PATTAYA, Thailand – They say that Pattaya has something for everyone and that must include cat lovers. There are currently several cat cafes in the area, all guaranteeing feline company in relaxed circumstances whilst you sip a drink and offer wholesome treats to those moggies who choose to take up your offer. Cats are notoriously independent, so some will inevitably do their best to ignore you.
The largest and most recently opened is Cat Sky Bar Cafe, located on the fourth floor of the Royal Garden Plaza and directly above Ripley’s Horror Hospital and Grimsby and Streaper’s funeral services. Entrance is 250 baht or US$8, but there’s an additional 40 baht to buy a modest portion of diced chicken. Humans can also enjoy drinks and snacks in a reserved area.
The view is glorious, overlooking the bay, and cat fanciers will love the 15 or so felines mostly snoozing in aircon comfort. Some will show interest as you offer a chicken treat on previously provided tongs. Stroking and greeting are fine, but picking up or heavy petting are frowned on by both the cats and the owners. However, no sign of spitting, scratching or biting – these feline careerists have evidently risen above bad temper.
Sunshine Cat Cafe, along the Naklua Road, is more compact in area but is otherwise similar with a smaller number of pussy residents. Admission is cheaper, 200 baht including a soft drink, and you can buy a feline vitamin treat for 25 baht. You are limited to one hour of adoring the cats which should be enough even for feline fanatics. As with Sky Bar, the cats are mostly much larger than the Thai average breed and likely include many foreign thoroughbreds.
Cat cafes date back to 1998 in Taiwan, but the notion was quickly adopted in Japan where most city people live in tiny apartments with no pets allowed. Thus cat cafes are an alternative to actual ownership, allowing fanciers to lower their blood pressure in the company of the beautiful strangers. These days cat cafes have become a popular phenomenon especially in Asia, Europe and North America.
Some cat cafes worldwide also serve as adoption agencies. But this wouldn’t work in Thailand as there are thousands of strays already. The fear is that people would try to dump numerous cats and kittens on the cafes without providing the resources to feed, spay or care for them medically. Cat cafes are about making a profit not providing a free public service.
Britain’s animal welfare association, RSPCA, says that animal cafes worldwide should be phased out. The argument is that the cats can become distressed as they are forced to communicate continually with strangers – a behavior contrary to their nature. In some countries, cafes with dogs, reptiles and even owls are to be found, a phenomenon which raises other animal rights questions.
Yet these Pattaya cat cafes are properly registered as businesses and well run: the cats are kept in very clean and hygienic accommodation with constant access to food and water. Are they content with their lot? It certainly looks so, though felines will never share their secrets with us. We are mere humans.
