{{Short description|Domestic cats that live in public libraries}} [[File:Ju IMG 1229.JPG|thumb|upright=1.35|A Siamese library cat]] '''Library cats''' are domesticated cats that live in public libraries worldwide. The association of cats with libraries dates from at least the Middle Ages up to the present day. '''Bookstore cats''' are the same thing in bookstores.
Contemporary library cats have also been featured in film and literature.
== History == The relationship between cats and libraries is centuries old.<ref name=LAT>{{cite news|last=Noriyuki|first=Duane|title=In the Wonderland of Libraries Are Cats Like Alis|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-feb-18-lv-cat18-story.html|access-date=20 June 2013|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=18 February 2002}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ling.upenn.edu/~beatrice/personal/pangur-ban.html|title=The scholar and his cat, Pangur Bán|website=www.ling.upenn.edu|accessdate=2022-04-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2018/12/cats-get-off-the-page.html|title=Cats, get off the page! - Medieval manuscripts blog|website=blogs.bl.uk|accessdate=2019-07-18}}</ref> Monastic records from the Middle Ages indicate cats were kept in medieval monasteries in order to control rats that might otherwise eat valuable manuscripts.<ref name=History>{{cite web|last=Kagamaster|first=Allie|title=History of Library Cats|url=http://www.catchannel.com/magazines/catfancy/january-2010/history-of-library-cats.aspx|work=Cat Fancy|publisher=BowTie, Inc.|accessdate=20 June 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202092837/http://www.catchannel.com/magazines/catfancy/january-2010/history-of-library-cats.aspx|archivedate=2 February 2014}}</ref>
== Modern examples == In 1745, Russian Empress Elisabeth published an order to transport cats to her court. The descendants of these cats now live in the State Hermitage museum.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/russias-museum-cats|title=Russia's Museum Cats.|last= McGrane|first=Sally|date=2012-09-25|magazine=The New Yorker|access-date=2021-02-22|language=en}}</ref> During the nineteenth century, the British government compensated those libraries that housed cats, on the understanding that they kept rodents away from books.<ref name=History />
Library cats have appeared as characters in books and movies,<ref name=Wesleyan /> are immortalized in stone in front of their institutions,<ref name=History/> and some are given positions on the institution's board. Many cats enjoy high-profile professional roles of marketing and public relations.<ref name=Wesleyan/>
The relationship between libraries and cats is at times contentious. In one case, there were attempts to remove a cat from a library based on the concerns of patrons with allergies who claimed violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.<ref name=LJ>{{cite journal|last=Kelley|first=Michael|title=Send Me Your Library Cats|journal=Library Journal|date=17 May 2013|volume=05|url=http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/05/opinion/editorial/send-me-your-library-cats/#_|accessdate=20 June 2013|archive-date=12 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612162236/https://lj.libraryjournal.com/2013/05/opinion/editorial/send-me-your-library-cats/#_|url-status=dead}}</ref> Another reason considered was the library cat's reaction to service animals.<ref name=LAT/> When a library cat was removed from its institution in Putnam Valley, New York, the institution suffered financially. Two members of the community were so upset about the removal that they deleted from their wills bequests to the library amounting to $80,000.<Ref Name=LAT/>
The Library Cat Society, a now defunct organization, was established in 1987 to encourage the establishment, respect, and recognition of library cats. The society included dozens of member libraries that exchanged information about their cats, and published a newsletter about them.<Ref Name=Wesleyan/>
Phyllis Lahti's anthology ''Cats, Librarians, and Libraries: Essays for and About the Library Cat Society'' explored this relationship.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cats, librarians, and libraries : essays for and about the Library Cat Society {{!}} WorldCat.org |url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/26985772 |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=search.worldcat.org |language=en}}</ref> The lives of library cats were studied by Gary Roma, a documentarian who produced a film entitled ''Puss in Books: Adventures of the Library Cat''.<Ref Name=Wesleyan/> According to Roma's website, there are more than 800 cataloged library cats worldwide. The catalog indicates that many of them have since died.
