Unveiling welfare concerns in Japanese exotic animal cafes.

ABSTRACT: 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 diffe

SUBMITTER: Tanaka A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12712171 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature