A cat and its family raise money for felines by completing virtual runs. The cat’s athletic endeavors have earned him the name The Jogging cat.
Two-and-a-half-year-old cat Tiger JoJo lives in Fairfield, Connecticut with his owners, Christine and Leif Johansson. Christine and Leif’s five-year-old granddaughter named the kitty.
The ginger puss is a mix of Maine Coon, Siberian, and Abyssinian, according to its owners. When they adopted JoJo at the age of nine weeks, he was in foster care in Antioch.
The retiree couple believes the puss had been abused before they got him. Jojo still fears visitors and gets anxious whenever someone stomps their foot on the ground.
“We think someone may have kicked him,” said Christine
Nowadays, Jojo lives a blessed life with his owners and sibling, No drama Lama. Unlike some cats, he does not knock over or paw at strange objects.
Furthermore, Jojo is very active on social media. The critter has an estimated 90,000 followers across multiple social media sites.
Additionally, he often goes on virtual runs with the Johanssons, riding in a stroller or other mode of transportation and sporting sunglasses.
When he gets close to home, Tiger Jojo hops out of the stroller and runs through the neighborhood while attached to a leash. Once his owners release him, the kitten mingles with neighbors or goes bird-watching.
The Johanssons explained that as entertaining as it is to watch JoJo do his thing, his antics have served a more serious purpose: raising money for AlleyCat.org, an animal welfare organization dedicated to cats.
Christine said that JoJo has run 50 races and covered about 1,500 miles. He has been photographed and filmed in various outfits for charity events and other special occasions.
The Jogging Cat is a universal role model
After every race the Jogging Cat finishes, the Johanssons receive supportive messages from followers worldwide. JoJo’s extraordinary online exploits have inspired many sick children and their caregivers.
The Johanssons regularly go through Jojo’s fan mail, full of poignant testimonies explaining how the cat gives fans hope and courage to fight their sickness.
Many of these well-wishers thank the couple for their involvement and pledge to donate to animal rights associations.
Christine has penned a children’s book titled “The Happy Cat With Big Ideas.”
The book will feature numerous illustrations of JoJo. Currently, an artist is working on these images while Christine and her editor decided on the publishing date.
This latest enterprise undoubtedly will increase the cat’s already substantial fame. A cat with a growing online following is bound to attract marketers looking for endorsement deals or PR gifts.
Yet, The Johanssons decline the majority of these gifts or endorsement proposals. They made one exception for the kitten’s harness. Christine told The Reporter:
“I tell people where we got it…We don’t want to make a lot of money out of this.”