'Will be missed': Cat patrolling US mountains for 12 years dies due to unforeseen illness

Marty, a black Maine coon cat, who patrolled the highest peak in the northeast US for a dozen years as its weather observatory’s mascot has died. According to the Associated Press, Marty succumbed to an “unforeseen illness,” Mount Washington Summit Operations Manager Rebecca Scholand said in a news release on November 9. Scholand called the cat a “special companion” and said that staff loved Marty and he will be sadly missed.

“As a past observer who lived on the summit for four years, I can tell you Marty was a special companion, entertainer and so incredibly loved by observers and state park staff and will be sadly missed,” she wrote.

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‘Fun-loving feline’ 

According to AP, the black Maine coon cat had won 53 per cent of the Mount Washington Mascot Primary in January 2008, the same time that Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain won their respective races in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary. Earlier this month, the observatory had also announced that Marty, the shelter cat, would retire from the mountain early in 2021. 

Marty was adopted from the North Conway Area Humane Society and moved to the summit of Mount Washington in January of 2008. He served patrolled the peak for 12-years and he was beloved by the staff as well as thousands of visitors from around the globe. He was a “fun-loving feline” with a silky fur. 

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Scholand said, “We would like to extend a special thank you to the Conway Veterinary Hospital who has cared for Marty over the years and to Dr. Kate Battenfelder and Vet Technician Leah Perez of True North Veterinary Hospital who assisted us with this emergency over the weekend”. 

The press note further said that the summit feline tradition will continue. The officials further informed that the Mount Washington Observatory stage have had a cat at the 6,288-foot summit, called the “home of the world’s worst weather,” since 1932. Plans are already underway to identify Marty’s successor due to his planned retirement. 

(With inputs from AP) 

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