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The Cat That Saved A Railway Line.
Tama (たま), 29 April 1999 – 22 June 2015) was a female calico cat who gained fame for being a station master and operating officer at Kishi Station on the Kishigawa Line in Kinokawa, Wakayama, Japan.
Tama was born in Kinokawa, Wakayama, and was raised with a group of stray cats that used to live close to Kishi Station. In January 2007, railway officials decided to officially name Tama the station master. As station master, her primary duty was to greet passengers. The position came with a station master's hat; in lieu of a salary, the railway provided Tama with cat food. At the time, the local railway line was almost bankrupt and the station was unmanned but Tama's celebrity status helped to bring the company back from the brink of financial ruin
Tama died on June 22nd 2015 of apparent heart failure at the age of 16 at an animal hospital in Wakayama Prefecture. After her passing, thousands of her fans from all over Japan came to pay their respect. She was honored with a Shinto-style funeral at the station and was given the posthumous title, "honorable eternal stationmaster."
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