Kangaroos are used for advertising in a surprisingly large array of Japanese businesses.
Sometimes, the connection to the leaping marsupial is obvious and needs no other explanation.
Other times, the link is less apparent. Even so, the reason for using the Australian symbol is rarely given.
A rare exception to this case is the Tanida Dental Clinic based in the Hyogo Prefecture city of Nishinomiya in western Japan.
At first glance, there seems to be little reason for a dental clinic to use a kangaroo and joey to advertise its business.
But the clinic provides an explanation for why it does so (and it can be read here in Japanese).
The clinic explains that its logo is a kangaroo and joey because child orthodontic care is something best carried out by parents and their children working as a team.
The kangaroo connection continues with the clinic’s monthly newsletter, called the Kangaroo Tsushin, or Kangaroo Communications.