Send congratulations to George the ginger cat, who has landed a very important new role.
The six-year-old moggy has officially been appointed chief mouse catcher at Stourbridge Junction Station in the West Midlands.
He’s put the effort in to prove he can handle the job, having been patrolling the station for the past three years.
George often leaves dead rodents as gifts for the train station staff, who adopted him after his owners had to leave the country.
Now he’s spent such a long time volunteering to rid the station of mice, it only seemed fair to give him a proper title.
Simone Carter, the station manager, said: George started hanging about the station and supervisor Ian Tomlinson, 66, brought him into the ticket office where he made himself at home.
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‘They formed a special bond and George often would wait around for Ian to finish work.
‘Ian would carry him home back to his owners who then asked Ian to adopt George as they were emigrating.
‘And the rest is history!’
As well as working hard at the station during the day, George also sleeps there overnight.
He has his own bed and plenty of refreshments, plus regularly receives toys and treats from members of the public who are major fans of the cat.
‘We set up a Twitter for him and people from all over the place follow him,’ said Simone.
‘He’s received presents from Australia, Japan and even New Zealand. It’s phenomenal.
‘He has so many, we are going to donate some to charity.
‘A local brewhouse has even named a drink after him – it’s called “George’s Rail Ale”. All profits are donated to cat charities.’
George is enjoying his new position for now, but Ian plans to move the cat to his home when he retires at the end of 2021.
We’ll have to wait and see if George will continue his hard work or retire along with Ian. He does deserve a break – but we reckon he’ll be missed at the station.
Simone added: ‘Ian has worked for the services for over 50 years.
‘George is loved by everyone who passes through the station and quite often people look out for him.
‘The staff are often greeted to presents in the ticket booking office from him.’
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