This is the story of Maray the cat!
Back in 2014 Maray started hanging around the Serpukhov Museum of History and Art in Serpukhov, Russia.
He was eventually taken in by staff-members and named after Anna Maraeva, the cat-loving ex-owner of the museum. For the last couple of years he’s acted as the unofficial greeter, welcoming visitors into the museum.
Just last month, the staff at the museum though it’d be cute and funny to use Maray as a joke for April Fools’ day. They wrote his job application letter and sent a press release to local media stating they had accepted his application.
Unfortunately, the media took the press release quite seriously and began contacting the museum for information about the employed cat.
And so, the staff decided to make the appointment real, and declared him their official doorman. According to museum employee Nina Strelkova, Maray works from 9 to 5 each day with a short break for lunch and a springtime walk. He even has a tent to sleep in when the night comes!
“All people who work in our museum love Maray. Many bring him food from home and take pictures with him. So he gets a little fat now,” she said. “And visitors love the cat too — lots of them taking selfies with him.”
Strelkova says that there are currently no plans to add more feline members to the staff of the museum, but “who knows” about the future.
Photo credits: Serpukhov Museum of History and Art
