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The Yomiuri Shimbun Visitors take photos with their dogs in front of snow sculptures of dogs and a shrine in Yuzawa, Akita Prefecture, on Feb. 8.
The Yomiuri Shimbun
14:16 JST, February 26, 2025
YUZAWA, Akita — The Inukko Matsuri (Yuzawa Inukko Dog Festival), a traditional Lunar New Year festival in which people make snow sculptures of dogs, shrines and temples to pray for good health and other blessings, was recently held around a municipal gymnasium in Yuzawa, Akita Prefecture.
The festival is said to have originated about 400 years ago when a local feudal lord who had fought off bandits installed small dog sculptures made of rice flour at the entrance and windows of his house to pray for protection from similar incidents.
During the event held on Feb. 8-9, the venue was lined with 15 snow sculptures of shrines and temples with dog sculptures on both sides of them. Many people came to the venue with their dogs, and some children enjoyed climbing on the dog sculptures.
“I was surprised there were so many people with their dogs,” said Yosuke Tanaka, 41, a company employee from Akita City who visited the festival for the first time. “The snow sculptures were beautiful and magnificent.”
