A short cartoon clip about the life of the famous Japanese dog Hachiko, who returned to Shibuya Station in Tokyo for nine years after the death of his master.

In this cartoon Hachiko has one drop down ear just like Hachiko had in real life.

Hachiko in the Japanese cartoon

The real Hachiko

From the 1987 film “Hachiko Monogatari” (aka Hachi-ko). Wonderful movie that tells the true story of an Akita’s devotion to his master.

You’ve got to see this! So beautiful, and yet… so sad.

Chu-ken Hachiko (lit. the faithful dog Hachiko) was born in Akita in 1923 and was first brought to Tokyo in 1924. He and his owner, Mr. Eisaburo Uyeno, were inseparable friends right from the start. Each day ‘Hachi’ would accompany Eisaburo, a professor at the Imperial University, to the train station when he left for work. Upon returning, the professor would find the dog patiently waiting, tail wagging. This happy routine continued until one fateful day in 1925, when the professor was taken ill on the job and unfortunately died before he could return home.

Despite the fact that Hachiko was less than two years old at the time, the bond between dog and owner was strong. Hachiko continued to wait each day at Shibuya station for a friend who was never coming back. At times, he wouldn’t return home for days at a stretch.

The Akita became a familiar sight to commuters as he kept his vigil for over ten years. On March 8, 1935, Hachiko finally went to meet his master. He died on the very same spot he last saw his friend alive.

Hachiko symbolizes so many different things to different people… innocence, fear, hope, joy, loss and loneliness.
Thanks for watching!

At the moment Hollywood is producing a remake of the original. Starring Richard Gere as the professor.

Back to the original…
A happy ending as Hachiko and Eisaburo reunite in the afterlife.

The Akita is named for his place of origin, the Odate region in Akita Prefecture (Americans: think ‘state’), on the Island of Honshu in northern Japan.

So the Akita is not a polar dog, though his coat resembles that of traditional polar dogs such as Huskies and the Alaskan Malamute. There is of course a reason for this: the winters in Akita prefecture are reputed to be among the snowiest and coldest in Japan.

The city of Yuzawa hosts a well known “matsuri” Snow Dog House Festival festival in winter, where the town is dotted with small snow shrines, and a large plaza is taken up with large snow shrines guarded by giant dogs. Children climb onto the snow dogs and the sky is lit by fireworks.

Separated from the principal Japanese centers of commerce, politics, and population by several hundred kilometers and the Ou and Dewa mountain ranges to the east, Akita remained largely isolated from Japanese society until after the year 600CE.

Akita was a region of hunter-gatherers and principally nomadic tribes. Akita dogs were used for hunting (hence the name ‘Matagi Akita’) in these regions.

Nowadays Akita’s economy remains dominated by traditional industries, such as agriculture, fishing, and forestry. This has led many young people to migrate to Tokyo and other large cities. Akita is famous for its Sake breweries (as a matter of fact: Akita is renowned for having the highest consumption of sake in Japan).

Akita Prefecture Links

Akita City Guide
Website of Akita Prefecture (English translation)

The Akita was designated as a Natural Monument in July of 1931 by satisfying the criteria of “a domesticated animal unique to Japan”. Soon other Japanese dog breeds followed.

These other Japanese breeds are: Akita Hokkaido Kai Kishu Shikoku Shiba Inu

Until that time, Akitas were known only to the local population around Odate in the Thoku District, and by a handful of fanciers, as Odate-inu or Kazuno-inu. The designation as a Natural Monument changed the breed’s name to “Akita” and triggered the effort to preserve and restore the purity of this magnificent breed.

Newman adds characters and incidents to flesh out this true story of an Akita who became a national symbol for loyalty and hope by waiting–for 10 years–at a Japanese commuter train station for his dead master to return. Hachi accompanies Professor Ueno to Shibuya Station every morning, then returns at three o’clock to welcome him back. After his owner dies suddenly at work, the dog continues his afternoon vigil for the rest of his life, earning such notoriety that the honorific “ko” is attached to his name. After his death, a statue in his memory is erected near his accustomed spot on the platform.

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In Japan the Akita is regarded as a token for good luck.

In the old days Akitas were used for hunting in Japan, but not in such a way that they would actually kill a bear. Some people tell this story but an Akita (or two of them) are not big and strong enough to bring down an angry bear.

Instead, the use of Akitas in bear hunting was simply for tracking and cornering until the owner made his way to the area to do the killing.

Because these Akitas worked without the hunter being present they had to make their own decisions (which at least partly explains their obstinacy).

The history of the Japanese Akita dog shows many ups and downs.

The Akita’s ancestors were dogs used by matagi for hunting. These dogs, usually called matagi inu, were not as large as modern Akita dogs. Many of these dogs were used as guard dogs. Many were used to guard the emperor and his children. Akitas would sometimes be used instead of babysitters. They were also used for hunting bears, usually trained as mated pairs, with an eagle. The two dogs would attack the bear as it was distracted by the eagle.

Recent DNA analysis found that the Akita was among the most ancient dog breeds.

