Wareham Hardware Store Adopts Adorable New Shop Cat

WAREHAM (WBSM) — There’s one employee at the Aubuchon Hardware store in Wareham who doesn’t ever get to punch out. She’s always on the clock, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. She literally lives at the store, sleeping there, eating all of her meals there.

Her name is Cinder, and she’s a cat.

“Customers always come in looking for the cat,” said Aubuchon employee Dan Carneiro, who was one of the employees pushing for a new store cat. “She’s brought more foot traffic, but she’s been giving a morale boost for the employees as well.”

How Aubuchon Hardware Came to Have a Store Cat

The Wareham shop isn’t the only Aubuchon Hardware store to have a cat. In fact, Carneiro said most Aubuchon stores have at least one cat, while some have two or three. It all started a few years ago, when the stores developed a mouse problem following a delivery of bird seed to all its stores that came from a distributor that didn’t realize mice had gotten into the seed.

“All of a sudden, all the stores had a mouse problem out of the blue,” he said. “So we said now we really need a store cat as well as pest control specialists. Now we have no pests, and the cat is here to make sure we don’t again, while also giving everyone the attention and time they want.”

That’s how the Wareham Aubuchon ended up with Lewis, who was the store cat until his owner, the store’s former assistant manager, retired – and Lewis retired as well.

“People would come in just to see the cat. They’d come to visit the cat and not even buy anything,” said Aubuchon manager Josh Rivera.

With Lewis gone, Carneiro said he started to notice things at the store were starting to get repetitive.

“Morale decreased throughout the winter, and I thought we needed to liven things up, so we started looking for another cat,” he said.

“It was definitely a push from Dan,” Rivera said. “He really talked it up, and I said, ‘you know what, that’s a great idea.’”

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Finding the Perfect Cat for Aubuchon Hardware

The crew eventually found Cinder at Forever Paws in Fall River, and went to meet with her and another cat before making their decision.

“Cinder immediately showed her personality,” Carneiro said. “She really started rubbing against everyone, and showed her playful side, too. We knew right then and there she was the cat.”

Carneiro said the cat already came with the name Cinder.

“One of our employees nicknamed her ‘Cinderblock,’” he said with a laugh. “But she did come with the name Cinder. Once I saw her personality, I assumed her owners must’ve named her Cinderella, and then shortened it over time, because she definitely acts like she’s the princess of the place.”

Cat Crossing – Please Slow Down

Princess Cinder not only has free reign of the store, she also goes outside as well. Aubuchon has a sign outside the store warning those driving through the parking lot that Cinder may be out and about (she has a tracker on her caller so the store employees know where she is at all times).

“Please beware of cat,” the sign reads. “Cinder may be enjoying the open outdoors. Please be considerate and watch out for her before driving through the parking lot. Cat Crossing – Please Slow Down.”

It Takes a Certain Kind of Cat to Be a "Store Cat"

Arianna Silva, Director of Forever Paws, said the shelter’s main goal is to find a “forever placement” for the animals in its care.

“Normally, that is a home, not a business,” she said. “However, some animals have unique personalities while in the shelter, and not everyone fits into the ‘normal’ box. In situations like this, we are willing to explore different options in order to find the animal their forever home.”

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Silva said Cinder was not a feral cat, but was also “not your typical housecat.”

“She was sweet at times, on her terms, but could be pretty sassy. She liked being around people but she would decide when she had enough,” Silva said. “That can be difficult for many homes to accept.”

Because of that, Silva said Cinder was at Forever Paws “for a very long time.”

“When the hardware store option came up, I honestly thought it could be a great option. She would be inside, interacting with people and when she didn't want to do that anymore, she could do her own thing,” Silva said. “I also felt like if it worked out and she was comfortable that maybe she would branch out and start interacting more with people.”

She said she is “very happy” with how things turned out for Cinder at Aubuchon Hardware.

“There is always a concern when placing any of our animals, and ideally we would like animals in a home,” Silva said. “That being said, a place with people who care for her, spend time with her, and are willing to give her a chance – that is a home, just not your traditional one.”

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