The staff at Walthamstow Ambulance Station rescued the 16-year-old cat, Defib, as a kitten.

Defib has lived in the London ambulance station ever since his rescue, but the new management at the London Ambulance Service (LAS) has raised "infection control/concerns" and is looking to have him rehomed.

Staff members have now set up a petition, calling on the public's support to allow Defib to live out his remaining years in the place he's called home for the majority of his life.

At the time of writing, the change.org petition garnered over 54,000 signatures.

The petition reads: "Unlike so many cats in London, he was lucky enough to be rescued by staff as a kitten and has been adored by them ever since.

"The staff believe rehoming such an old cat is an unnecessary act of cruelty and not justifiable, especially in light of the recent popularity of therapy animals in business premises.

"We hope you will support the staff in asking LAS to allow him to live out his remaining years in the place he has known and where he is loved."

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson told the Daily Mail that Defib's possible eviction is for his own safety.

"We are looking for a worthy retirement home for Defib the cat. As he has got older, his reactions have slowed, and he has had several near misses in being run over by ambulances at the busy station," the spokesperson said.

"Additionally, we have ambulance staff with severe allergies who cannot use the ambulance station during their breaks.

"We're exploring some options so that he can go to a loving home that is more suitable for a cat his age than an operational ambulance station, and we are very much thinking of this as Defib's own retirement plan from the LAS."