It’s hard to understand why anyone would visit an animal cafe in Japan. There are countless reasons why you shouldn’t—horrible conditions, neglect, disease, stress, and even connections with organized crime just scratch the surface. We can only assume those who go are either ignorant to the suffering and plight of the animals or simply don’t care.
If you fall into the latter, it’s hard to sympathize with you. However, if you really didn’t know just how awful animal cafes are and are planning a visit during a trip to Japan, here’s a look at what actually goes on behind the scenes.
A lot of dead owls
Owls are badass wizards of the forest. They have super hearing, silent flight, and eyes that look right through your soul. Seeing them chained to a box, under fluorescent lights, desperately trying to fly away while hundreds of tourists poke at them is maddening.
Animal cafes claim that they give their animals time for rest, essentially a break as if they are working on the clock. In reality, that “rest time” appears to be nothing more than going into a small box in a back room. According to this former owl cafe employee, even owls “resting” were exposed to people.
That’s only the beginning of the whistleblower’s leaks on the shop’s inhumane practices, which left the owls dying in droves.
“At the beginning, the owner of the shop just sat back and let them die without veterinary treatment,” he says. “During business hours, they prioritized business, saying they could not take the sick owls to a veterinarian because they needed to manage the shop. After so many owls died, they finally took a sick bird to a veterinarian.”
It gets worse.
Click here to read more.
- External Link
- https://gaijinpot.com/
16 Comments
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No Business
Japanese pet shops are also inhumane, just like their zoos.
Pukey2
oldman_13:
If the owls are left on the streets, they can fly away (to freedom).
I really can't understand how you think whenever you make a post.
These places and the people who run these places are sick, selfish and evil.
N.M.
I have been to a cat café once and the experience was underwhelming. The animals looked bored, drugged or both. Never again.
commanteer
I have a great offer for you. It's called Gaijin Cafe. We put a lead and collar on you and keep you chained up inside like that for the rest of your life, so young women and their boyfriends can eat cake while they pat you on the head and poke you. Much safer than being free, where you might get hurt or killed.
lucabrasi
@commanteer
How did you know?
Disturbingly close to my married life....
browny1
Many in Japan's twisted fascination with kawaii has helped create this animal cafe boom and maintain the 19thC mindset to zoos.
I'm only guessing, but I'd say most of the ooohhh and aaahhers kawaiing over captive/caged/tethered animals know zilch about the animals themselves.
If they did I'd assume they'd be horrified.
Only need 1 case of feline to human or bird to human or rabbit to human infectious virus jumping and millions would shriek.
I hope that never occurs, but people's ignorance is numbing.
nandakandamanda
Having read the article above, and the comments below, I am now glad I did not click on the "Click here to read more". Are they all as bad as that? They sound much worse than I ever imagined.
Speed
Heartbreaking watching both the owl and reptile convention videos. I've even grow to dislike zoos even though I loved them as a kid.
Maybe we deserved to get covid. Doing this kind of disgusting thing to animals might be nature's payback.
Animals don't belong in cages or tanks. They deserve the one life they've been given.
GW
yeah animal cafe's are a really BAD idea & owls are extremely hard to care for & actually very fragile, don't believe me then watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZKIokef7Mg
bass4funk
Anyway, I agree with you and have even more on the topic, but yes, you are 110% correct.
oldman_13
Talk about cherry picking, pet cafes are far more humane than being left out on the streets or hurt/killed by animals, people, or vehicles outside.