去咖啡館 帶一隻貓咪回家

On a sun-drenched Saturday, Eddie Metairie wandered around the Cat Town Cafe & Adoption Center, past the miniature-golf-size buildings, cat perches and a bed shaped like a tuna can as he followed Lucia, an independent-minded brown tabby.

在一個陽光普照的週六，艾迪·梅泰裏(Eddie Metairie)正在貓鎮咖啡館兼收養中心(Cat Town Cafe & Adoption Center)四處轉悠，他跟着一隻思想獨立的棕色虎斑貓露西亞(Lucia)，經過幾處迷你高爾夫球場大小的建築、幾處供貓棲息的高臺和一張形如金槍魚罐頭的牀。

Going to a shelter to find a cat in a cage “is heartbreaking,” said Mr. Metairie, a project manager at a hotel supply company, but the Cat Town Cafe “feels organic.” He was having fun.

去動物收容所選一隻關在籠子裏的貓咪“簡直令人心碎，”在一家酒店用品公司擔任項目經理的梅泰裏說，而貓鎮咖啡館“給人很自然的感覺。”他樂在其中。

By the time his $10-an-hour playtime was up, Mr. Metairie had made plans to take the cat home and rename her Amélie.

等到每小時10美元（約合人民幣62元）的遊戲時間結束時，梅泰裏已經打算把這隻貓帶回家，併爲它改名艾米麗(Amélie)了。

The Cat Town Cafe & Adoption Center, which opened in late October and has arranged 52 cat adoptions so far, claims to be the first permanent cat cafe in the United States. Customers line up for locally brewed strong coffee, handmade bagels and “vegan fig nut pop tarts” (the proprietors clearly know their audience). When it is time to visit the cat zone, visitors push through glass doors to another world of lounging cats, all of them candidates for adoption. There are no cages.

貓鎮咖啡館兼收養中心於10月下旬開業，到目前爲止，已安排客人收養了52只貓，號稱美國第一家永久性的貓主題咖啡館。客人們排着隊來買當地鮮煮的濃咖啡、手工百吉餅和“全素無花果堅果撻”（老闆顯然很瞭解咖啡館的客戶羣）。到了參觀貓區的時間，客人們就會穿過玻璃門，進入另一個世界。那裏到處都是懶洋洋的貓咪，都在等着被收養。屋子裏是沒有籠子的。

Cat cafes are well established in Japan, where there are also owl cafes and penguin bars. There, customers are typically people who need their cat fix, because many apartment buildings in Japan do not allow cats; few cafes serve as adoption centers.

在日本，貓主題咖啡館已經非常成熟，那裏還有貓頭鷹主題的咖啡館和企鵝主題的酒吧。在那個國家裏，光臨貓主題咖啡館的客人通常都是那些需要安撫自己愛貓之心的人，因爲很多公寓樓裏是不許養貓的；於是很少有咖啡館會扮演收養中心的角色。

In the United States, there have been fitful efforts to establish similar businesses in various cities, but health department rules against keeping Animals in the same place where food is served have gotten in the way. Demand, however, is fairly obvious: A pop-up cat cafe in New York City, open for only a few days this year, drew an almost comically long line of customers and high level of attention online.

在美國，已經不時有人在各地開發類似的業務，但是衛生部門規定，不得在爲客人供應食品的地方飼養動物，這就對業務發展構成了阻礙。然而市場需求相當明顯：紐約市新開的一家貓主題咖啡館，今年纔開張幾天，客人就排成了令人瞠目結舌的長龍。在網上也獲得了大量關注。

So cat-loving entrepreneurs here have largely ditched the Japanese model in favor of a charitable one that separates the cats from the food and emphasizes adoption. Since Cat Town opened here in Oakland, cat cafes have sprung up in Denver and in Naples, Fla. On Monday, the first permanent cat cafe in Manhattan — Meow Parlour, at 46 Hester Street — opened, started by the owners of Macaron Parlour, a pair of Manhattan bakeries.

因此，本土的愛貓創業人士基本上已經拋棄了日本模式，取而代之的是一個慈善經營模式，將貓和用餐區分離開來，並強調收養。自從貓鎮咖啡館在奧克蘭開張後，貓主題咖啡館就如雨後春筍般，出現在了丹佛和佛羅里達州的那不勒斯(Naples)。本週一（12月15日——譯註），曼哈頓第一家永久性的貓主題咖啡館在海斯特街(Hester Street)46號開張，名爲“喵星人會客室”(Meow Parlour)，創立者是曼哈頓一家烘焙店“馬卡龍會客室”(Macaron Parlour)的店主夫婦。

When word got out that Meow Parlour was coming, so many people signed up for appointments that the cafe’s website crashed. In 20 hours, 1,000 appointments were filled, said Christina Ha, a co-owner.

當喵星人會客室即將開張的消息傳開後，由於註冊預約的人數太多，以至於咖啡館的網站都崩潰了。作爲所有者之一，克里斯蒂娜·哈(Christina Ha)說，在20個小時內，1000個預約名額就滿了。

More cat cafes are planned for San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle. With the popularity of cat videos and the emergence of individual cats as name-brand stars — if you have not heard of Lil Bub or Grumpy Cat, consult Google — the understudy to man’s best friend seems to be taking center stage.

在舊金山、洛杉磯和西雅圖，還有更多正在規劃中的貓主題咖啡館。隨着貓視頻的走紅和明星貓的出現——如果你還沒聽說過Lil Bub或不爽貓(Grumpy Cat)，請自行谷歌。這些替補“人類最好的朋友”的小傢伙，似乎即將佔據舞臺的中央位置。

“Suddenly, it’s O.K. to show off your cat,” Ms. Ha said. “You’re not a crazy cat lady anymore — you’re the owner of a great cat.”

“突然之間，炫耀自己的貓咪已經變成無傷大雅的事情了，”哈說，“在別人眼裏，你已經不再是個瘋狂的愛貓女，而變成了萌貓主人。”

While visitors may view a cat cafe as a sort of indoor playspace for cat-loving adults, the intent is serious. An estimated 1.4 million cats (and 1.2 million dogs) are euthanized annually, said Matt Bershadker, the president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals of New York. Those numbers were much higher 10 years ago, he said. “Any innovative effort” to encourage adoption “is extremely important,” he said.

雖然貓主題咖啡館在客人眼裏，或許是愛貓者的室內遊樂場，但是它們的初衷是嚴肅的。位於紐約的美國防止虐待動物協會(American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)的會長馬特·柏沙德克爾(Matt Bershadker)說，據估計，每年有140萬隻貓（及120萬條狗）被安樂死。他指出，十年前的數字還要大得多。只要能鼓勵收養，“任何具有創新性的努力都是至關重要的。”他說。

Few animals thrive in shelters, with cats having an especially difficult time. Many become sick, and most do not show well, said Joan Schaffner, an expert on animal law and associate professor at George Washington University Law School.

喬治華盛頓大學(George Washington University)法學院的動物法專家、副教授瓊·夏弗納(Joan Schaffner)說，很少有動物能在收容所裏茁壯成長，貓在收容所的日子尤其艱難。很多貓都會生病，大多數看起來狀況都不好。

It used to be that animal shelters were located next to the town dump, said Rich Avanzino, the chief executive of Maddie’s Fund, a rescue group that has helped fund the Oakland cafe. Things have improved, he said, but, “most cats still are caged.”

麥迪基金會(Maddie’s Fund)是一個救援機構，它幫助奧克蘭的那家咖啡館募集了資金。基金會的首席執行官裏奇·阿萬奇諾(Rich Avanzino)說，以前動物收容所的旁邊就是鎮裏的垃圾場。他說，現在情況已經好轉，但是，“大多數貓依然關在籠子裏。”

Mr. Avanzino continued, “That’s why Cat Town Cafe is such great idea — it takes them out of an ugly environment and puts them in an appealing situation where they can connect with lots of people who may adopt them.”

阿萬奇諾接着說，“正因爲如此，開設貓鎮咖啡館的主意太偉大了——它可以讓貓脫離惡劣的環境，享受優越的條件，同很多願意收養它們的人建立聯繫。”

Ann Dunn, a co-founder of Cat Town Cafe, runs a rescue organization that finds homes for cats. Her cafe houses older, shy cats that, if not adopted, likely would be killed at a shelter. Ms. Dunn used to work in public housing and became “obsessed with the problem” of unwanted cats. She posted adoption notices on Craigslist, found foster homes for cats and “dreamed of a cat sanctuary with a cafe.” she said. She decided, “If we said, ‘Come meet cats and adopt them,’ probably people wouldn’t come,” but coffee and pastries seemed like a low-pressure lure (and while the food is served away from the cats, people can bring it in when they enter the cat zone).

