Job post for cat sanctuary caretaker on Greek island flooded with 35,000 applications
"Cat-whispering skills should come natural to you," the job post reads.
If you're a cat lover, there's still time to embark on your own "Mamma Mia!"-inspired journey and move to Greece to care for over 50 cats.
A cat sanctuary on the Greek island of Syros is hiring a caretaker to tend to over 55 cats on the property, and told ABC News it's been flooded with over 35,000 applications since the job post went viral.
"When we put up the advert, we expected about maybe 20-30 applicants -- we were utterly overwhelmed to get to more than [35,000]," Joan and Richard Bowell of God’s Little People Cat Rescue told ABC News. "It all said one thing to us -- there are so many people out there who really love cats and want them to have a proper life."
The sanctuary posted the job in early August looking for "a mature and genuinely passionate cat lover" to live on the property and feed and take care of all of the cats. "Cat-whispering skills" were among the required skills.
"Cat-whispering skills should come natural to you."
"You’ll no doubt thrive best if you are the type of person who appreciates nature and likes tranquility -- and rest comfortably in your own company," the job post reads. "That said, you’ll never feel lonely in the company of the cats and you’ll be expected to live with a small handful of cats in your house. From experience the job is most suitable for someone 45+ years of age, who’s responsible, reliable, honest, practically inclined -- and really, with a heart of gold! Apart from feeding the cats the cats will also need heaps of love and attention. You will at times be expected to trap or handle a feral or non-sociable cat, so knowing something about a cats psychology too is important + cat-whispering skills should come natural to you."
The job, which includes free accommodations in a house on the island property with water and electricity, went viral shortly afterwards. The sanctuary founders said they received many follow-up inquires asking: "Is this for real? A job, paid, with a house and car to look after cats?"
Joan Bowell, the founder of God's Little People Rescue, said the interest in the job reinforces why cats are so beloved around the globe.
"In a time when more than 1,000 species are becoming extinct each day, the world is in danger of becoming a graveyard for the most spectacular creatures -- of course, we must ensure that all lives are respected," Joan Bowell said. "For us, the challenge we were given by being in Greece was the welfare of cats. I have always loved them from an early age -- I could not say no to their plight."
For the last eight years, Joan Bowell and her husband Richard have offered a sanctuary to cats on the Greek island of Syros. When Richard Bowell's non-profit work required him to be in New York, they decided to seek help on the property caring for all of their cats.
The job starts in November and the sanctuary will keep the posting open through August, so get your resumes in order.
After the role is filled, the Bowells are currently crowdfunding on GoFundMe to set up a location in upstate New York.
"We want to rededicate ourselves to the cause in a bigger way to show the world that have shown us, that animals count and that the way we treat them reflects something of our own humanity!" the couple wrote on the page. "Our Greek sanctuary can't take more cats and which is heartbreaking, so we need to move on. We have already identified some worthy causes in the Manhattan and greater New York area where cats desperately need help."
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