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Cat Moves Into Home Improvement Store And Goes Viral On TikTok

Author Phil Harris
Employees say the former barn cat was brought to the home improvement store to help solve a mouse problem in 2022. (Photo by Svetlana Sultanaeva/iStock via Getty Images)

If you’ve ever been inside a big box home improvement store, you’ve probably seen a bird or two flying around. And why not? Those stores have a lot to offer members of the avian community. They’re spacious and well-lit with plenty of places to build nests. They also offer protection from the elements and predators. Well, until now.

According to WPVI-TV, a cat took up residence inside a Home Depot store in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, in 2022. Employees of the home improvement store say Leo, a former barn cat, was brought in to help solve a mouse problem. For all we know, he may be keeping the birds away, too. However, Leo has definitely been bringing customers in.

Jeffrey Simpkins, who often brings his own cats, Will and Grace, to the Home Depot, has been posting videos of Leo on TikTok. That has led to Leo becoming a social media sensation to the tune of more than 50 million views. Some people come to the store just to see him.

If you’re ever in the Mount Laurel Home Depot, Leo is hard to miss. He enjoys wearing clothes and taking rides in his shopping cart. Leo even has a couple of name tags. One says, “Hello my name is Leo.” The other one says like “Mount Laurel Store,” so you know he’s official.

The store’s employees take good care of Leo. They make sure he gets regular vet check-ups and has a place to sleep when the Home Depot is closed on holidays. You can see the little guy in the video below. By the way, the name of the woman reporting the story is Katie Katro. Do you think that assignment was intentional?

Phil Harris is 50% of "Phil & Mel in the Afternoon" on K104.7. He has been with the station since 2013 and on the air in Charlotte since 2000. Before coming to the Queen City, Phil worked for radio stations in Pittsburgh, Austin, and Seattle. In addition to the weekly "Throwback Threesome" music video feature, Phil writes about things that matter to Charlotte sports fans and pet owners. He happens to be both.

Celebrities Who Have Verified Instagram Accounts For Their Pets

We all know those people who have accounts for their babies or pets. Did you know even Hollywood A-listers take part in that, too? It doesn’t matter if you’re famous or not — if someone feels as though they’ve got some cuteness overload to share, there will be a page dedicated to that. We must admit, it is kind of charming for grown adults to run pages of cute content from the perspective of their furry friends. Some celebrities’ pets have enough followers that their accounts have been verified on Instagram, while others are still steadily climbing in popularity to gain enough followers to get that blue checkmark.

For example, Paris Hilton has an entire Instagram dedicated to all of her “fur kids,” called Hilton Pets (@hiltonpets). The heiress has more than just dogs, which most people don’t know. On her official website, the Simple Life alum has a page dedicated to all the pets she currently has and once had. This includes miniature pigs, ponies, ferrets, monkeys, cats, and bunnies — oh my! Paris even has a verified TikTok account with the funniest and cutest videos featuring her adorable pets.

@hiltonpets

Collecting brunch fees from Diamond Baby 💓🐕💎 @hiltonpets 😂 #inventinganna

♬ ah already wahd you the mahneeyyy by jules - jules

Benefits of Having a Pet

Studies have shown that the bond between people and their pets is linked to several health benefits, according to the CDC. Pets can increase opportunities to exercise, get outside, and socialize. Regular walking or playing with pets can decrease blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and triglyceride levels. Pets can help manage loneliness and depression by giving us companionship. When cats purr, they emit a range of 20-140 Hz, which is known to be medically therapeutic for illnesses and lower stress. Most households in the United States have at least one pet.

Keep scrolling to see which celebrities have verified Instagram accounts for their adorable pets.

  • Paris Hilton

    Paris said goodbye to her furry companion, Harajuku Bitch after 23 years in May 2023. In 2015, the heiress said goodbye to her chihuahua Tinkerbell at 14 years old. She was widely recognized accompanying her on the Simple Life. In July of 2023, the socialite added a teacup chihuahua named Prince Tokyo Gizmo Hilton.

  • Katy Perry

    The “Mutt Ball 2019 Champion” was featured in two of Katy’s music videos for “Swish Swish” and “Small Talk,” becoming her “mascot.” Katy added the micro teacup poodle to her furry family in 2016, naming her Nugget, or on Instagram, Miss Nugget Perry. The “TGIF” singer already has a dog named Butters, whom she added to her pet family in 2014. The artist previously owned two cats, one named Kitty Purry, who made a cameo in the “I Kissed a Girl.” She passed away in 2020 after 15 years. Perry also owned a cat named Monkey in 2010.

  • Nina Dobrev

    The Vampire Diaries alum adopted a rescue Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mix named Mrs.Maverick in 2017. According to her Instagram bio, Nina adds that her name is “Maverick Do(g)brev.” With 419,000 followers, Nina hilariously captions the posts as if her dog is writing them. In this July 17 post, Maverick writes: “has she heard of personal space? @nina”

  • Mark Hamill

    The Star Wars actor has a page dedicated to his 10-year-old rescue, Millie. According to the dog’s Instagram bio, she loves food, her humans, naps, and treats. With over 27,000 followers, Mark’s other rescues Mabel and Trixie often make cameos on Millie’s page. Like the other “pet-run” Instagrams, Millie’s captions are from her point of view.

  • Bobby Flay

    Leave it to the celebrity chef to name his pet after a food. However, Bobby’s orange Maine Coon, Nacho Flay, is a perfect name for the fluffy cat. With over 270,000 Instagram followers, Nacho even has chef-crafted cat food called Made by Nacho. Bobby has another Maine Coon named Stella. According to Flay, he became a cat person because he was an only child. He considered his family’s cats his “siblings” and said on TikTok that he couldn’t imagine life without his cats.

  • Carrie Fisher

    Though the Star Wars alum passed away in 2016, the Instagram page of her famous and beloved French bulldog, Gary Fisher, lives on. Most posts are dedicated to his dog mom, Carrie, with heartfelt messages from the 11-year-old dog. Carrie adopted the dog from her daughter, Billie Lourd, to help manage her bipolar disorder. Since Carrie’s passing, her former assistant Corby McCoin took him in.

  • Andy Cohen

    The television talk show host adopted this adorable beagle-foxhound mix from a kill shelter in West Virginia. However, in May 2020, Cohen announced that he would be sending his rescue dog of nearly seven years to another home due to “random signs of aggression” that he had tried to address. Wacha was re-homed permanently with his “second family” that would watch him when Cohen was out of town.

  • Justin Bieber

    Justin and his wife Hailey adopted a Maltese Yorkie named Oscar in 2018, a few months after they got married. On Instagram, they gave him a too-adorable Instagram nickname: “Oskie the Poskie.” In November 2022, the couple announced they adopted a dog named Piggy Lou as Oscar’s baby sister. The “Baby” singer owned several exotic pets, too. He had two Savannah cats named Sushi and Tuna and a capuchin monkey named OG Mally.

  • Mark Wahlberg

    Wahlberg has four dogs: a Pomsky (Pomeranian-Husky mix) named Jojo, a “stinky” Boston Terrier named Lola, newest-addition Pomsky puppy named Penny, and a Pomeranian named Champ. Champ is the only verified pooch, with over 85,000 Instagram followers. Wahlberg surprised his wife and kids with Champ in 2019, recalling that his wife was mad he didn’t consult her with choosing the dog. She even said “I hate those little furry dogs,” when she found out his breed, but quickly had a change of heart once she met Champ.

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