It’s the kind of thing to make a cat lover swoon and a health inspector squirm; cat cafes are opening up all around Tokyo, and they are proving to be a big hit with locals.
Upon entering a cat café, customers are asked to take off their shoes, sanitise their hands, place their bag in a locker, and take an ID card. They can then take a seat, sip some tea, and receive visits from the resident cats.
The rules in one such café, Calico, are as follows:
· Wear your cat-access pass around your neck at all times
· No one under 5th grade may enter
· Cats too young to be held have scarves around their necks
· Do not hold or stroke a cat if it resists you
· Never wake a napping cat, and,
· Bringing cat nip or cat food to the cafe is strictly forbidden.
Two years ago, Calico was a rarity. Now there are as many as 39 cat café establishments in Tokyo and that number is expected to rise.
According to some, cat cafes fill a void in what is increasingly becoming a childless and aging nation. Those with more money and time can afford to keep their own cats and puppies, but for the rest who are starved of time or live in no-pet apartments, there are cat cafes.
Article Source - Global Post April 2009 Images from Info Barrel
