Cats With Jobs That No One Asked Them to Do

Larry the Cat is arguably one of the most famous felines in the UK, and it’s not hard to see why. The Tabby has become something of a social media sensation, with visiting world leaders like Emmanuel Macron praising his “wonderful” online presence and cheekily asking who runs his Twitter account (apparently, he does it himself). But Larry already had a lot on his plate when he took up the post of chief mouser at 10 Downing Street in 2011 – the prime minister’s residence has over 100 rooms, you know. That’s a lot of patrolling to do. 

On top of that, he’s had a lot of humans to oversee: no less than five prime ministers of varying competence have shared the rooms of Larry’s home in the time he’s been there, which is far too much upheaval for one poor cat just trying to do their job.

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Now settled in with the current government, Larry seems to have found his stride as what some might call “the most popular person in Downing Street”. His growing fame means he’s not just catching mice anymore – he’s become an unofficial ambassador for British politics, charming visitors and providing much-needed levity in the corridors of the number 10 residence. He is in his senior years after all, so perhaps it’s time for a slightly more relaxed role that still allows for the occasional nap.

But Larry isn’t the only cat out there with a very serious job. In fact, there are a number of felines who’ve taken on the corporate world one paw at a time. Here’s a few of our favourites.

Larry the cat

Hailing from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, rescue cat Larry is Number 10’s chief mouser, tester of antique furniture for napping purposes, guest greeter... is there no end to the tasks he will take on?

Nala the ticket officer at Stevenage Station

Four-year-old rescue cat Nala has kept things running at Stevenage Station for several years now. He likes to visit in the morning and evening and sit on the ticket barriers checking everything is in order with daily the commute. He shot to fame in 2023 after his pet parents created a Facebook page for travellers to share their photos. He’s also released a Christmas single and is, naturally, a proud LGBTQIA+ ally.

Loki the therapy cat

Think therapy work is just for dogs? No sir. Charity Pets at Therapy also employs cats to give their clients a helping hand. They have over 4,000 volunteers who visit people in hospitals, hospices, residential nursing homes, day care centres, special needs schools and prisons to ensure that everyone enjoys the companionship of animals. Loki here is a two-year-old Maine Coon cross and who visits a care home once a week to play, cuddle and interact with the people who live there.

Elwood the security cat

Would you cause any trouble with Elwood about? Didn’t think so. Elwood lives across the road from the Epworth Hospital in Victoria, Australia and hung around outside the entrance so much that he became part of the hospital’s official security team – with his own ID badge and all.

Sigrid the navigator

Sigrid’s time as navigator for her human Travis began during the pandemic. Travis had moved far from his San Fransisco home to London and then lost his job. He found solace in his daily bike rides and soon started taking Norwegian Forest cat Sigrid along for the journey, too. Sigrid is deaf, which is why Travis thinks she’s so chill sitting in the basket. Now, over 300k followers on Instagram and a book later, Sigrid has even turned her navigation skills to the Northern Line.

Cilla the Outwoods cat

Shaping the future minds of tomorrow is not an easy job but someone’s got to do it. Priscilla, or ‘Cilla’ as her charges call her, is the caretaker and PA to the headteacher at Outwoods Primary School in Warwickshire. Other tasks include listening to children read, and snoozing in the library.

Nimis the police cat

Growing up on a houseboat in Amsterdam meant that Nimis was fitted with a life jacket from the start, a bright one to make sure he stood out if he ever fell in one of the canals his parent Lydia moored their home on. Eventually, his life jacket got a ‘police’ sticker and his TikTok account police_cat_amsterdam took off. Now, he poses with the local police regularly and Lydia jokes to tourists that he’s the first drug sniffing cat on the force. Is it a joke? Or is Nimis undercover using a double blind? Almost certainly the latter.

Truffles the optometrist cat

Rescue Truffles is no ordinary cat. Truffles works at a children’s optometrist in Pennsylvania where she demonstrates to children how to wear glasses (she’s got special preemie glasses which are modified for her face) and reinforces the notion that wearing glasses is indeed, incredibly cool. She even made a series of videos to show children what to expect from their eye exam. According to mum Danielle, she waves her down regularly to put one of her 16 pairs of glasses on her. Apparently Truffles wins ‘employee of the month’ every month. Obviously.