Why were cats settled in the basements of the Hermitage?

Cats appeared in the basements of the Hermitage as early as under Peter I in 1724. They caught mice and rats, there is a version that the emperor brought the first cat from the Netherlands. In 1745, cats were brought from Kazan, and rumors reached the empress that they were good at catching mice in their city. In memory of this, in Kazan, on the local Arbat, there is a monument to a well-fed cat. After the blockade of 1941-1944, cats were imported from Tyumen. In memory of this in Tyumen, there has recently been a boulevard of Siberian cats not far from the station.