Hachiko, a Dog's Story

Having just read of the upcoming August 2009 release of an American remake of the 1987 Japanese film, Hachiko monogatari, I wanted to recount this beautiful, touching tale of a dog's loyalty to its owner. The original film was the recipient of the prestigious Genesis award in 1988. Genesis Awards categories span television, film, print, radio, music, and the arts. The awards committee includes people from all walks of life who all share a genuine, demonstrated commitment to animals.  But, I digress. Really, having been reminded of the bittersweet story of Hachiko, I just wanted to share it with you.

A year after his birth on November 10, 1923 in Odate (in the Akita province of Japan), Professor Eizaburo Ueno, an agriculture professor at the University of Tokyo brought his dog, Hachi (later renamed Hachiko) to Tokyo. Hachiko followed Professor Ueno everywhere. One day, he accompanied Ueno to the Shibuya train station as he headed off to work. This became their daily morning routine. Hachiko would then return to the train station every afternoon and wait for Ueno to come home. But, one day in May 1925, Professor Ueno didn't come home; he'd suffered a fatal stroke at work. Upon his death, Mrs. Ueno gave the dog away to some of the professor's relatives, but the loyal and devoted Hachiko kept escaping, and for 11 years, until his own death on March 8, 1935, every afternoon at precisely the time that Ueno's train was due, he would return to the train station to await the professor.

In April of 1934, with Hachiko present, a bronze statue in his likeness was erected at Shibuya station. An identical statue of Hachiko would later be erected at the train station in Hachiko's hometown of Odate, and, in 2004, a statue of him was put in front of Odate's Akita Dog Museum. Hachiko's stuffed and mounted remains reside at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo.