It's Reservations Only At The Cat Cafe

A new cafe has opened in Australia, and business is already booming such that the owners are having to turn customers away at the door. Their secret? Cats. Thirteen of them, in fact.

According to an article in ABC, the kitties (all rescues, by the way) are the main draw at Cat Cafe Melbourne, where punters can mingle with the felines for $10 an hour.

Ironically, cafe owner, Anita Loughran, is herself allergic to cats, not that the allergy has stood in the way of her business model—to give cat lovers (decidedly a less social bunch than dog lovers) a hangout.

"[In the early morning] they're a little bit playful because they've had their breakfast so you'll see people playing with the cats. There's probably a few on laps as well."

There is a bevy of "scratching frames, toys, tunnels, hidey-holes," as well as places for the cats to escape the public, if need be.

All visitors are welcome—bar young children—to the cafe, which is open 11 hours a day, seven days a week.

Though they may sound like a novelty, cat cafes have been around a while in Japan and some parts of Europe. They first opened their doors in 1998, in Taiwan.

Glorified pet store or precious pet therapy?

Not everyone shares Australia's enthusiasm for its feline friends.