Akshata Murty says Larry the Cat had 'heated exchanges' with Rishi Sunak's dog

Larry the Cat is a 16-year-old tabby adopted as a pet for David Cameron's children. (Image: Akshata Murty/Instagram, @Number10cat/X)

Larry the Cat, who has served as the Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office at 10 Downing Street since 2011, is not a huge fan of current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s dog. The revelation was made by his wife Akshata Murty who was speaking to children on Sky News FYI show. She said that Larry has had some “heated exchanges” with the Labrador named Nova, who has had “mixed emotions” about living at 10 Downing Street.

"Nova has mixed emotions about (living here) because she sometimes doesn't get on with Larry the Cat. And they've had some heated exchanges and Larry's come out on top," Murty said.

Despite the tension between the pets, Murty said that she felt “honoured” to live in the Prime Minister’s official residence.

Larry the Cat, a 16-year-old tabby, was adopted from Battersea Cats and Dogs as a pet for former prime minister David Cameron’s children. He is currently looked after by the Downing Street staff and doesn’t belong to any of the prime ministers.

Larry has been with five Prime Ministers - David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak. His official duties are keeping the building rodent-free, as well as greeting guests and "testing antique furniture for napping quality". "His day-to-day responsibilities also include contemplating a solution to the mouse occupancy of the house," an official job description on Downing Street’s website states.

As Sunak moved into the residence with their dog in November 2022, Larry was not very happy. “ANOTHER dog?! Bring back Liz Truss,” a post on his official X account read.

Before Sunak’s dog, former prime minister Boris Johnson had also brought his pooch, a Jack Russell Cross breed, in 2019. "Confirmation that Downing Street is going to the dogs,” the cat had said on Twitter.