OAKLAND, Calif. — Why drink alone when you can drink with your pet?

The question comes from two competing start-ups in the unlikely product category of faux wine for cats (and, to a lesser extent, dogs) that comes in miniature bottles with cutesy names. No alcohol is involved (think liquid catnip). But already the company that brought its products to market first, Apollo Peak — which calls itself “the original cat winery” — is accusing its newer competitor, Pet Winery, of being a copycat.

Both ran discount promotions for Valentine’s Day. Both have come up with clever names for their products: For $11.95, people can buy Fluffy an 8-ounce bottle of Catbernet or Pinot Meow from Apollo Peak, which is based in Denver.

Or for $14.95, they can pour 12 ounces of Meow & Chandon from Pet Winery of Fort Myers, Fla.

Since alcohol can harm cats, these products are essentially catnip water, which can make a cat loopy and an owner happy.

But based on a wine tasting I conducted at a local cat cafe-slash-adoption center, the products are primarily catnip for the owners: The shelter cats did not like wines from either company — only two of them indulged — but the people visiting the tastings loved the concept.