This research aimed to study "family pets" in contemporary Japan, through qualitative research methods. In doing so, the researcher included the perspectives and discussion on "human-pet coexistence" in Japan. The former focused on the rhetoric that pets are children and conducted anthropological research consisting of fieldwork and semi-structured interviews with 19 dog owners between the ages of 20 and 50. She figured out that dogs are not human substitutes for the owners, and besides, the owners' consciousness and practices in dog parenting are diverse and have gradations. For the latter focus, the researcher questioned what "human-pet coexistence" means and carried out 27 semi-structured interviews with pet-industry agents. She uncovered various issues, occurring in urban settings between pet-industry agents and non-agents, and pet owners and non-owners, which, she argues, are caused by clear segregation between human and animal beings in contemporary Japan.
