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A rescue cat that has lived at a London ambulance station for 16 years is being threatened with eviction.
The feline, named Defib, was rescued as a kitten by staff at Walthamstow Ambulance Station in 2008 and has lived there since.
But the cat’s days at the station look to be numbered as London Ambulance Service want to rehome the animal.
The service says some staff cannot use the station due to allergies and that the cat’s slow reactions mean it is at risk from moving vehicles.
However, more than 60,000 people have signed a petition against the cat being moved.
Local Labour MP Stella Creasy has even come to Defib’s support, urging health secretary Wes Streeting to intervene.
“Defib the cat facing a no fault eviction from Walthamstow’s ambulance base - hard to see why given he’s lived there for 16 years happily and helps staff cope with a stressful job,” she wrote on X.
“Perhaps Wes Streeting if you are feline the staff’s pain you could have a word with the London Ambulance Service.”
The online petition calling for Defib to remain at the station has raised awareness of the “threat of eviction” for the cat, which the campaigner writer id down to a change in management at the station.
The petiton statement said: “Unlike so many cats in London, he was lucky enough to be rescued by staff as a kitten and has been adored by them ever since. The staff believe rehoming such an old cat is an unnecessary act of cruelty and not justifiable, especially in light of the recent popularity of therapy animals in business premises.
“We hope you will support the staff in asking London Ambulance Service to allow him to live out his remaining years in the place he has known and where he is loved.”
The campaign has gained worldwide attention with people showing their support from as far away as the US.
In response to Ms Creasy’s post on X, a London Ambulance Service spokesman said: “We are looking for a worthy retirement home for Defib the cat.
“As he has got older his reactions have slowed and he has had several near misses in being run over by ambulances at the busy station.
“Additionally, we have ambulance staff with severe allergies, who cannot use the ambulance station during their breaks.
“We’re exploring some options so that he can go to a loving home that is more suitable for a cat his age than an operational ambulance station, and we are very much thinking of this as Defib’s own retirement plan from the London Ambulance Service.”
The Independent has approached the Department of Health and Social Care for comment.
