What is it about cats in Japan?

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I've only noticed this a couple days ago, but I wonder how cats in Japan are different (personality-wise) than cats elsewhere.

I've noticed that they tolerate things stacked on top of them,


that they didn't mind being dressed up in costumes,


and that they overall appreciate the attention that their humans are giving them, and pretty much treated like actual family members.


Okay, so maybe the last one sometimes apply to cats elsewhere, but still...

Were they given attention in Japan as much as they were in Egypt back then, or was it the environment of Japan that makes them so trainable? This thread could be just me, though.

In ancient Egypt cats tolerated humans because they had a food supply - rodents, and humans let the cats stay with them because they killed the rodents that would have eaten all their grain, so win-win I guess.

There is a breed of cat called the Japanese Bobtail, which has a short, fluffy tail. They are very smart, friendly and affectionate. The Maneki-neko statue is modeled after a Japanese Bobtail. They appear a lot in anime and manga, and Hello Kitty is kind of like one. Maybe all cats are popular in Japan for this reason. But not many people can own them because they don't have the space.

Maybe cats are gradually becoming more dependent on humans because more people now actually take care of them the way they'd take care of, say, a dog. It wasn't that long ago when people would bring in the dog but put the cat out for the night.

I think those poor cats don't stand a chance.

When I lived in Japan, the village housewives would show up at my doorstep and dress me up in all sorts of stuff. Once a kimono (well that one makes sense) but then a sari (makes less sense, but I am a foreigner and the sari is a foreign dress so maybe some logic there) once I got dressed up for harvest season (my face was painted and I wore strange clothes, I will hunt for a photograph) and then I was bounced up and down on the top of a large platform carried by 8 women swigging beer and sake. I didn't stand a chance. They were relentless and it would have been extremely rude to refuse.

Thankfully this was before Facebook and instagram otherwise I would have been plastered everywhere. As it was they made me stand in funny positions whilst all exclaiming "kawaiiiii" (cute) at the top of their voices interspersed with general annoyance that I couldn't stand or smile quite like a Japanese woman could.

In my village at least... they had too much time on their hands.

In Japan they even train, and housebreak trees. Ever hear of bonsai?

I am sure that the average dog and cat in Japan can probably read, and do calculus, at a higher level than the average human American high school senior!