You should only visit a dog café if you truly love dogs. You need to love that they will climb on your lap, lick your iPhone, make your hands smell, fight over toys, and possibly even do their business on the floor right in front of you. If you’re visiting Dog Heart, in particular, you should also love toy poodles since they make up the majority of the pups here. However, there’s also a beagle, French bulldog, cavalier, Boston terrier, Japanese chin and two lovely golden retrievers.
Unlike other animal cafés, Dog Heart doesn’t have a food or drink menu and you either pay to spend time with the dogs or rent one to take out for a stroll. Dog Heart houses 30 dogs that are switched out daily on rotation, with 12 of them available to play with during any given visit.
You can choose to stay in and enjoy the company of all the adorable pups, with playtime starting at ¥1,300 for 30 minutes. It's also possible to rent one of the dogs for an hour (from ¥3,600) and take them for a walk around the neighbourhood or nearby Yoyogi Park. Either way, it’s bound to lift your mood, as dogs tend to do.
If you opt to take a dog for a walk, you’ll be given necessities like water and bags to pick up their poop. For an extra ¥200, you can purchase a small bag of treats to feed them on your journey. On our recent visit, we took Momo, the resident French bulldog, out for a stroll. Momo is one of the pups that loves to go for walks, and those treats were much needed as she didn’t want to leave the park. We had to use something tasty to entice her to go home.
To rent a dog from Dog Heart, it’s best to call in advance so that you can secure a time and the exact dog you wish to walk. To check which dogs are available, visit here. As for playtime visits, reservations cannot be made. The shop recommends coming between 12noon and 2pm as it's less busy around that time.