A cat in Utah has a brand new forever home, thanks in part to President Donald Trump.
The Humane Society of Utah’s longest resident was a brown tabby who was once named Sprite. He’d been in the shelter since around the time Trump secured the Republican Party nomination just last year.
Mystified that the friendly 11-year-old cat had literally been passed over by so many, the Humane Society of Utah recently changed his name from Sprite to Covfefe, who is a non-word that’s become part of the vernacular since Trump tweeted it just after midnight May 31.
It’s more than likely that “covfefe” was a typo of “coverage” — Trump’s now-deleted tweet read: “Despite the constant negative press covfefe.” In a happy twist, coverage in The Salt Lake Tribune is precisely what caught the attention of Covfefe’s new family.
After reading about Covfefe’s frim situation in Friday morning’s paper, a mother and daughter went to the Humane Society of Utah to adopt him.
“They saw the article and felt so sad — they didn’t want a senior cat to be in a shelter,” stated Deann Shepherd, the Humane Society’s marketing director.
This particular family already has a dog at home, however, they have never had a cat before, so shelter workers spent time going over the basics of cat care.
With Covfefe being an older kitty, Shepherd stated, he’ll likely spend time napping and cuddling when he feels like it. However, he won’t be Covfefe much longer — the family does plan to change his name.
The shelter often renames their animals in attempts to boost their appeal factor, Shepherd explained. Sometimes staffers choose names that are based on the prospective pets’ individual personalities, or us the names of popular characters.
Other times it’s just simply a matter of removing the negative connotations of an existing name. A cat who was named Rasputin had lingered in the shelter for quite a long time, however, was adopted almost immediately once he was given a cuter name, Shepherd said.
Now that Covfefe has been adopted, Shepherd stated that it might be “time for a makeover” for Jerry, who is a gray-and-white, relaxation-loving feline who now holds the honor of being the longest-serving shelter cat.
Animals “can stay with us as long as it takes to find a home” — the Humane Society of Utah is a no-kill shelter, Shepherd stated. However, despite the amenities — window views and massive climbing trees in Kitty City; private “catnip TV” with videos of birds and squirrels in interior rooms; visitors and volunteers to provide emotional and mental stimulation — cats are much better off living in homes of their own, she went on to say.
Currently, the shelter has a room stocked full of “adorable little tiny kittens,” Shepherd stated, as well as plenty of more mature cats.
And even those who aren’t interested in adding a new pet to the family are more than welcome to visit the shelter — at 4242 S. 300 West in Murray — to hang out with the kitties or help walk the dogs.
h/t: www.sltrib.com
