In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.
Terry Pratchett
As readers of The Unadulterated Cat and The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents may have guessed, Terry, like Death, was very much a cat lover. From Maurice, the fast talking, quick thinking con-cat, to Mr Tiddles the geriatric post office moggy, cat owners here on Roundworld will be familiar with many of the traits exhibited by our five felines of note.
Maurice
A devious and intelligent talking tomcat from the streets of Ankh-Morpork. Maurice has as much self-assurance and swagger as Greebo, but considerably more street-smarts. In league with a band of intelligent rats, and Keith, a stupid-looking kid who plays the pipes, Maurice set up a highly successful hustle extorting payment for removing rodent infestations. Being of a cunning nature, Maurice has been known to trick humans into thinking that his voice is actually their conscience speaking to them.
Greebo
Nanny Ogg’s cat. Scourge of the Ramtops, as well as every male ancestor of most cats in Lancre for around 30 generations, Greebo is a huge, battle-scarred, mottled grey tomcat. His single good eye is yellow, the right is pearly-white. He meets the definition of a Real Cat (as referenced in The Unadulterated Cat) in that his ears look like they’ve been trimmed so far down with pinking shears that they barely still qualify as ears. He radiates not only a very real intelligence, but also a smell that could cause sinus trouble in a dead fox. Despite even wolves climbing trees to get away from him, Nanny insists that he is really just a big softy, though has secretly admitted that he’s actually a fiend from Hell.
The lasting side effects of a spell cast in Witches Abroad left Greebo with the unpredictable ability to turn into human form. As a leather-clad human, Greebo exudes swashbuckling pirate vibes and raw sex appeal yet still can’t quite work door handles and favours a spit wash over a shower.
Ratbag
Residing at Home Farm on The Chalk, Ratbag is the Aching family’s ginger tabby cat. Despite being so fat that he resembles a great puddle of fur when lying down, Ratbag spends his waking hours hunting any winged or furred creatures who dare to make their nests or burrows on Home Farm. The only thing that has ever been known to put Ratbag off hunting was a surprise attack from a Feegle who had disguised itself as a baby bird in order to headbutt the joy of the hunt out of the cat. Despite Ratbag not exactly being a people cat, he never lets personal feelings get in the way of a warm place to sleep.
Mr Tiddles
A large black and white cat who lives within the Ankh-Morpork Post Office. As a twenty year old geriatric, his name also works as a description. Mr Tiddles does not take well to change. He has his set routes around the building and if furniture is moved, he can be found with his head pressed against it, unable to accept that he cannot continue along his regular path. According to The Regulations, kills made by the official Post Office Cat are recorded in the CatLog, where the date, time, and species of kills are carefully listed.
You
When you think of a witch’s cat you probably picture a creature that resembles a shadow with eyes, not a sweet, fluffy white kitten like You. Daughter of Pinky, the Widow Cable’s cat, You was a gift from Tiffany Aching to Granny Weatherwax. While she doesn’t have the swagger, cunning, or killer attitude of other notable cats, You is perhaps the only creature on the Disc that Greebo steers well clear of and there is clearly more to her than meets the eye.