Dogs, cats and other cute animals can provide stress-relief thanks to their lovable faces and gestures. When I see my Russian tortoise “Su-chan” at home in the evening, his large black eyes and innocent face always makes my fatigue from my two-hour-plus train commute to and from work just melt away.

While I know many aren’t as lucky as I am to have Su-chan to come home to, Moff, an animal café near Cam Zama, offers the opportunity to spend some quality time with members of the animal kingdom. At the café you can meet owls, chicks, marmots, rabbits, tortoises, snakes and lizards. You can also feed the chicks, owls and turtles.

Take photos with the sloth and iguanas, but visitors are not allowed to touch them.

The café’s modern interior was cozy and the lizards and iguanas welcomed me with a close gaze. However, as soon as I spotted the large African Spurred Tortoise walking about the room, I made a beeline for it. As an owner of a tortoise myself, I couldn’t help but be drawn to the one at Moff.

Visitors around me were being assisted by staff to hold a parakeet or owl on their shoulders. Others were enjoying spending time with the fluffy, yellow chicks.

Next, one of the staff members encouraged me to touch a large Carpet Python snake. I was reluctant but the dry, smooth python reminded me of touching a Persian carpet. The python usually enjoys a dinner of frozen mice, the staff member said, but I didn’t dare feed it and moved on to check out the other areas of the café.

You can spend unlimited time at the café. If you get thirsty, soda and tea are available from a vending machine. Most of the other customers were enjoying playing with the animals instead.

I spent 30 minutes there visiting with all the animals and was glad I did. The café is inside BiNAWALK shopping mall, only within a couple of minutes from Odakyu Ebina Station. Plan a visit and get ready to meet some cute animals and reptiles!

Moff is a pet café chain and has dozens of shops throughout Japan. Find the nearest one to you online.

Things to know

• Hours: 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Sun. – Fri.

• Location: ViNAWALK Gobankan [3f] 1-4-1 Chuo, Ebina City, Kanagawa Prefecture

• Admission: Middle schoolers or older 1,200 yen, age 4 - elementary schoolers 700 yen 

• URL

• Instagram

• Tel: 046-204-4311

Camp Zama

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