出典:JAPAN TODAY
Article from Dec. 2022:
New unlimited cat subscription service in Japan blasted online
Dec 15 was the launch day for Neko Hodai, which some observers are calling a cat subscription service. In other words, for a monthly fee of 380 yen, you can acquire a cat of your choice from a participating shelter and also freely return the said cat to the same or another participating shelter.
Once news of the new service spread, many cat lovers online were immediately appalled at the idea of temporarily owning a cat and then returning it, considering such a system tantamount to animal abuse. Comments such as the ones below argue that, like many animals, cats undergo a great deal of stress when being relocated to a new environment and shouldn’t be seen as an object that can be easily shipped around.
“That’s disgusting.”
“Cats can die from the stress of moving. This is really dark.”
“Is this even legal?”
“Cats should be given a home, not passed around with all the stress that comes with it.”
A lot of the anger was directed at the way the service is marketed as well. The name Neko Hodai uses the term hodai which is often found in words like tabehodai (“all-you-can-eat”) or nomihodai (“all-you-can-drink”). These unlimited food and drink offers elicit a sense of at-will consumption with reckless abandon that is pretty much the antithesis of caring pet ownership.
However, Nora Neko Bank, the Tokyo-based company that runs Neko Hodai, explains on their website that the service is mainly aimed at elderly people who are capable of providing good homes and in need of companionship, but worry about what might happen should they pass away before their cat. In this way, Neko Hodai acts as a sort of intermediary between owners and shelters should a cat suddenly find itself no longer with an owner.
Neko Hodai has no additional charges for accepting or returning cats and they are all spayed or neutered at Nora Neko Bank’s expense as well. It’s hard to say for sure without a closer look at how they operate, but it appears that Neko Hodai is operating more as a public service than a purely profit driven company.
It’s definitely not an ideal solution to an ever-present problem, but if handled with the utmost care the core concept seems like it could potentially help to reduce the amount of animal abuse out there.
猫サブスク「ねこホーダイ」に断固反対。獣医師が本気で訴える5つの理由
Questions:
What do you think of this article?
Do you agree or disagree with this new service?
Would you like to try this service?
Are you using any subscription service?
Do you like all-you-can-eat restaurant or do you often go to all-you-can-eat restaurants?
When you hear the word "Hodai" or "all-you-can-***", what comes to your mind first?
Do you have a pet? Have you ever had an unusual pet?