Hachiko - A Dog's Tale

When they say that dogs are a man's best friend, I think they had a dog like Hachiko in mind. I know this is based on a true story and watching the movie, it totally got me bawling my eyes out. I sometimes wonder how an animal can be loyal to his master when it is sometimes very hard for a person to do something like that. Maybe people give up too easily. Or we let our selfishness overcome us instead of putting ourselves in another person's shoe and see things through their perspective, once in a while.

I don't have a dog. And some stray dogs that I came across, I have found loving homes for them. Plus, I have this fear of dogs - especially if they're big. I've had some bad experiences with dogs when I was younger. Once, a very fierce dog sink its teeth into my calf halfway while I was cycling. And another time, two big Doberman Pinschers even jump out of their fence, ran after me and scared the hell out of me that my bicycle and I went straight into a monsoon drain. I skinned myself and bent the front tyre of my bicycle. Luckily I didn't hit my head on something sharp. I was trapped in the drain for nearly two hours until my late Grandma notices I was not around and heard the Dobermans barking non-stop. She found me in the drain, scared shitless of those two big dogs. And all because I wanted to cycle to a grocery shop and buy some ice cream.

So yeah, I've had some scary run-ins with dogs. I'm trying to overcome my phobia now but sometimes, you can catch me circling around the block rather than walk past a big dog, no matter what it's breed. However, small dogs like Norwich Terrier is fine to me.

Have you seen the movie Hachiko before? If you say this puppy is not adorable, I don't know which planet you're from.

In this movie, the puppy is of Shiba Inu breed which is a smaller breed dog. But the bigger dog in the movie, is an Akita Inu breed which is the real breed based on the true story.

There are two types of Akita Inu breeds. There are the original Japanese Akita Inu which comes only in five colours - Red, Fawn, Sesame, Brindle, Pure White - whereas the American Akita Inu also includes Pinto colour and black masks. You can read more of Akita Inu breeds here.

Sometimes we forget that animals are also smart and intelligent. Sometimes we forget that they also have a heart and they can also be loyal. Sometimes we are too immersed in our daily work or routine that we neglected them, though they had never stopped loving us or thinking about us. If you have a pet, and you go on a holiday for a couple of days and left them with friends or family, do you notice how they behave when you return home and get back to them? Do you notice how clingy they become? That's because they miss you. You should appreciate your pet more.

If only people can have the same loyalty as animals, like Hachiko for example, who waited for his master in front of the train station 10 years after his master had died, the world might be a better place. Families might not have internal problems, companies might not have colleagues stepping on others' head to climb the corporate ladder, governments might not have opposing organizations trying to topple each other and the world might actually be a much friendlier, happier and high spirited place.

The real Hachiko  

Monument oh Hachi in front of Shibuya station, Japan.

Maybe we can learn something from this dog. Loyalty cannot be bought, it can only be earned.

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LADYJAVA