Wild animal cafes become a 'trend' in Japan, WFF warns of heat

WWF has discovered many dangerous bacteria such as E.coli and Salmonella in cafes that allow customers to touch otters, snowy owls, and meerkats... which are flourishing in Japan.

Owls on display in a cafe in Japan - Photo: MAINICHI

According to the Mainichi newspaper, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has warned that “wildlife cafés” – cafes where customers can come into direct contact with rare animals – are at risk of becoming new “hotbeds of infectious diseases”, as Japan becomes increasingly famous for this type of business.

WWF surveyed 25 cafes in Tokyo, Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures that advertised having at least 10 rare animal species for customers to see, touch or pet.

The results recorded 1,702 animals, including 459 rare species such as snowy owls, Asian small-clawed otters and meerkats. However, 19 of the 25 facilities had no protective fences or supervisors, increasing the risk of visitors being injured.

Regarding disease control, test results of animal samples showed the presence of many dangerous bacteria such as E.coli O157 detected in 4 restaurants, Salmonella in 2 restaurants and antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus in 7 restaurants.

Nearly half of the establishments did not have hand washing facilities, and only 14 required customers to disinfect their hands upon leaving, suggesting that the owners were not taking human disease prevention seriously.

Currently, Japan has about 100 "wild animal cafes" style cafes.

At these cafes, the raising and contact with wild animals is managed quite loosely compared to other countries such as South Korea - a country that has banned this model since 2023.

According to WWF representatives, displaying and trading rare animals can lead to overexploitation, extinction, and endanger public health.

Professor Mayumi Ishizuka from Hokkaido University said that unlike domesticated dogs and cats, wild animals carry many bacteria and viruses that have not been well studied, making “wild animal cafes” an ideal environment for pathogens to develop.

She called on the Japanese government to tighten animal welfare laws to ensure human safety and the rights of animals being exploited for human entertainment.

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Trieu Phuong

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/quan-ca-phe-thu-hoang-thanh-mot-o-nhat-ban-wff-canh-bao-nong-20251011151453283.htm