Oxford University library cat keeps students company

By Filipa Gaspar

Meet the "famous" Oxford University library cat who's been keeping students company during their studies.

Cat Isambard Kitten Brunel, also known as Issy, makes a bus commute to the library alongside his owner Jamie Fishwick-Ford.

Jamie is a librarian at Lady Margaret Hall, one of the colleges at Oxford University, and began bringing Issy to work six years ago.

The fluffy Siberian forest cat spends most of his time relaxing in Jamie's office, only leaving when people want to pet him, or when he is taken outside for some exercise and climb a tree.

Issy, aged six, has quickly become a hit with students gaining a loyal following and earning himself unofficial mascot status at the college.

Jamie, 43, who has worked as a librarian at the college for 10 years, said: "He stays in my office, and leaves only when people want to pet him or when I’m taking him out to get some exercise and climb a tree.

"He’s not allowed to free roam around the library or the college.

"He’s proved very popular with the students, and he definitely loves to be loved by them.

"There are some students who come to see him several times a week.

"Lots of people bring friends and family to meet him, and he’s become a bit of an unofficial mascot. He even appears on some of our outreach team’s stickers."

Jamie got Issy in September 2019, and started bringing him to work straight away.

When she arrived at Lady Margaret Hall she said they were a "very dog-orientated college".

Issy wears a harness and lead, and mostly travels on Jamie's shoulder.

"There’s two dogs on our coat of arms - because we were founded by Bishop Talbot, and a Talbot is a type of medieval hunting dog - the Principal of the college Alan Rusbridger had two dogs, and several staff members had dogs they brought to college," Jamie said.

"College had a policy allowing you to bring dogs to work, as long as they mostly stayed in your office and you got permission of anyone else whose office they visited.

"But I prefer cats! So decided to get a cat and bring them to work instead of a dog. I follow the same policy as the dogs."

Issy is particularly favoured by students who miss their pets and he is always very friendly and calm, Jamie added.

She said: "It can be really tough being away from home for the first time and away from pets you’ve known all your life, and it’s a lot easier to phone up your parents if you miss them than to phone up your cats.

"He’s also used as an unofficial welfare animal, and he’s very empathetic.

"He’s always very friendly and calm, but he’s even more so when someone is upset or crying, he’s had several people come to him in tears after they’ve accidentally deleted their dissertations or so on.

"I deliberately got a Siberian Forest Cat because they are hypoallergenic, so it wouldn’t set people’s allergies off as much, both in the library and on the commute."

Issy is also very popular when they are walking around town, or are on the commute.

Jamie said Issy has become a local celebrity with people stopping her in the streets to ask if he is the famous library cat and to get a photo with him.

"On the bus he expects to get attention from the other passengers - and will 'miaow' until he gets fussed by them," she added.

"He also visits my local pub with me fairly frequently. They have a policy of allowing dogs, and I just apply that to him too.

"Other colleges also sometimes ask for visits from the famous library cat, so we go to visit them and give their students a chance to meet him.

"Several other colleges have their own cats or other pets dogs and tortoises are both common that live on site or visit them, but I think he’s the only library pet!"

In the past months Issy has been visiting other Oxford colleges and having students come and see him.

As a result, he has even become more popular.

"Lots of other colleges have pets but they don't have library pets," Jamie said.

"He's already got a long list of colleges that wants him to visit next term so his diary is very booked up at the moment."