Shelter goes viral for its hilarious ‘nice and naughty' cat of the week series on Instagram

It’s not just Santa who has a ‘nice and naughty’ list – this week a non-profit cat rescue and animal clinic in Los Angeles, US, has gone viral for its "nice and naughty" cat of the week series on Instagram. Netizens are finding the pictures hilarious, and the campaign has brought some pawsitive responses, boosting cat adoption at the shelter.

One such post, by Heaven on Earth Perry's Place, which went viral, shows a photo of two cats with the caption: "Meet our Naughty and Nice Cats of the Week: Elijah and Popsicle. Elijah, a handsome boy with the sweetest purrsonality, has been on the 'nice' list for a while. And he's still available for adoption. Popsicle loves snacks, even more so when they're stolen from his roommates. Popsicle is also available for adoption."

According to the post, Popsicle landed on the “naughty” list because he “stole treats from Daniel, his BLIND roommate.”

And, "Elijah has opened up and shown the staff how much he loves belly rubs," the post read about the "nice cat" of the week.

Surprisingly, the "naughty" cats seem to have more fans in the comments section.

Another cat named Walden made it to the naughty list twice consecutively. He was listed a first time for being an “Anklebiter Extraordinaire." Before he could be pawdoned, he decided to “move up to the elbows," landing on the list again.

Meanwhile, a third cat named Tom, “wanted to be the only male in the room, so he beat up his roommates to keep the girls to himself”.

An article on US-based news website foxnews.com quoted Toni Barrett, the Development Manager at Heaven on Earth Perry's Place, as saying that a famous cat influencer who goes by the name "Pot Roast's Mom," on TikTok, inspired her and her staff.

The TikToker is popular for labelling her cats as "good or bad" cats of the week.

Barrett thought the idea was funny and decided to apply it to her work at the sanctuary, the article said.

According to Barrett, the series was first launched on the shelter's Instagram page in March 2022.

He said: "It was slow at first; people were enjoying it, and then all of a sudden, we had this one [post] that kind of went viral."

The post showing Elijah and Popsicle gathered around 788,000 likes and over 3,000 comments.

Thanks to the viral series released every Saturday, Instagram users have started commenting on the posts to show interest in the cats featured.

The shelter’s website says that there are over 100 cats waiting to be adopted.

Instagram user @beccasutherlandphotography commented: "This is my kids' favourite thing on Instagram! They ask me daily if a new nice/naughty cat has yet been posted!”

Another Instagram user, @lmac.and.cheese said: "I love the weekly good and bad cats. My favourite was when one stole treats from his blind roommate, Daniel! I love these, honestly. Keep up the great work."