I cant help but think about this. But that is a really cool theory. I never thought about that, but the more I do the more it make sense

I would have though Pooka, if that entry didn't open up a few days later, and the fact that I failed that one and she called me the very next day, after the office pet announcement, telling me she would be calling terminators or some other professionals and never mentioned the cat at all. So whatever else happened, THAT Whiskers didn't go away. Or if it did, the owner sure forgot.

Originally posted by leojona:

I would have though Pooka, if that entry didn't open up a few days later, and the fact that I failed that one and she called me the very next day, after the office pet announcement, telling me she would be calling terminators or some other professionals and never mentioned the cat at all. So whatever else happened, THAT Whiskers didn't go away. Or if it did, the owner sure forgot.

I guess that is my entire point; a changeling would seem initially imperceptible to the real thing. So whether or not you failed, if the cat were "swapped" and one that mysteriously had the same name shows up the same day, the owner would be none the wiser. Probably just confused the cat seems a little off lately. Meanwhile, the real cat is in an office.

My even more farfetched theory is that while you're fixing normal household pests, it gives a great opportunity to install new, funkier "pests" after you have gained the trust of someone for dealing with the previous, which is why failure is frowned upon ESPECIALLY when the issue is just something like termites...for crying out loud, that was a repeat customer in the making! Obviously might not account for all the calls, but with the knowledge there seems to be some shenanigans afoot, I can't help but wonder a little.

It's been a while since I played and maybe I'd have a different feeling playing again or remember something that sort of makes whatever I said above pointless, but this is pretty close to how I interpreted it after playing and reading a bit of the devbook

They adopted a cat to help with their mouse infestation. There's no way it goes any deeper than that.

The cat was used to track down a previous employee who failed their duties if we recall what the bad ending entails. It's also the reason why the emails which you're getting during the first days are ridden with typos, a literal mouse typed those before being found by the cat. The nature of the cat itself is rather unimportant, what matters is that it was required to get rid of the renegade employee.

Regarding the DLC:
The Mouse King is most likely another or the same turned employee seeking vengeance, their raised level of intelligence makes it rather likely that they used to be a human. It's also why the company is obsessed with trying to capture/kill them.

There is no deep mystery here unless you didn't pay attention.
The employee before you was turned into a mouse, the mouse was the one sending you the e-mails.
Corporate got a new cat in order to hunt down and kill the former employee you replaced. Right after they adopt the cat you get the e-mail the next morning about how the hole is no longer safe and that "he" knows where he is. He is the cat.