Japanese Cat Cafes: another idea I hope will catch on

In Bartlesville, OK, a group of cat lovers leased a run-down storefront where they run a shelter just for cats. My mother loved to visit. She'd hold and stroke and adore one after another of the many felines, who were pampered with plenty of food, kitty castles, hideaways and toys. The goal of course was to adopt out as many cats as possible, and the cats are viewed as orphans in need of rescue. Funds for food and rent are always in short supply and as the economy worsens there's a chance this kind of charity will be at risk.



But in Japan, there's a different twist on the cat sanctuary: the cat cafe or neko cafe. Apartment dwellers who often aren't allowed pets visit cat cafes to spend time petting, touching and hanging out with a bevy of beautiful felines while sipping lattes and schmoozing, paying as much as $9 US per hour for the privilege. These cats are no orphans, in fact they rule the roost. There are animal welfare groups that are attempting to set new rules forbidding that pet stores and cat cafes close at 8pm, to reduce stress on the animals. Somebody seems to have forgotten that cats are nocturnal.

The first cat cafe actually opened in Taiwan, but the concept caught fire in Japan, where there are now almost 100 in existence. And now a new neko cafe has opened in Vienna, Austria.

It's all in how you see it. Spiff up a space, serve upscale beverages, charge by the hour, and it's no longer a charity venue where people dread to view pathetic, homeless, doomed animals. Suddenly, it's got class. My mom would have loved it.

"You never have to change what you see, only the way you see it."

Thaddeus Golas