Tributes have been paid to Cosmo, a well-known cat from Port Erin who has recently passed away.

Cosmo’s owner, Helen Sheppard, announced on Monday morning that she’d found Cosmo ‘sleeping peacefully’.

Helen is now looking to raise £1,000 in memory of Cosmo for both Greenhills and the Mann Cat Sanctuary.

The JustGiving page reads: ‘We are absolutely devastated to announce that Cosmo the cat has passed away. He was found sleeping peacefully, with no obvious signs of injury.

‘He was such a special cat and in his memory we would like to fundraise for two Manx charities.’

Cosmo was well-known for hanging around outside the former Shoprite store in Port Erin, and had his own Facebook page in which his ‘adventures’ around the town were documented.

Other businesses he visited included Southern Tech Repairs, the Hospice Shop, Tangles, the George Herdman Library and the Athol Park Guesthouse.

After the announcement of his passing, members of the public on Facebook commented ‘I will miss giving him a stroke and a fuss’, ‘he always made my visits to Shoprite so much happier’ and ‘he will be missed by everyone’.

One person commented: ‘So sad to hear this - he was a big character and lots of people were very fond of him. I was so looking forward to seeing what he thought of Tesco. May he rest well.’

A tongue-in-cheek introduction written on Cosmo’s Facebook page back in March 2023 read: ‘I am Cosmo, I am nine years old and I am an opportunist.

‘I do have a loving home, but I like to meet and socialise with people. I have had many adventures in my lifetime.

‘I used to live in Colby and when I first moved to Port Erin I walked all the way back there - it took me three days! I used to walk from Port Erin to houses along the Gansey sea front and made friends with a lot of different people there.

‘I also used to walk up towards the Sound Cafe and met a lovely lady, however her cat didn't like me much. Somehow, I also ended up once in Ballaugh!’