How the street cat Gacek from Szczecin, Poland, ended up on Google Maps and then disappeared

We are accustomed to the fact that Google maps contain markers of architectural monuments, museums and restaurants. These objects are primarily of interest to tourists. But on the map of the Polish city of Szczecin until recently one could find the location of... a stray cat. How did the animal named Gatsek receive such an honor and why did he lose it after a while?

A year ago, the street cat Gacek was considered a real landmark of Szczecin. Tourists found the animal using Google Maps to pet it, feed it and take a photo. After this, the cat received a score of 5 points. The average rating never fell below 4.5. Very quickly its rating surpassed other tourist places in the city in popularity.

The location with the cat had a lot of reviews and photos. Most of the guests of Szczecin who visited Gacek noted that he was very well-fed, lazy and friendly. But it was not always so. The cat appeared on the streets of the city about 9 years ago. He was very thin, dirty and scared. When they fed him, he approached carefully, ate everything without a trace and immediately ran away.

Then he disappeared for a couple of weeks, and then appeared already neutered. The owner of one of the shops on Kashubska Street began caring for the street cat. Local residents and passers-by also fed him. Once they tried to take Gacek home, but nothing came of this idea. He turned out to be completely outdoors - he did not recognize the cat litter, constantly screamed and wanted to be free.

The cat was given freedom, and his life returned to normal. Thanks to the caring townspeople and guests of Szczecin, Gacek became richer. This made him even more attractive, because everyone knows that fat cats are loved the most. Then someone added a mark with it on the city map and the real pilgrimage began. The cat became so famous that people in the city joked about it:

But the local animal shelter soon intervened. His employees examined the fat man and sounded the alarm. The generosity of tourists did not benefit the cat - his excess weight began to affect his health. Do not forget that the animal is at least 9 years old, and for cats this is far from a young age.

During an examination at the shelter, it turned out that Gacek had problems with his teeth and joints. Therefore, he was left in the establishment to be cleaned up. The main cat, Sheqin, was put on a strict diet and began to receive treatment. Of course, many did not like this, since the “tourist site” disappeared from its location. Some demanded that the cat be returned and even accused the shelter of PR at the expense of the celebrity.

But the volunteers did not react to this and continued to treat Gacek. Within a few months he was slim and healthy again. The cat even began to jump, something he was unable to do before. Zoo defenders have changed not only the animal’s lifestyle. They gave him a new name, George, and placed him in good hands. Now he is a pet, and the mark has disappeared from Google maps.

It remains to add that Gacek is not the only cat of interest. Until 2016, Tombili the cat lived in Istanbul, known for his imposing poses.