Won't Miss #399 - dogs in bike baskets

Perhaps I'm paranoid or overly sensitive about how people deal with their pets, but it makes me very nervous when I see an unsupervised parked bicycle with a dog sitting in it. The primary problem I have with it is that parked bikes are relatively unstable and I'm concerned that a careless pedestrian or cyclist, a gust of wind, or even a small earthquake will send the bike toppling and the animal will get hurt. None of these things are exactly rare in Tokyo. The other thing that troubles me is that most of the little dogs I see perched in these baskets are tethered on a short leash to the bike's handlebars. I'm sure this is done to keep them from jumping out, but I worry that this will just mean the dog will hang itself if it does try to jump out or at the least bring the bike down on itself if it attempts to jump out.

Seeing a pet sitting on a lone parked bicycle is not an uncommon sight and I think it's very irresponsible. I won't miss seeing this worrisome situation. 

Won't Miss #327 - pet stores (and most zoos)

Pet stores in Tokyo in my experience are insanely depressing places. The animals are often in small cages in cramped and too hot or cold spaces. The animals seem to be largely ignored and are left in the cages overnight. Most of the cages are about twice the size of an animal carrier, and at least some of the smaller shops look pretty grubby as well. I can't even really bear to make a passing glance into them when I walk by because I feel so sorry for the animals. Similarly, I've heard that many of the Tokyo zoos have cramped and inadequate quarters for all but their most popular animals (e.g., pandas). I'm too scared to even go into one, but other foreigners who have gone to them have said it's just incredibly sad for the most part.

I won't miss the dismal and depressing state of many Japanese pet stores and zoos.

Won't Miss #266 - no pets

My husband and I both love cats. In fact, we agreed that once we settled down, we could get a cat... then we moved to Japan. There are two issues for us when it comes to owning a pet in Japan. The first issue is that most apartments in Tokyo don't allow pets beyond fish, turtles, or beetles, including mine. In many cases, getting a place that allows pets means paying appreciably more for rent (though this is likely the case worldwide). The other larger issue for us is that we believe that it is irresponsible to get an animal as a pet and not keep it until the end of its life. Since we have never known when we might leave, and a pet can live a long time, we've never been able to get a pet with a good conscience.

I won't miss not being able to have a pet due the uncertainty of the duration of our stay and the difficulty of finding a place to live that accepts them.

Won't Miss #117 - algae tank

During the entire duration of my stay in Japan, there has been a little shop that has a fish tank out front. Sometimes, they clean the tank and you can see the goldfish living in it. Most of the time, it's in various states of being consumed by algae. I don't know much about fish, but I have read that algae kills them. It simply makes me sad seeing the fish being taken care of improperly, and I walk by this tank several times a week.

I won't miss seeing this neglect of pets on a regular basis.