Maru, the Legendary Masseur

As word of Maru’s massage magic travels the globe, customers pour in from all over. Today, a sea lion swims in to have the legendary masseur “massage a bad part.” After a thorough inspection, Maru decides the bad part is his face.




I’ve never seen a pillow so contented, Andrew Y.

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14 thoughts on “Maru, the Legendary Masseur

  1. allein ? March 17, 2018 / 12:40 pm

    I’ve never heard Maru talk so much!

  2. Ffleur2 March 17, 2018 / 1:12 pm

    If you understand cat or rather Maru psychology, please explain to me. Why does he keep that soother in his mouth? What purpose does the messaging of a pillow serve? Is he anxious and it relaxes him?

    • Wuyizidi March 17, 2018 / 2:38 pm

      That soother is attached to a wand. I play with my cat using a similar wand before meal time.

      Cats are hunters, and the hunt usually consists of stalk, chase, grab-bite, and kill phases. So to keep things natural/interesting, I try to recreate that with the toy. When she’s done playing, she’ll grab the soother (with head and tail held high), walks over and drops it off near the food bowl, looks back at me and meows loudly like Maru here.

      The messaging behavior is leftover from when they were kittens, kneading mom while suckling.

    • debg March 17, 2018 / 4:37 pm

      The toy is his binkie. Yeah, it’s attached to a long wand, but it’s a binkie.

      • Ffleur2 March 17, 2018 / 6:11 pm

        Thank you three for the explanations. Appreciate your insight.

    • Mal March 17, 2018 / 11:50 pm

      Most cats do not walk around with a binkie in their mouth. That’s Maru being Maru. The kneading/massaging is common however.

  3. birdlady26 March 17, 2018 / 1:13 pm

    Loved the part near the beginning that had an arrow pointing to “Assistant Hana” in the upper right hand corner!

  4. Alice Shortcake March 17, 2018 / 4:21 pm

    There was a moment near the beginning of the video when a certain Monty Python song sprang to mind, but I won’t mention the title in case it results in awkward questions from younger Cutetropolis fans…

    • debg March 17, 2018 / 4:38 pm

      OMG I had the same thought!

  5. debg March 17, 2018 / 4:39 pm

    Umm, Maru doesn’t seem destined for any career that requires tact or sensitivity.

  6. jerzowa March 17, 2018 / 5:45 pm

    Maru’s facial expression, as well as both verbal and non-verbal signals, are those of a World’s Most Distinguished Internal Disorders Professor! 🙂

  7. Faye March 18, 2018 / 12:05 am

    A yowling cat massaging a smiling seal floor pillow. Yup. Happens at my house every single day.

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