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A curious cat that visits a Cambridge pet store every day to help with the shop opening has been named customer of the year.

Valerie the cat, which visits Pets at Home in Cambridge daily at 7am, has become a permanent fixture of the store.

Store colleagues in Cambridge estimate Valerie’s 100 per cent attendance spans back as far as 18 months, which has seen colleagues become familiar with her morning greeting of jumping into their cars, an enthusiasm rewarded with cat treats.

The prestigious title was awarded to the feline in a ceremony this morning (Friday) at her favourite store where she received a certificate, a new silver collar and a name tag engraved with her new title.

Valerie has clawed her way into the hearts of the local community, with certain Cambridge residents visiting the store just to say hello to the in-house feline, who fills her days with naps in the puppy beds, people watching atop scratching posts and keeping a close eye on the degus.

Store manager Shane Vann-Hewitt said: “It’s fantastic that Valerie has won the award, she looked very intrigued by her new collar, complete with the ‘Customer of the Year’ name tag.

“Now, we just want to involve her owners so that they can see how loved Valerie is.

“Valerie has become a fixture at the store and we love having her here, although she does sometimes surprise new customers who weren’t quite expecting a cat to be asleep in their chosen puppy bed.”