A baby raccoon to stroke while you sip your skinny latte? Or a snake to coil around you after your cappuccino?
Forget dog or cat cafes, Shanghai's animal cafe scene has expanded to include a wider and more exotic kingdom.
The fad in dining alongside all manner of species from raccoons to pigs and reptiles comes despite pandemic-fuelled concerns about the dangers of deadly viruses jumping from wild animals to humans.
There are dozens of animal cafes in China's biggest city, with visitors helping to drive the craze by posing for photos with the creatures and sharing them on social media.
Tucked away in central Shanghai, Raccoon Cafe is home to eight of the mammals. The biggest of them, weighing about 10 kilos (22 pounds), jumps up and down by a window, seemingly agitated by customers.
"I think it's really cute," said Qin Siyu, a 27-year-old professional volleyball player who found out about the cafe from a friend's pictures.
Customers pay from 98 yuan ($15) for entry but it is debatable how much of the venue actually functions as a cafe.
The raccoons' behaviour is too unpredictable for people to have hot drinks around them and the menu is limited.
The cafe's owner, Cheng Chen, admits she had no first-hand experience of raccoons before taking over the establishment at the end of last year.
They can be aggressive, she says, and has the scars on her wrists to prove it.
The 36-year-old understands why some people may question whether it is fair for the raccoons to be kept in a cafe, eating dog food.
Cheng, who seems to have a genuine affection for the raccoons, is an animal lover and has several dogs and cats at home.
She hopes the government will make it more difficult to own and breed such animals, to prevent them from falling into the hands of people who are less concerned about their welfare.
"Generally there's no special regulation. In fact, especially in China, the regulation for pets may be relatively weak," she said.
- 'Huge suffering' -
In another Shanghai cafe, snakes, iguanas and geckos wait to delight customers.
Owner Wang Liqun has 30 snakes, among them Corn snakes and Kingsnakes neither is venomous but they can bite. Wang is yet to have such an incident with a customer.
A visitor who gave only her surname Tang said the cafe helps people to get over their fears.
"After coming here they will feel that it's not what they thought and may find reptiles actually quite lovely," said the 27-year-old.
But Evan Sun, a scientist with World Animal Protection, said that he was "deeply concerned" about such cafes.
"Wild animals are having a miserable life in these cafes, enduring huge suffering and pressure," said Sun, the charity's wildlife campaign manager for China.
"The close interactions with wild animals not only fuel suffering and cruelty, but also creates a hotbed of diseases that could exacerbate the likelihood of zoonotic diseases' emergence and spread.
"Most customers visit animal cafes are animal lovers, but they do not know that their consumption choices have such a negative impact to both wild animals and humans."
ETX Studio
Sat Mar 13 2021
![Raccoons to snakes: Shanghai animal cafes expand to exotics Raccoons to snakes: Shanghai animal cafes expand to exotics](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2021-03/61615608185_PETS.jpg)
A raccoon interacting with cafe owner Cheng Chen during an interview with AFP at her establishment, Raccoon Cafe, in Shanghai. ETXStudiopic
10 Berita Pilihan - (16 Julai 2024
Antara pelbagai berita dalam dan luar negara yang disiarkan di Astro AWANI, berikut adalah yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari ini.
PAC beri tempoh tiga bulan kepada HRD Corp
Jawatankuasa Kira-kira Wang Negara (PAC) memberi tempoh tiga bulan kepada Perbadanan Pembangunan Sumber Manusia (HRD Corp) untuk mengemukakan laporan tindakan susulan terhadap syor jawatankuasa itu.
Kylian Mbappe tandatangan kontrak dengan Real Madrid
Bintang bola sepak Perancis Kylian Mbappe menandatangani kontrak selama lima tahun dengan kelab Sepanyol Real Madrid pada Selasa.
Pelepasan ketujuh air sisa nuklear Fukushima ke laut selesai
Jepun telah menyelesaikan pusingan ketujuh pelepasan air sisa radioaktif yang dirawat dari loji kuasa nuklear Fukushima Daiichi ke Lautan Pasifik pada Selasa.
Empat termasuk kapten maut dalam pertempuran
Empat anggota tentera India termasuk kapten meninggal dunia akibat kecederaan selepas pertempuuran pada malam isnin di Hutan Desa.
Pakistan sahkan 4 warganya terbunuh di Oman
Pakistan berkata pada Selasa empat warganya terbunuh dalam insiden tembakan pada malam Isnin berhampiran ibu negara Oman, Muscat.
Lima terbunuh, puluhan cedera dalam protes antikuota di Bangladesh
Sekurang-kurangnya empat orang terbunuh dan puluhan lagi cedera dalam pertempuran antara pelajar yang memprotes sistem kuota dalam pekerjaan sektor awam dan polis di pelbagai bahagian Bangladesh pada Selasa.
Kerajaan cadang perkenal pembiayaan swasta
Kerajaan menyasarkan untuk memperkenalkan pembiayaan swasta alternatif bagi memastikan kemampanan kewangan program sektor air, sekali gus mengurangkan kebergantungan pada perbelanjaan kerajaan dan mengukuhkan daya tahan.
Saya tak fitnah Guan Eng, cuma jelaskan siasatan SPRM - Muhyiddin
Presiden Bersatu Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin memberitahu Mahkamah Tinggi Kuala Lumpur hari ini bahawa beliau tidak memfitnah Lim Guan Eng berhubung isu pengecualian cukai terhadap Yayasan Albukhary
KPT alu-alukan dapatan, cadangan PAC - Zambry
Ini termasuklah cadangan pelaksanaan Garis Panduan Pelaburan dan Pembiayaan oleh Universiti Awam 2024 kepada anak-anak syarikat di bawah seliaan Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi (KPT).