Unveiling welfare concerns in Japanese exotic animal cafes

Exotic animal cafes are a growing phenomenon within Japanese cities. These cafes are registered under the same license as other animal exhibits such as zoos, often allowing visitors to directly touch the animals or interact with animals within close proximity. The aim of this research was to report on current standards of animal care found in Japanese exotic animal cafes according to animal class. We included 79 exotic animal cafes with data collected on observable husbandry and management conditions by four trained assessors. Qualifiable welfare standards under the quantifiable scores were used to support guidance in scoring methodology. Welfare categories were assessed to identify whether some animal classes received better care in exotic animal cafés. Kruskal-Wallis tests assessed differences in welfare scores across animal classes, with Bonferroni-adjusted pairwise comparisons identifying inter-class variation. Among 231 animals identified, 51% were mammals, 31% were birds and 18% were reptiles. Scores across all categories were low for all taxa assessed, with significant differences between animal classes for the environmental and nutritional provisions and the performance of natural behavior with birds scoring the lowest for all these categories. Results conclude a widespread lack of appropriate animal care provision across all facilities, resulting in poor welfare for a range of species. This study, the first comprehensive assessment of welfare standards in Japanese exotic animal cafes, concludes an urgent need for effectively enforced facility and national animal protection standards for captive exotic species in Japan.