Japan Earthquakes Animal Aid

You're sound asleep...then your bed begins to shake. The rumble of crumbling concrete and the screech of breaking timber finally wakes you, and you realize...EARTHQUAKE!

The sickening motion finally stops. It's pitch dark. You find your mate, your children...then you look for your pets. Where are they? With relief you hear a dog's soft whine or a cat's mew and run to grab the leash or carrier. You've got to get everybody out of there before another aftershock arrives. 

CATNip is an animal rescue registered as a Japan NPO (#2900-05-014849) founded by Nick May that is now engaged in taking food and supplies to animals in Kumamoto and central Kyushu affected by the recent major earthquakes in April 2016, providing help to animals and their owners forced out of their damaged or destroyed homes in the middle of the night by the first of a series of earthquakes. 

CATNip was officially founded in early 2014 by Nick May, a British expatriate who has lived and worked in Japan for 24 years. Learn more about CATNip and their activities here.


Since roads, bridges and railways in the Kyushu area have been heavily damaged, and large vehicles cannot get through in some areas, right now volunteers like Nick are a vital supply line to the pets of evacuees in the most damaged areas.

Earthquake and mudslide area of Kumamoto 

Pets are not allowed in human evacuation shelters, nor is there any government or other public support for these animals: they only have their caregivers, Nick and individuals like you.

Sign at evacuation shelter says "NO PETS ALLOWED"

Rather than abandon their animals just so they can take advantage of the warmth and comfort of the human evacuation shelters, many survivors are sleeping in their vehicles with their pets and children; other survivors are sleeping in the rain and mud under tarps near their damaged homes. Stores have been heavily damaged and many are still closed, so evacuees are very grateful for the pet food, cat litter, crates and animal first aid assistance that money can't buy. Help that only CATNip, Nick and other volunteers can bring to them and their traumatized animals.


Distributing food and supplies to evacuees in parking lot in Ozu, on the northeast outskirt of Kumamoto City

Any and all monetary donations will be gratefully accepted. Nick and his volunteers are not paid, so all funds donated (except for GoFundMe fees) go directly to the animals. Although donations to this foreign mission are not tax-deductible, strict accounting will be provided monthly for your donation.


The health of cats is particularly susceptible during evacuations

Join your compassionate, animal-loving friends in giving hope and comfort and relief to the Kumamoto/Kyushu earthquake survivors through your donation to CATNip: providing help to the people and animals affected by the Kyushu/Kumamoto earthquakes.

Evacuees are willing to sleep in their cars or in tents rather than abandon their pets, who are not allowed in shelters

Please learn more about CATNip and follow Nick's journey to help the animals and their caregivers in Kyushu/Kumamoto here .

Your donations will be accepted, bundled and transferred via a CATNip volunteer and U.S. citizen, Marguerite Topping, a trained animal disaster rescue volunteer and Red Cross emergency medical responder.

ARIGATO GOZAIMASU/THANK YOU for your donation, and for caring about the health and welfare of the survivors of the Kumamoto/Kyushu earthquake and their affected animals!

Added 2016/4/21

GoFundMe have asked me to add some additional information.

I am Alisdair Benjamin Nicolas May, a 50 year old Englishman living in Fukuoka prefecture, northern Kyushu.  (I am usually known as Nick).

I am the founder and Director of NPO CATNIP - Companion Animal Trust Nippon. I have lived in Japan since 1992. This is the 4th major quake I have done relief work (not always with animals).

I run a tiny company that does IT work, and also "fixing" work for overseas TV companies. 

There have been multiple large earthquakes in central Kyushu since the 15th of April. They are ongoing. The area is sporadically suffering torrential run.

 We are providing emergency support and relief for companion animals and their owners, in Kumamoto, Japan.

We are purchasing food, animal carriers/cages/traps, leads, supplies etc, to give to people with pets in evacuation centres.

We expect shortly to be taking animals to vets and will have to pay vets bills. We expect to have to feed and house them until they can be returned to their owners or are rehomed.

We will be patrolling the affected areas to feed/rescue abandoned animals. We are active in the area and expect to remain active for the next two years. We expect to have to do a lot of TNR (Trap Neuter Return) in the coming months. Our volunteers are not paid, all moneys raised will go directly to earthquake animals.

We get the funds to those in need by - well...

 We buy things. We put them in our van. We drive down to the area and give them to people in evacuation centres. We rescue animals by the side of the road, or in severely damaged areas.

I do this myself - I am directly involved and very hands on.

We are committed to complete financial openness with this appeal - scans of expenditure to date are already on our website. ( https://rehome.it/en/news-events/news/104/ )