Guide dog kennel cat rules the roost

Sylvester "won't bat an eyelid" at the dogs

A cat who has made himself at home at a guide dog training centre "rules the roost", according to staff.

Black and white former stray Sylvester turned up at the Guide Dogs Leamington Spa site in 2016 and "never left".

In between submitting to the occasional fuss, he helps train the pups and has amassed his own fan club through monthly features on the dog care team's Facebook page.

Dog wellbeing technician Sarah Cooper said Sylvester was unfazed by his canine companions and "will go in the blocks and sleep in the kennels with the dogs if he wants to".

"You'll find him asleep in their beds," she added.

Sylvester turned up at the Warwick New Road site as a one-year-old, shortly after a previous kennel cat died.

He is the third cat to live on site since the team leader started her Guide Dogs career 18 years ago.

"We like a cat here, for the dogs' sake really, for training them," Ms Cooper said.

"We had him microchipped, vaccinated, castrated, de-flead, wormed, and then he stayed."

Sylvester helps accustom trainee guide dogs to cats

Sylvester taking over a selfie with guide dog wellbeing technician and team leader Sarah Cooper

Sylvester's presence helps test the dogs for what trainers call "cat distraction", Ms Cooper explained.

"He likes to stroll and just sit in the middle while dogs are trying to work on an obstacle course. He likes to jump out on dogs as well.

"It's very good because not all of the dogs will have been exposed to cats with their puppy-raisers."

She said if dogs, who arrive for training at about 14 months old, run at Sylvester or bark "he won't bat an eyelid".

"It's good you know if there's going to be an issue before you get that dog in harness," she added.

"We do get dogs withdrawn occasionally if their cat distraction's too bad."

Guide Dog staff started caring for Sylvester about nine years ago after failing to trace an owner

Ms Cooper started running Sylvester Sunday posts, on the first weekend of each month, because she got sent so many pictures of him.

"It's a monthly update through photographic form," she explained. "He's got his own fan club now – he gets more likes than the dogs half the time."

Sylvester stares down a German Shepherd at Leamington's guide dog training centre