Additionally, cats are often found in independent bookstores throughout the United States.<ref>Korbelik, Jeff (13 November 2012). [http://journalstar.com/entertainment/small-screen/television-and-radio/what-is-a-cat/article_db1f1969-37d9-53cb-ba10-293971218abd.html "What is a cat?"]. ''Lincoln Journal Star''. Retrieved 8 August 2013.</ref><ref>Davies, Richard. [http://www.abebooks.com/books/bookseller-bookshop-bookstore/cats.shtml?cm_mmc=aff-_-ir-_-27795-_-81804&afn_sr=impact "A Catalog of Bookstore Cats"]. ''AbeBooks''. Retrieved 8 August 2013.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=KittyWanKenobi {{!}} Sandman Books|url=https://www.sandmanbooks.com/kittywankenobi|access-date=2021-08-12|website=www.sandmanbooks.com}}</ref>
== Benefits == Library cats have been used to befriend patrons, boost librarian morale, and inspire reading and literacy programs.<ref name=Wesleyan>{{cite web|title=Wesleyan's Library Cats|url=http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/academics/library/cats.cfm|accessdate=20 June 2013|publisher=Wesleyan College|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402100523/http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/academics/library/cats.cfm|archivedate=2 April 2015}}</ref> Cats can also be useful for marketing campaigns, and are frequently used to generate publicity for their libraries, particularly on social media.<ref>Kroski, E. (2014). "[http://oedb.org/ilibrarian/quick-guide-library-cats/ A quick guide to library cats]". ''Open Education Database'' (OEDb). Retrieved 29 March 2015.</ref> The presence of a cat can create a relaxed environment and ease daily stress for patrons and librarians alike,<ref name=Stress>{{cite news|last=Mieszkowski|first=Katharine|title=The love that dare not bark its name|url=https://www.salon.com/2009/02/12/human_animal/|accessdate=7 July 2013|newspaper=Salon|date=12 February 2009}}</ref><ref name="Stress 2">{{cite web|last=Black|first=George|title=Made for Each Other|url=http://www.onearth.org/article/made-for-each-other|work=On Earth|accessdate=7 July 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916111154/http://www.onearth.org/article/made-for-each-other|archivedate=16 September 2012}}</ref> but usually without the typically disruptive loud noises other animals (e.g., dogs) may produce. Cats' generally independent nature may also suit the intellectual environment of a library, as they are low-maintenance and may more readily suit the otherwise preoccupied intellectual personalities who frequent libraries.<ref name=Neediness>{{cite news|last=Roach|first=John|title=How science measures up cats and dogs|url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/38433950/ns/technology_and_science-science#.UdoCJawyiDk|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130205042936/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/38433950/ns/technology_and_science-science#.UdoCJawyiDk|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 5, 2013|accessdate=7 July 2013|newspaper=NBC News|date=29 July 2010}}</ref>
== Famous examples == Dewey Readmore Books is perhaps the most famous library cat. He lived in Iowa's Spencer Public Library for 19 years. After his death, a book was published about him,<ref name=NYT>{{cite news|last=Rich|first=Motoko|title=Iowa Library's Cat Has a Rich Second Life as a Biography|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/04/books/04cat.html?_r=0|accessdate=20 June 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=4 April 2007}}</ref> and later a few follow-up books.
White Settlement City Council voted to remove library cat Browser from White Settlement Public Library in 2016 but reversed their decision after an international backlash.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Harris |first=Ricki |date=5 July 2016 |title=Beloved Cat Will Keep His Job at the Local Library After International Backlash |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/beloved-cat-job-local-library-international-backlash/story?id=40351635 |access-date=2023-01-02 |website=ABC News |language=en}}</ref>
Scottish Fold cats Baker and Taylor were mousers for a Nevada library. They were often found sleeping in office supply boxes and dragging shoelaces across rows of books. They became official mascots for the book-distributing brand they were named after.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-04-27 |title=Meet the library cats who 'read' their way into America's hearts |url=https://www.today.com/pets/how-library-cats-baker-taylor-read-their-way-america-s-t88616 |access-date=2023-10-25 |website=TODAY.com |language=en}}</ref>
==See also== {{Portal|Cats}} *Animal-assisted therapy *Anthrozoology *Biblioteca Joanina, a library that houses bats for a similar purpose *Bodega cat *Ship's cat
== References == {{reflist}}
==Further reading== * Pacini, Daniela (Summer 2009). [http://fiq.ischool.utoronto.ca/index.php/fiq/article/view/15457/12534 "Breaking Down Barriers: Dogs and Cats in Public Libraries"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170609204820/http://fiq.ischool.utoronto.ca/index.php/fiq/article/view/15457/12534 |date=2017-06-09 }}. ''Faculty of Information Quarterly'' (University of Toronto) '''1''' (3). ISSN 1925-9107. * Stevens, Norman D. (2004). [https://digitalcommons.uconn.edu/libr_pubs/48 "Myeo: the First Library Cat"] (satirical). Molesworth Institute. (University of Connecticut). Paper 48.
== External links == {{Library resources box|label=Library cats}} {{commonscat}} * [https://www.purr-n-fur.org.uk/featuring/index.html Purr 'n' Fur {{!}} Featuring Felines: Library Cats] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20090505231356/http://www.ironfrog.com/catsmap.html Gary Roma – ''Puss in Books: Adventures of the Library Cat''] * [http://www.pinterest.com/alahqlibrary/library-cats/ Library Cats] – American Library Association on Pinterest
{{Domestic cat}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Cats in popular culture Category:Library science Category:Working cats Category:Mammal pest control