Does the Animal Welfare Kuznets Curve Hypothesis Hold for Japanese Canines?

The purpose of this study was to examine if and how Japanese canine welfare has improved in the past several decades. I had two possible scenarios: A steady and monotonic improvement or an inverted U-shaped welfare change. I included the influence of status on canine welfare in my investigations by using complete domestic dog data from the period when the status of canines changed. I empirically examined which hypothesis was more relevant using four measures: The percentages of 1) stray dogs captured, 2), not-rehomed stray dogs (total data), 3) not-rehomed stray dogs (panel data), and 4) rabies shots. I observed an inverted U-shaped welfare change for the four measures, indicating the existence of an animal welfare Kuznets curve (AWKC). My results suggested that considering important factors, such as status change, multiple statuses, or both may improve the detection of an AWKC.