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Jun 24, 2026

Cat Clocks Into Work Twice A Month For The Most Important Job At Dog Shelter

Cat Clocks Into Work Twice A Month For The Most Important Job At Dog Shelter

“[He] reads their body language like a pro.”

By Ashley OrtizPublished on June 19, 2026 at 10:00 AM

Every role at Muttville Senior Dog Rescue (MSDR) matters. From the shelter staff who care for their sweet elderly pups each day to the volunteers who show up ready to shower everyone with love, there’s no position more important than the rest.

Except, of course, the resident cat tester, who clocks in every other week with a mission to discover just how compatible each dog is with cats.

Muttville Senior Dog Rescue

MSDR’s first cat tester, Mustache, was a perfect fit for the job. The fluffy orange cat was used to having dogs around, and he was unfazed when his guardian, Missy Dominguez, carried him into MSDR’s office to meet some of the resident pups.

“Mustache was so confident and so calm,” MSDR wrote on Instagram. “His easy-going energy was ideal for cat testing.”

Muttville Senior Dog Rescue

Mustache excelled on his first day as cat tester. He met several dogs, most of whom didn’t mind having him around, and seemed to develop a strategy that put the pups at ease.

“Most of the time, he would just observe the dogs and let them approach him,” MSDR wrote. “But sometimes, he had opinions about the dogs, and that was OK, too.”

Muttville Senior Dog Rescue

Though he wasn’t a dog himself, Mustache fit right in among MSDR’s senior residents. As a hospice foster quietly battling advanced kidney disease, he lived each day to the fullest — and Dominguez cherished every one alongside him.

“Three years ago, I promised to give Mustache a home for whatever time he had left,” Dominguez told The Dodo. “It turned out to be one of the best promises I've ever made.”

Muttville Senior Dog Rescue

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