This article was originally published on March 31, 2014. We republished it in honor and remembrance of CampusCat, who passed away in September 2023.
If you have ever attended a university you will know how stressful life can be. Studying, exams and deadlines are forever looming over you, and, unlike in the movies, there is hardly any time to relax or have fun if you wish to achieve something.
Enter CampusCat. This handsome orange tabby cat has made it his job to make sure that Augsburg University’s students are on time to hand in their papers by “helping” them as much as is felinely possible.
Catster caught up with the ginger tom in Southern Germany, who granted us this exclusive interview (make sure you imagine a German accent when you read his replies).
Catster: CampusCat, how did you end up being the mascot of Augsburg University?
CampusCat: Wie bitte? Oh Entschuldigung, my meowed English isn’t too good, but I’ll try my best. I don’t actually belong to the university as such. I lodge with and own a Frau who lives nearby. However, over on the campus the students are always really generous with their attention, treats and cuddles for me, so I like to go and visit. I have been doing so ever since I was about a year old, and one day I realised that I had been crowned their lucky mascot.
What are you like in character, CampusCat? Are you sweet or fierce or independent?
I am an easygoing, mellow fellow and a free spirit. I love humans very much and adore their attention, but one of my other hobbies is to just laze around in the sun and mind my own business.
What about dogs or other cats? Do you get on with them too?
Yes, sure I do! I also get on very well with the ducks over at the university pond. Oh yes, I get on really well with them ducks. [Evil snicker.]
So what’s your real name? It’s not just CampusCat, or is it?
It is said to know someone’s true name is to be able to take away their power! So let’s keep this a mystery here, okay? Some people do call me “Sammy” though.
Do you have a favorite food?
Not really, I am not a fussy eater and like just about anything. But my favorite things are the treats that the students bring me — in particular, those small, posh tins of cat food!
Do you like playing? What’s your favorite toy?
Yes, I love playing! Especially chasing butterflies on the campus lawn! Again, I’m not fussy though and I never miss an opportunity to play with the students when they have a string, a ball or other interesting objects I get excited over.
What exactly do you do on the campus? Do you have a certain job or help anyone doing theirs?
I usually hang out amongst the books in the library, where my job is to support stressed-out students and helping them with their studies. Apart from that, I also provide counseling sessions — giving moral support when somebody is sad over a boyfriend breakup, a failed exam or other stressful events in their lives — when a soothing feline presence is required. It’s all part of a day’s work for me.
What has been your most exciting adventure? Could you be some kind of superhero underneath it all? Have you saved anyone’s life before?
Some say that I am the reincarnation of a university professor who once taught here. I am not so sure about that because, to me, I really kinda feel like a cat, not a human! As for being a superhero, well … am I not a super-cat already hard at work here at the university? I mean, I rescue students every single day!
Do you know what the future holds for you? CampusCat T-Shirts? Other merchandise and Internet fame?
I have already achieved a bit of fame with my Facebook page. And there’s the CampusCat cupcake!
Seriously though, I am not really too keen on being famous and well-known and I would leave this kind of thing to my feline brothers and sisters Luna the Fashion Kitty, Lil BUB, Tama the Station Master and the myriad of other celebrity kitties out there. I actually like my quiet life here with my human, and the important job I do helping students on a daily basis, and I think that too much fame would destroy my whole equilibrium. Sorry to disappoint you all there!
And to finish up this interview so I can get back to work (after a long nap, that is), let me share a feline secret with you — most of us cats really are happy with just the basics in life: food, sleep, play, cuddles. I say “Amen” to those things.
Does your university or school have a cat as its mascot? Please let us know in the comments.
- See also: Benefits of Having a Cat in Your Life
About the Author: Barbarella Buchner — Ailurophile. Geeky Goth Girl. Ex-Musician Singer/Songwriter. Photographer. Web Designer. Fibromyalgia + RA Sufferer. And totally mad! She originally hails from Hannover (Germany), then moved to London, and since 2004 has lived on the tropical island of Lanzarote, together with her tabby twins Lugosi & Spider, and ginger queen Ruby Akasha. Apart from being an avid hobby — and sometimes even paid! — photographer, she works as a freelance web and graphic designer and occasional Catster contributor.
