Animal Cafes

Tokyo, Japan

by Isaac Strauss

An animal cafe is a place where you play with animals and dine at the same time.

The first animal cafe opened in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1998. It was a cat cafe called Cat Flower Garden. In 2004, Osaka’s Cat’s Time (the first Japanese cat cafe) opened and in 2005 Neko no Mise, both being cat cafes. Soon after cat cafes went to Asia, Europe, and some parts of North America. After some time Animal Cafes went to other animals, capybaras, pigs, hedgehogs, goats, snakes, spiders, owls and more. Japan is known for its Animal Cafes and variety of animals. Mini Pigs or Mipigs are the most common Animal Cafes.

Personal note:

Animal Cafes are very relaxing and fun. The ones we went to were a mipig and a capybara cafe. Because the capybara cafe is so popular, my incredible father had to wake up at midnight and finish booking within four minutes.

l liked the mini pig cafe better because the pigs were more cuddly and small than the capybaras. Also, there were more of them than the capybaras. I was allergic to the capybaras but after a little while I got used to it. At the capybara cafe you had to get a drink; you couldn’t just play with the capybaras.