Edo Period

In the Edo Period, Dewa Province (present-day Akita prefecture) was ruled by the Satake clan. Since the Satake were tozama daimyo (considered potentially rebellious), they received severe restrictions by the Tokugawa Shogunate in all military areas. The clan decided to encourage dog fighting around 1630 in order to make it possible for the samurai to retain their aggressive edge in a way that would not offend the shogunate. Dog fighting became especially popular in the Odate area. Dog fighting enthusiasts in the area began to interbreed matagi inu with dogs indigenous to the area. These dogs, which later turned into the Akita, were called Odate inu at that time.

When Helen Keller visited Akita prefecture in 1937, she expressed that she would like to have an Akita dog. An Akita called Kamikaze-go was given to her within a month. When Kamikaze-go later died because of canine distemper, his brother, Kenzan-go, was promptly sent to her. By 1938 a breed standard had been established and dog shows had been held, but such activities stopped after World War II began.

The War and its aftermath

During World War II, the number of Akita dogs greatly diminished because of the lack of food. There were also orders to capture all dogs except German Shepherds in order to use their fur for warm army uniforms. Many people bred Akita with Alsatians to avoid capture. When the war ended in 1945, there were fewer than twenty purebred Akita dogs in Japan.

However, the Akita became quite popular during the postwar period. Many occupation soldiers liked the Akita, because it was by far the largest Japanese dog. The fact that Helen Keller had an Akita also became well-known when she came to Japan in 1948 and thanked people in Akita for the dogs she was given. Most of the Akita dogs at this time had many German Shepherd-like characteristics. These dogs are currently known as Dewa line, or Dewa type Akita.

Hachikō (ハチ公, Hachikō November 10, 1923 – March 8, 1935), known in Japanese as chūken Hachikō (忠犬 ハチ公, chūken Hachikō lit. ‘faithful dog Hachikō’), was an Akita dog born in the city of Odate, Akita Prefecture remembered for his loyalty to his master.

In 1924, Hachikō was brought to Tokyo by his owner, Hidesamurō Ueno (上野英三郎), a professor in the agriculture department at the University of Tokyo. During his owner’s life, Hachikō saw him off from the front door and greeted him at the end of the day at the nearby Shibuya Station.

Even after Ueno’s death in May 1925, Hachikō returned every day to the station to wait for him, and did so for the next 10 years. In 1928, a new station master came to Shibuya Station who grew fond of the dog and allowed him free run of the facility. Hachikō still kept his schedule, but also was allowed to remain in the station throughout the day, sleeping in a storeroom set aside for him by the new station master.

Hachikō’s devotion to his lost master moved those around him, who nicknamed him ‘faithful dog‘. Others at the station initially thought he was waiting for something else or roaming around but later realized he was waiting for its dead owner. So the vendors there used to give some bits of food and water. Others doubted it and said the dog might have come because of the food the vendors provided him. But he appeared only in the evening time, precisely when the train was due at the station.

Remembrance

In April 1934, a bronze statue in his likeness was erected at Shibuya Station, and Hachikō himself was present at its unveiling. The statue was recycled for the war effort during World War II. After the war, Hachikō was not forgotten. In 1948 The Society for Recreating the Hachikō Statue commissioned Takeshi Ando, son of the original artist who had since died, to make a second statue. The new statue, which was erected in August 1948, still stands and is an extremely popular meeting spot. The station entrance near this statue is named “Hachikō-guchi”, meaning “The Hachikō Exit”, and is one of Shibuya Station’s five exits.

A similar statue stands in Hachikō’s hometown, in front of Odate Station. In 2004, a new statue of Hachikō was erected on the original stone pedestal from Shibuya in front of the Akita Dog Museum in Odate.

The Japan Times played a practical joke on readers by reporting that the bronze statue was stolen a little before 2AM on April 1, 2007, by ‘suspected metal thieves’. The false story told a very detailed account of an elaborate theft by men wearing khaki workers’ uniforms who secured the area with orange safety cones and obscured the theft with blue vinyl tarps. The ‘crime’ was allegedly recorded on security cameras.

Hachiko in the Media

Hachikō was the subject of the 1987 movie ‘Hachikō Monogatari’, which told the story of his life from his birth up until his death and imagined spiritual reunion with his master, the Professor. He is also the subject of a 2004 children’s book named ‘Hachikō: the true story of a loyal dog‘, written by Pamela S. Turner and illustrated by Yan Nascimbene. Another children’s book, a short novel for readers of all ages called ‘HACHIKO WAITS‘, written by Lesléa Newman and illustrated by Machiyo Kodaira was published by Henry Holt & Co. in 2004.

In 1994, the Culture Broadcasting Network (CBN) in Japan was able to lift a recording of Hachikō barking from an old record that had been broken into several pieces. A huge advertising campaign ensued and on Saturday, May 28, 1994, 59 years after his death, millions of radio listeners tuned in to hear Hachikō bark. This event was testimony to Hachikō’s continuing popularity.

Pre-production work has started on ‘Hachiko: A Dog’s Story’, an American movie starring actor Richard Gere, directed by Lasse Hallström, about Hachikō and his relationship with the professor. The movie is being filmed in Rhode Island, and will also feature actress Joan Allen, who appeared in ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’ and ‘The Bourne Supremacy’. The movie is expected to release in 2008.