Farmers reap profits as handmade straw kitty digs prove a hit... Braided straw houses for cats, a specialty of Sakaemura, Nagano Prefecture, have become increasingly popular among cat lovers in urban areas despite the relatively high prices - the larger model selling for more than 12,000 yen. The rustic, temple bell-shaped cat houses are manufactured by elderly farmers. The recent growth in popularity of the basketlike items has provided an important source of income for the elderly farmers during winter after the end of harvest in the snowy mountain village. The neko tsugura cat houses range from 7,000 yen to 12,000 yen, according to the village's website. "I have many, many letters," said Kanetoshi Fujiki, 79, who is known as a master of making the tsugura containers in the village's Niteno district, showed a carefully kept collection of thank-you notes from his customers. They include letters from Tokyo, Yokohama and Gifu, most of which include photographs of cats resting inside their new handmade homes. Even in a warm winter, it is quite common to see snow three meters deep in the village's Niteno district. Near the village government building, an accumulation of 7.85 meters of snow - a national record - was recorded on Feb. 12, 1945. Before making the cat houses, Fujiki first must dry straw taken from his paddy field for a week. Unless the straw is completely dried, it will not turn the beautiful white colour desired and can become moldy or infested with insects. Fujiki then carefully pounds the straw to soften it, and spends his time between December and April braiding the material. It takes about five days to complete a cat house weighing about five kilograms, Fujiki said. Because of the time he needs to prepare the material, he can only make about 20 cat houses each winter. When the village thrived on forestry, the villagers braided and wove waraji sandals and snow boots from straw for their own use. These techniques, handed down for generations, are now utilized to produce the cat houses. Fujiki's skill at braiding is regarded as second to none in the village as he can uniformly braid and make the cat's entrance a perfect rectangle. The neko tsugura manufactured by the villagers are sold through a village government-managed corporation to customers by mail order. More than 300 cat houses were sold during winter. Although customers who have ordered cat houses since March will have to wait until next winter for delivery, the corporation has received many orders. But the village's aging and declining population has cast a shadow over cat house production as there are no young successors to replace of Fujiki and other skillful braiders. About 70 people started making cat houses 20 years ago, but only 25 are currently active. Fujiki also finds it increasingly difficult to apply the force needed to braid the straw. Obtaining high-quality straw also has become difficult. "The cat house producers are all granddads and grannies. This isn't a business for young people. So the future looks bleak," Fujiki said. |