Duke Ellington Morris is the most recent member of SFO’s “Wag Brigade”. Image / San Francisco International Airport
If you find a black and white cat running around San Francisco International Airport, don’t be alarmed, it’s simply Duke Ellington Morris, among the airport’s most recent team member.
“Duke” as he’s more delicately called is a 14-year-old feline and the most recent member of a group called the “Wag Brigade”.
“Purrlease welcome our newest Wag Brigade member, Duke Ellington Morris!” the airport revealed on Twitter on June 9.
Launched in 2013, the Wag Brigade program is created to utilize specifically qualified animals to help soothe tourists in the SFO airport.
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Originally, the group was “canines only” however other animals have actually gradually signed up with the ranks consisting of Alex the bunny and LilLou the pig, who ended up being well-known as ‘the world’s very first treatment pig’.
However, not simply any animal off the street can wear the “Pet Me” vest and wander around the terminals. All animals should be accredited by San Francisco’s SPCA and finish its Animal Assisted Therapy (ATT) Program.
Animals are specifically selected based upon their character and behaviour, the airport said. Given Duke’s CV, he was a shoo-in for the function as he has actually already worked as an assistance animal.
Life was tough in the start for the black-and-white feline, who was discovered starving and ill in a feral cat nest in 2010, according to the airport. After being found, the kitten invested a brief time at SPCA, where he captured the attention of a 5-year-old lady and her mom, who were trying to find a family pet.
The brand-new owners happily took him home, where they quickly understood Duke was an unique cat and had him accredited as an animal therapist. Since then, he has actually assisted human beings deal with challenge, health problem and tension. In SFO, he’ll play a comparable function and bring convenience to tourists in the airport who require it.
Duke is even partially Instagram well-known, with a profile run by his owners. After making it onto the Wag Brigade, the profile revealed a post of Duke in a phony pilot uniform with the caption: “Happy is not the word…elated!”
