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Cats in delis: they are ubiquitous, loved, objected to, necessary, and illegal. City inspectors are constantly on the prowl to ferret out deli felines, but deli owners say they are necessary fixtures to keep their businesses free of pests like mice, rats, and roaches. The New York Times has a story today on the ongoing battle between the city and the cats that are the sentinels of its delis--feline samurai who serve their masters in return for food, shelter, and the occasional scratch behind the ears.
To store owners, the services of cats are indispensable in a city where the rodent problem is serious enough to be documented in a still popular two-minute video clip on YouTube from late February (youtube.com/watch?v=su0U37w2tws) of rats running amok in a KFC/Taco Bell in Greenwich Village. Store-dwelling cats are so common that there is a Web site, workingclasscats.com, dedicated to telling their tales.
City health inspectors object, however, and the law says that animals are forbidden from any establishment where food or beverages are sold. "Any animal around food presents a food contamination threat," says a rodentologist with the city's Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene. Indeed, many bodegas and delis forbid customers from bringing their pets inside.
Back in September, a man sued Andy's Deli in Manhattan's West Village for $5 million, after he claimed that he was attacked by the store's cat. Deli and bodega owners face fines of up to $3,000 for having a cat or cats in their establishments, but they also face fines of $300 for the discovery of rodent fecal matter. Lost inventory is another cost, as rats and mice like to chew through containers and eat the food that is left overnight on shelves like a rodent buffet. Some customers object to cats in stores on the basis of feline allergies, which suggests to us the possibility of posting stickers on deli and bodega doors that say "Beware of Guard Kitties."
(Image cropped from It's a deli-CAT-essen! (October, 2006), by Herman Hernandez at flickr)
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Cue sermonizing about how terrible pet-dander is for you.
I read that something in cat dander makes people go insane -- literally! But I think you need to be around a lot of cats.
I don't really like cats that much, but who cares if they live in delis? They keep away mice and rats. They work for a living.
cats seems a pretty logical fixture in delis
CR - Wow, that was almost too perfect.
I had a cat scratch on my hand once and a colleague told me to go to the doctor b/c I could die from it. People need to get a grip. Team Deli Cats!
"the law says that animals are forbidden from any establishment where food or beverages are sold"
i guess the law forgot that we humans are also animals. i suppose we too are forbidden.
"the law says that animals are forbidden from any establishment where food or beverages are sold"
i guess the law forgot that we humans are also animals. i suppose we too are forbidden.
The bodegas in my area with cats have shelves free of droppings. I can't say the same for the cat-free Rite Aid, which as a national chain you think would have a system in place for dealing with pests.
NYC is unique in its degree of rodent infestation, and you can't apply the same set of rules as in other environments. Nothing prevents rodents better than an animal higher on the food chain.
I could care less about store cats. What I DO care about is the people who think they can bring their freakin' HUGE dogs into any store they please. It's so much fun to have to get around them inside a tiny Dunkin Donuts or at the deli. I don't understand why more owners don't throw these rude little pigs out the door.
If you have to go to the store, leave the dog at home!
To whom can we write a letter in support of deli cats?
To whom can we write a letter in support of deli cats?
Kevin, I would start with the Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/home/home.shtml and then cc: the message to your local Councilmember.
Obviously, the compromise solution to the deli cat war is the creation of an army of sentient robotic predator cats that are dander free and effective at killing other animals. What could possibly go wrong with that?
I almost forgot about an incident that almost made me throw up - I once saw a mouse FROLICKING among the candy bars in plain sight in a Manhattan Duane Reade.
Seriously, is the health department actually checking the chain stores??
I almost forgot about an incident that almost made me throw up - I once saw a mouse FROLICKING among the candy bars in plain sight in a Manhattan Duane Reade.
Seriously, is the health department actually checking the chain stores??
(sorry if this double posts)
Yet another thing in a long line of things that shouldn't be a law.
Let the market figure it out. If you just can't deal with going to a store with a guard cat, don't. Leave the rest of us alone to enjoy our deliciously rodent-free food.
And that adorable little ninja in the picture looks like she's about to ruin some vermin's day.
lol i can haz quartah watah?
lol i can haz quartah watah?
the law says that animals are forbidden from any establishment where food or beverages are sold
Sorry - but at the end of the day, if I had a choice as to which "animal" was near my deli food, I would definitely pick a cat over a rat.
sorry, TKaisen but if you think you see a ninja in that photo then it's not a ninja.
in fact, there are two ninjas behind you right now, but you can't see them. that's how good ninjas are.
Yes, because every other major problem has been solved, let the city now focus on cats in the deli. Personally I'd rather see the money spent on kicking the cats out spent on something else, but maybe I'm just being silly.
Gothamist:
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What, no comments from Zodak about how cats shouldn't be "imprisoned" in delis and maybe enslaved for vermin control as well?
Cats rule and cat haters are fools.
Natis, that's been going on for ages, especially in recent weeks. Haven't you noticed the numerous double posts? Those are all people getting errors. There are also people who quit trying after the first error and other people who realize through experience that the error is meaningless and the message went through anyway.
It basically comes down to a choice between which animal you want near your food: cats or rodents.
cats, please. thank you.
Cuz rodenticides are so much more healthy to spray around the food. Cats please. I really don't see how anyone could choose the chemicals over the cats. It makes perfect sense to me. I actually never realized thats why I always see cats in these places. Havent people used cats for this same problem for like thousands of years?
If it was really so fucking dangerous to have cats around food, you'd think there'd be a law against having them in homes with kitchens. You'd also think that thousands and thousands of New Yorkers would get sick from these wild, contaminated cats they have strolling all over their apartments like they own the place.
Fucking ridiculous. Between a) wild rodents who do not receive vet care and who knows where they've been anyway and b) house pets who are cared for and disease free, I'm gonna go with choice b. If the health department is really that fricking concerned, why not just alter the law to allow cats but require proof of regular veterinary care and vaccination?
I luv bodega catz.
I also luv pharmacy catz.
I once witnessed a cat using a barrel of brown rice for kitty litter. So keep the food covered and the litter box clean!
the fact that people are admitting that they use cats for pest control makes it obvious that they are being enslaved. at least deli owners & most people in this thread are at last being honest about it, so i didn't feel a need to mention it. but thank you for reminding everyone. as for the cats being in a deli, it doesn't bother me as much as a poor cat being trapped in some single girl's apartment all day, getting to hunt vermin is a step-up from being a baby/husband-substitute.