Cat cafés: A cup of joy or just bittersweet?

Their number has exploded over recent years, but not without courting controversy. So are they kitty amazing or a feline farce? Dan Green paid a visit to form his own opinion from scratch

I’ve never owned a cat. Don’t shoot me for this confession before we’ve even started, as I hold nothing against them, it’s just that circumstances have dictated a big fat “no” at various times for different reasons. On a more serious note, animal cruelty is an eternally hot topic, and rightly so, but why have cat cafés become embroiled in such debates?

Like many wonderfully offbeat innovations, these establishments have their roots in the Far-East. They’ve gained global popularity, no doubt about that, and Britain now has well in excess of 7,000 cat cafés. They include Tabby Teas in Sheffield, Cardiff’s Feline Good, and Mog on the Tyne in – you guessed it – Newcastle.

Sitting down to a cappuccino in Nottingham’s less elaborately named Kitty Café, it was easy to see the appeal. Modern media loves to encourage us to “live our best lives”, and as these cats are all rescue animals – and available for rehoming – they’re surely doing just that, or at least a much-improved version. Clearly the customers love the cats too, in turn living their best lives – at least for the hour they get to spend in Kitty Café.

I’ve been aware of cat cafés for several years, but never been naive enough to think that they’re a hit with everybody (which provided the inspiration for this feature in the first place). With this in mind, I was keen to gauge the opinion of a charity, so who better to contact than Cats Protection. In the reply sent by email, their stance was clear and entirely valid.

“As the UK’s largest cat charity, we are concerned about the welfare implications of having a number of cats in a limited space with groups of people unknown to them coming and going throughout the day,” they stated. “We believe this kind of environment is unsuitable because they have evolved as solitary animals and generally do not choose to live in social groups.

“It is very likely that some or all of the cats involved will become stressed as a result of being in a confined space with a continually changing group of people. This is because domestic cats have shared ancestry with the African wildcat so we still see a lot of these behaviours in our pet cats today. This is not an ‘outdated’ view; in fact, recent research into cat behaviour counters the opinion that cats living in groups do not suffer social stress.”

This research was partially the work of the notable anthrozoologist John Bradshaw, amongst others. Cats Protection were also concerned that “if the intention is to home cats from the café, this would create a ‘rolling’ population of rescue cats.” A very plausible argument, but, unlike a Cornish Rex, it’s not all black-and-white.

That one-hour window allotted to each and every patron who visits the café is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to rules and regulations ensuring feline welfare. The one that sticks in my mind is that you’re never to disturb a sleeping kitty, followed in second by no flash photography. Combined with the loving, spacious environment, plus the fact that there’s easy access to a staff/cats only area whenever they need a break from the general public (the cats that is), it’s hard to criticise. I actually thought I’d made a friend in Cinnamon, who came and sat next to me not even five minutes in. I was told afterwards that this particular sofa just happens to be Cinnamon’s favourite seat, but I’ll take it!

My final verdict? Although the concerns of organisations like Cats Protection aren’t unfounded, I’m going to have to respectfully disagree. It might seem too simplistic an argument, and harks back to the Catch-22 argument that is commonly used to debate zoos, but cat café conditions are infinitely preferable to being stuck outside during a cold, British winter.

Come to that, the streets of Miami probably wouldn’t be much fun, either, so where does that leave our feline friends? To enjoy café life, which they clearly do. The various pros and cons will be discussed as long as these establishments are open, but these are domestic animals at the end of the day, and while conditions may not be a feline utopia, cruelty is non-existent.

Have you visited a cat café before? If so, what do you think? Maybe you’re on the side of Cats Protection. Whatever your thoughts, please let us know in the comments box.