I was surprised recently that a conductor on a train on which I was travelling was cancelling tickets using a ticket punch rather than just marking them with a pen.

The attached scan shows the result. I put some coloured paper behind the ticket so that the “paw” shape is clearer. There are a number of similar animal-themed punches in use, but I doubt that they are officially issued.

“Punching” tickets was the traditional method used by conductors, but in recent years many have just been marking them with a pen. I have always thought that cancelling tickets with a pen was an unsuitable practice because one could always use the ticket again claiming that it had been accidentally marked or that a child or grandchild drew on it. On the other hand one might also claim that a child or grandchild had punched a ticket with a novelty punch!