Cats have been welcomed aboard ships, as working members of the crew, for thousands of years - because of their ability to keep ship's stores free of rodents.

The custom of having a ship's cat originated when, in ancient times, sea traders visiting Egyptian seaports noticed, and were impressed by, the efficiency and grace of these strange, mysterious animals that had been domesticated and trained to protect the nation's precious grain from rats. So they recruited Egyptian cats for their ships, to keep their own food stores safe. As the trading vessels travelled from port to port, these intrepid and curious creatures jumped ship and adapted easily to foreign environments and bred with other types of wild cat. That is how domestic cats arrived in Greece in 500 BC, in India about 300BC and in China about 200 BC. So most cats are, at heart, ship's cats.
Crafted in China using the pelts of rabbits, a by-product of food production.