貓鎮咖啡館的聯合創始人安·鄧恩(Ann Dunn)，還經營着一家旨在爲貓咪尋找住處的救援機構。她的咖啡館裏也收留了一些年紀較大、性格羞怯的貓。這些貓如果沒被收養，很可能就會在收容所裏被殺死。鄧恩曾供職於公共住房機構，沒人願意收養的貓，變成了她的“心病”。她說自己曾在Craigslist網站上發佈徵集收養者的告示，爲貓尋找寄養家庭，“夢想着以咖啡館的形式開一家貓咪庇護所。”她得出結論，“如果我們說，‘過來看貓吧，你可以收養它們，’人們也許不會來，但是咖啡和糕點似乎是一個沒什麼壓力的誘惑（雖然用餐區和貓活動區是分隔開的，但是人們進入貓活動區的時候，可以把食物帶進去）。

She met Adam Myatt, who produced feral cat calendars, using models from his Oakland neighborhood, and shared her obsession. They raised $40,000 on the crowdfunding site Indiegogo to get started. Making money has never been the issue; it is all about saving cats, they said.

她結識了製作野貓日曆的亞當·邁亞特(Adam Myatt)。日曆模特都是他在奧克蘭住的社區裏找到的。兩人在衆籌網站Indiegogo上募集了4萬美元，作爲起步。他們說，賺錢從來就不是問題；最重要的是要拯救貓。

One recent Saturday, a Swedish tourist came by Cat Town after riding San Francisco’s cable cars. Parents brought their children. Leslie White came with her inhaler, explaining, “I love cats, but I’m allergic to them.”

最近的一個星期六，一名瑞典遊客在乘坐了舊金山纜車後，路過貓鎮咖啡館。一般家長都會帶孩子進來，而萊斯利·懷特(Leslie White)則帶上了她的霧化吸入器，她解釋說：“我喜歡貓，但我對它們過敏。”

“If I have a maternal urge,” Ms. White said, snuggling, if momentarily, with a seated cat, “it’s not toward humans, it’s toward cats.”

“如果說我有母性衝動，”懷特說着，做了個依偎的動作，彷彿那一時刻，她的旁邊有一隻坐着的貓，“那不是對人的，而是對貓的。”

Cat Town has a liberal return policy. A few people who had been providing foster homes decided the cats “were not a good fit,” Ms. Dunn said, and returned them. But that is the exception, and Mr. Myatt predicted that within a year, the cafe will have placed 300 cats in homes. It charges a $50 adoption fee for one cat and $75 for two, and cats with medical issues are free.

貓鎮咖啡館實行寬鬆的“退貨”政策。鄧恩表示，有些人家收養了貓之後，覺得它“不太適合住在他們家裏”，就把貓送了回來。但是，這種情況只是個例。邁亞特預測，在一年之內，咖啡館就能幫300只貓找到安家之所。客人領養一隻貓，咖啡館收費50美元（約合人民幣310元）；領養兩隻貓，收費75美元（約合人民幣465元）；如果領養的貓患有疾病，則免費。

Ms. Dunn serves as matchmaker. She listened to Robert McCafferty, a retired computer teacher, who said he needed a companion for Rudy, as in Rudolph Valentino, his old cat. (It was not clear who had the greater need for the additional cat, Rudy or his owner.)

鄧恩扮演的是媒人的角色。有一次，她接待了退休計算機教師羅伯特·麥卡弗蒂(Robert McCafferty)。麥卡弗蒂說，他需要給自家的老貓魯迪(Rudy)找個伴。魯迪得名於電影明星魯道夫·瓦倫蒂諾(Rudolph Valentino)。（我們也不知道究竟是誰更需要再找一隻貓，是魯迪還是他的主人。）

Ms. Dunn introduced Mr. McCafferty to Winston, a white cat with black splotches who plays well with others.

鄧恩給麥卡弗蒂介紹了溫斯頓(Winston)——一隻很好相處的黑斑白貓。

“I like the companionship — it’s unconditional love,” Mr. McCafferty said as he glanced approvingly at Winston, curled in the tuna can bed. Mr. McCafferty was smitten, if not by the name then by the cat. He eagerly filled out adoption papers and borrowed a cat carrier from Cat Town, then he and his wife took Winston home.

“我喜歡這個伴侶——這是無條件的愛。”麥卡弗蒂說着，讚許地看了一眼溫斯頓，他正蜷縮在那張形如金槍魚罐頭的牀上。麥卡弗蒂被迷住了，如果迷住他的不是貓的名字，那就是貓咪本身了。他熱切地填好收養文件，從貓鎮咖啡館借了運輸籠，然後和妻子將溫斯頓帶回了家。