runs a tech company and he used to leave them behind with a cat sitter while he travelled on business. He must have a partner and/or travelling companion who has filmed him and his cats.
He decided to take his cats along and it worked out. I don’t know how he manages to organise it all. There must be complications and practical issues. The Instagram photos and videos are great. I love to see domestic cats enjoying the outdoors safely. Daisuke Nagasawa has done a wonderful job.
He has turned his cats into celebrities and there are two travel books. They have been featured on major news websites and The Dodo.
They are heading for Tokyo for the Olympic Games! And they plan to go to the Southernmost islands in Okinawa Pref from the beginning of 2020. Surely this is an ideal that many cat owners should aspire to.
