‘Lucky’ owls are the latest animal to join Japan’s growing list of themed pet cafes but welfare groups are calling for the practice to stop. Several owl species sit tied to a makeshift wooden perch as a TV plays a loud, animated owl-themed film behind them in the dimly lit room.
Fukuro, which is the Japanese word for owl, means good luck or protection from hardship. Here, owls aren’t merely lucky, they’re cute, or kawaii, which is a culture all on its own in Japan.
Owls have acute hearing and vision and are birds of prey who have evolved perfectly for flight and precision hunting,’ said Peta in a statement. It’s cruel to deny wild animals the opportunity to fulfil their basic behavioural needs by intensively confining them and exposing them to constant human harassment.’
Though owl cafe practices vary in Japan, with only some allowing petting, animal rights groups believe many of them violate legal welfare requirements by restraining owls with ropes and disrupting natural sleep cycles by keeping them awake during the day.
It is believed that Japan passed its first animal welfare legislation in 1973 just in time for a visit from Queen Elizabeth II. For the time being, animal cafes are on the rise in Japan. According to the website Where in Tokyo, the Japanese capital has 48 animal cafes featuring a range of inhabitants, from cats and dogs to birds and snakes.
In the UK, where pet owls are legal, ownership was negligible prior to the publication of the Harry Potter books, spiked during the height of the series’ popularity, and dropped off by the time the final book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was published. Once people realised the cost and complexity of caring for an owl, they abandoned their feathered pets.
Japan’s attractions do not claim to advance conservation. Animal experts acknowledge that cafes may foster animal appreciation but say they are more likely to inspire customers to buy pet owls than donate to animal welfare.