Bastet
- Goddess Job title
- c. 2900 BCE onward Era
- Bubastis, Egypt Headquarters
The original famous cat. Bastet started out as a fierce lioness goddess and gradually mellowed into a cat-headed protector of homes, mothers and, crucially, the household grain supply. Her city, Bubastis, threw festivals that the Greek historian Herodotus described as wildly popular. Every modern cat has inherited her core belief: that they are worshipped, and that you are late with dinner.
Félicette
- First cat in space Claim to fame
- 18 October 1963 Launch date
- About 13 minutes Flight time
A black-and-white stray from the streets of Paris, Félicette rode a French sounding rocket up past 150 kilometres and came back down by parachute, safely, to the Algerian Sahara. She received no frequent-flyer miles. In 2019, after a crowdfunding campaign, she finally got a bronze statue at the International Space University in Strasbourg.
Unsinkable Sam
- 3 ships sunk Reported, 1941
- 0 ships sunk by Sam Officially
- Belfast Retired to
According to naval legend, a black-and-white cat survived the sinking of the German battleship Bismarck, was fished out of the water by HMS Cossack, survived Cossack's sinking, and then moved to HMS Ark Royal, which also sank. At that point the Royal Navy gently suggested he try a career on land. Historians debate whether the story is entirely true. Sam, characteristically, declined to comment.
Simon of HMS Amethyst
- Dickin Medal Decoration
- 1949 Yangtze Incident
- Able Seacat Rank
Wounded by shellfire when HMS Amethyst was trapped on the Yangtze River, Simon went straight back to work keeping rats out of the dwindling food stores and keeping up the crew's morale. He remains the only cat ever awarded the Dickin Medal, the animal world's equivalent of the Victoria Cross.
Mrs. Chippy
- Endurance expedition Voyage, 1914
- Tabby tom Despite the name
- Ship's carpenter Human
Mrs. Chippy sailed to Antarctica on Ernest Shackleton's Endurance with carpenter Harry McNish, whom he followed around like a devoted spouse: hence the name, and hence the crew's surprise when "she" turned out to be a he. He was known for walking the ship's rails in rough seas. A bronze Mrs. Chippy now rests on McNish's grave in Wellington, New Zealand.
Trim
- First to sail around Australia With Matthew Flinders
- 1801–1803 Voyage
- Sydney Statue
Navigator Matthew Flinders' ship's cat was black with white paws and a white star on his chest, and sailed with him on the first circumnavigation of Australia. Flinders wrote a loving, very funny tribute to him. Trim now has a statue outside the State Library of New South Wales, perched on a windowsill, looking like he owns the place.
Larry
- Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office Title
- 2011 Took office
- Battersea Recruited from
Larry arrived at 10 Downing Street from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home with a mandate to deal with the rodents. Since then he has watched a parade of prime ministers come and go from his doorstep, which makes him one of the most experienced public servants in Britain. His mousing record has been described, diplomatically, as "a work in progress."
Visit the Cats in Public Office wing
Stubbs
- Honorary mayor Talkeetna, Alaska
- 1997–2017 Term
- No tail Hence the name
Talkeetna is too small to have an official mayor, so for twenty years it had Stubbs, a tailless ginger cat who held court at the general store. Tourists came from all over to meet him. His policy platform consisted entirely of being adorable. It worked.
Tama
- Stationmaster Kishi Station, Japan
- 2007 Appointed
- Paid in cat food Salary
When a struggling rural railway line in Wakayama made a calico cat its stationmaster, visitors arrived by the trainload just to see her in her little cap. Tama was promoted, got a cat-themed train, and is credited with helping save the line. After she passed, she was enshrined as a Shinto goddess. That is the most successful career on this page, and possibly on Earth.
Towser
- 28,899 mice Guinness World Record
- Glenturret Distillery Employer
- 1963–1987 Career
The greatest mouser the world has ever measured. Towser, a long-haired tortoiseshell, patrolled a Scottish whisky distillery for nearly 24 years. Nobody is entirely sure how the mice were counted, and we choose not to ask.
Visit the Record Breakers wing
Creme Puff
- 38 years, 3 days Oldest cat on record
- 1967–2005 Lifespan
- Austin, Texas Hometown
Creme Puff lived through eight US presidents. Her owner reportedly credited a breakfast of bacon, eggs, broccoli and coffee with cream. Veterinarians would like everyone to know this is not a recommended diet. Creme Puff would like everyone to know it clearly worked.
Grumpy Cat
- 2012 Went viral
- Tardar Sauce Real name
- Actually very calm Real mood
The internet's most famous frown belonged to a small cat whose permanently unimpressed face came from feline dwarfism and an underbite. By all accounts she was perfectly cheerful. She became a meme, a bestselling book and a brand, and proved that you can build an empire without ever once smiling.
Honorable mentions
Hemingway's six-toed cats in Key West, Florida, descended from a cat named Snow White. Dozens still live at the house and judge the tourists.
Schrödinger's cat, who was never real, was never in a box, and is somehow the most famous physicist's pet in history.
Keyboard Cat, Nyan Cat and Maru, the founding fathers of the cat internet.
The Cheshire Cat, Puss in Boots and Garfield, who are fictional and therefore ineligible, but have filed a complaint.