Cat becomes Internet star after being banned from library

Dec. 4 (UPI) -- A Minnesota cat has become a local and online celebrity after it was revealed that he was banned from the library at a nearby college campus.

Max the tabby cat became a worldwide star when photos circulated online of a sign posted at the entrance to Macalester College's library.

The sign reads:

"Please do not let in the cat.

His name is Max. Max is nice.

His owner does not want Max in the library. We do not want Max in the library.

Max wants to be in the library.

Please do not let Max into the library."

Library employee Chris Schommer, whose duties include designing signage, said he created the sign when he returned from parental leave to find a handwritten note on the door bearing a similar message.

Numerous pictures have emerged on social media of Max after managing to get into the library. The school's Department of Spanish & Portuguese posted a photo showing Max after he found his way into a tutoring office.

"The tutoring office for the Department of Spanish & Portuguese just received a visit from a new student today. We taught Max how to say 'gato,'" the post quipped.

Connie Lipton, Max's owner, said she is trying to restrict him to being an indoor cat due to concerns that he could wander into a construction project on campus.

"Max is very gregarious; he's a people guy, and I think he just makes people happy," she told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.