By Ecoist in Animals & Habitats, History & Trivia, News & Politics

Welcome to celebrity cats: a whole new kind of personality cult. From the infamous Grim Reaper kitty to the feline made station chief to the wannabe meteorologist cat, the internet is full of humorous tales of cats who seem to think they’re humans – or at least act like them. If you’ve run out of lolcats, here are some of the funniest and strangest stories about cats you’ll ever read. (And here’s hoping you don’t get in trouble like Google did.)

The Grim Reaper

(Images via MSNBC)

Forget Joe Black. Meet Oscar the Cat. This perceptive kitty is so good at predicting death, the workers at the nursing home where Oscar lives call family members when Oscar makes his move. He curls up next to sickly residents, and when he does, it usually means they have only a few hours to live. Four, to be exact. He’s so good, he’s predicted 25 deaths. But he’s not a cuddly type. The two-year-old cat is noted for being aloof and businesslike – doctors and nurses explain that he “seems to take his work very seriously”, making rounds, sniffing and checking on patients routinely. Watch the video here.

The Station Chief

(Image via wikipedia)

Tama the cat is no ordinary feline. She’s station chief of the Kishi train station in Wakayama Prefecture in Japan. It all began when Japan’s Kishigawa Line switched from manned to unmanned stations in 2006 to save money. Local small business owners and employees were selected to greet passengers; except in the case of Kishi, where Tama was made the station master in 2007. Tama’s duty is to greet people. Her salary is cat food. Tama’s sure been good for business: it is estimated that she increased traffic by 10% and added 1.1 billion yen to the local economy. Tama was promoted to super station master in 2008 and is the only female in the company in a managerial position. She has two cat assistants and an office.

Tourist Kitty

(Image via Daily Mail)

A mystery cat nicknamed Macavity routinely hops on the city bus to go to the shops. Reportedly, the blue-and-green-eyed feline’s favorite is the fish and chips shop. He takes the bus 2 to 3 times weekly, getting off at a few different shops, and has been doing so since January 2007. He’s unaccompanied by an owner; he just seems to enjoy taking the bus.

Weather Kitty

(Image via Cat Connection)

A cat recently ventured into the television studios of a German news station with apparent aspirations for the camera – catching the meteorologist quite off guard. After the initial surprise of a cat joining the forecast, the weatherman decided to make the cat feel more comfortable by picking him up and holding him as he delivered the weather report.

Toilet Ninjas of the Interwebs

Many cats are easily trained in the fine art of using the toilet. It’s perhaps fortunate that such a predisposition for toilet use exists in cats; it’s perhaps unfortunate that said cats’ owners choose to put videos of this talent on the internet. Consider yourself warned. Interested in training your cat? Click here.

Libby the Seeing Eye Cat

(Image via sfpnn)

Libby the seeing-eye cat has become quite the web celeb: “Who says cats and dogs can’t get along? Libby serves as the eyes and ears for old Cashew, a 14-year-old blind and deaf Lab. No one taught Libby to guide Cashew to food and water or keep him out of harm’s way; she took it upon herself to care for him and steer him around. They’re inseparable friends.”

Interested in more lovable pet antics? See Tales of Amazing Heroic Pets and The World’s Most Outrageous Pet Houses.