And When It Was Bad, It Was Horrid...

 

We went to Nagoya on our second cat cafe adventure, this time with a gaggle of our local friends.  To the left, you can see us pictured before our trip, in front of the promising sign of the cat cafe.  From L-R: Saya, her boyfriend, me, Rachael, and Mari (Matt is behind the iphone taking the picture).  We were all so excited!  

Then we went up.  This cat cafe left a lot to be desired, in comparison with our other, wonderful, experience in Yokohama over the winter holidays.  At the cafe in Yokohama, the worker knew each cat and treated them all as individuals, with love and care.  Also, the cats all got along, and were allowed to roam free in the main room of the cafe, disappearing when they felt like it to the back room for some chow or a bathroom break.  At this cafe, the workers treated the cats with supreme disdain, and kept them locked into one room with stacked cages and litter boxes.

What's more, we went at 5pm, and apparently dinner was served each day at 6pm.  So the entire hour, the cats paced back-and-forth in front of the door to the room.  This door was really difficult to open and close, so each time someone would try, a cat would escape and run for the kitchen.  A worker would nonchalantly grab it by whatever part was closest (sometimes the tail) and toss it back into the room.

Then I noticed the bullying problem.  Several cats were seeing who could be the biggest alpha, constantly jabbing at other cats, most of which were trying to relax or play.  Rachael got to play with a lot of the cats (one ate its toy), but she was interrupted occasionally by a few big cats trolling around for someone to beat on.  The cats never attacked any humans, but they showed their disdain for us, too, and refused pets.

Sweet little Mi.

This little cat to the right, named Mi, is the most bullied.  When we came into the cafe she was locked in the litter box, because the bigger cats had her cornered.  Whenever she tried to leave, one of them would pound on her until she cowered.  The workers were eventually alerted by cafe-goers (let me point out again that they didn't notice this obvious social problem, they were alerted by guests), and kicked the mean cat away long enough for Mi to hide herself under a nearby bench.  The meanies kept walking by to make sure she stayed there.  She eventually got out because of the concentration on dinner, and made her way to a high lookout post (with my help) where she could cower into a protective cove.

I suppose it's my slight background in psychology, and my larger background in animal behavior and biology that alerts me instantly to the social structure of my surroundings, even in a group of cats.  But I find it hard to believe that workers who see the same cats day in and day out don't notice what I could see in minutes.  I think they just don't care.  This is hard for me to take.  I wanted to sneak Mi out in my purse because I couldn't stand how she was being treated.  I'm sure I was fun to talk to for a few hours after our visit, as I couldn't stop thinking about how the cafe could be run differently so that all the cats were happy and healthy.  At the very least, if the cats are to be rotated in and out of cages, don't put the ones who don't get along out together.  It's social psychology 101, really.  In a perfect world, I'd get rid of the mean cats altogether, and form a group like the one at the Yokohama cafe, that all got along.

Rachael and the baby!

That's not to say we didn't have some fun.  When the cats were nice (or apathetic), they were cute, and at the least tolerant of our attentions.    

"Um, stop that?"

For example, to the right Rachel holds a baby kitten she bonded with, and earlier in this post Mari cuddles with a cat that hung out with us at our table.  There also was this ridiculous cat with flat ears that slept with its front paws folded together in some sort of yoga prayer position.  Saya and her boyfriend kept trying to stick their fingers in-between the paws (this escapade is pictured to the left).  The cat's only reaction was to shift a little, and yawn.  Below, Matt and I play with the same cat (whose prayer paws are clearly visible), while Rachael has fun with cats and toys in the background.

So stay tuned for my cat cafe expose: one girl, one camera, four cafes in Nagoya!  My plan is to go to each one and evaluate them.  I don't know what after that... obviously no-one's going to re-evaluate the treatment of these animals or the way a particular cafe is run based on my interpretations.  At the very least, I'll know which cat cafe I prefer, and which one I can give a strong recommendation to.  For now, I can say, don't go to Neko no Maho (The Magic of Cats).

It sounds cute, but it's a lot of sad.