No matter how boring or daunting your job may be, you gotta admit—coworkers make the work experience much less of a hassle. There’s always that one person who is able to relate, to joke around, and be a friend in a setting that is otherwise all-business and no fun.
What if I told you that having a coworker can be even more awesome when it’s not a human, but a cat? Yes, cats as employees are now a thing as seen in the Epworth Hospital in Richmond, Australia. Meet Elwood, the now security guard at Epworth who makes sure law and order is present within hospital grounds.
Bored Panda reached out to Elwood’s colleague, Chantel Trollip, for an interview on Elwood and his valuable work at the hospital.
Apparently, hiring cats to do human jobs is now a thing
Image credits: Esther Williams
Meet Elwood, the red-white tabby who has been seen (quite a lot, in fact) hanging around the main entrance of the Epworth Hospital in Richmond, Melbourne, Australia. Chantel Trollip, a Pathologist here at Epworth Hospital, explained that Elwood has been coming to the hospital to chill pretty much every day for around a year now.
He pretty much spends his days either “securing” the front, checking if everyone has some pets and attention to give, or catching some sun in the nearby bushes. You know, doing what a cat does best.
Meet Elwood, the red-white tabby who has recently been hired as a security guard at Epworth Hospital
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
One day, as she was coming in for work, Trollip noticed that Elwood is now sporting a collar with some sort of tag. Upon closer inspection, she saw that Elwood has apparently been hired to work as part of the Epworth security team.
“I first noticed his ID badge on him in June. I was actually having a case of the sads that day, but seeing his ID badge turned my whole mood around!” explained Trollip. “When I first saw him, he wasn’t wearing anything, so I assumed he was a stray. Then someone put a collar and tag on him and now most recently he’s got his own ID badge, which is identical to our actual staff badges down to the call codes on the back.”
Elwood has been hanging around the hospital for about a year until someone officially employed him
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
So, turns out, Elwood’s keen interest in keeping up public order at the hospital landed him a proper security guard job. Congratulations, Elwood! Though, it is important to note that his daily routine hasn’t really changed as he’s still doing the same two things: securing the door making sure nobody enters without a pet tax, and lazing around in the sun.
“He is lovely and friendly, but not overly affectionate. He enjoys a good pat, but likes to keep things short and move around a fair bit. He is on the security team, after all, has to make sure everyone coming and going gets checked,” explained Trollip.
So, from now on, Elwood spends his days securing the front door of Epworth hospital and lazing around
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
As for where Elwood came from, nobody was really sure about it until recently. Since Elwood had the tag and nobody took it off, it was presumed he’s a stray, but as it turns out, he lives across the road with his real family and a twin brother named Jake. He just comes to the other side of the road (Erin St) for work.
“He’s never really tried to get into the hospital, I think he’s too small to activate the automatic doors anyway,” elaborated Trollip. “There is a kidney dish from the hospital that someone has turned into a water bowl for him.”
"Someone put a collar and ID badge on him, which is identical to our actual staff badges"
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
So, now that he’s a part of the security team, we’ve asked Trollip how many criminal activities he’s been able to thwart so far. She had this to say:
“I think any potential criminals are thwarted by his sweetness when passersby see him! He has a very sweet chirp of a meow and I think anyone with any ill will would automatically change their plans upon hearing it and so I assume this is his way of getting the job done.”
Turns out, he's not a stray, he actually lives across the street, but comes in for work every day
Image credits: Chantel Trollip
Check out a short video of Elwood sporting his security ID badge
Video credits: Chantel Trollip
Employing cats is apparently a thing as also seen in the Order of Attorneys of Brazil, a bar association that has employed Leon the kitten after getting complaints of a stray cat wandering the premises. Well, instead of getting rid of him, they hired the cat and now he’s an attorney. You can read more about Leon in this Bored Panda article.
What are your thoughts on this? Would you hire Elwood to keep an eye on your premises? Let us know in the comments section below!
Here's how the internet reacted to Elwood the adorable security cat
