There have been so many cases recently where businesses are going out of their way to ban cats who come on their property. Little Pumpkin is probably the most famous cat in the world after Tesco Express in Thorpe Marriott, Norwich banned the cat. This could prove bad for business for Tesco since pet-loving shoppers are calling for a boycott.
Little Pumpkin has an owner. Grandmother and cat lover Jo Harding and her family have seven other cats as well as a dog. Their home is only a few doors down from Tesco, where Little Pumpkin goes for naps and social time. Perhaps even a few bites of food given by the shoppers who know and love him.
Tesco has now banned the rescue cat. Andrew Tabiner, store leader, cites some members of the staff calling Little Pumpkin a ‘hindrance and pain,’ according to Metro.com.uk. The friendly kitty first made the local news and his story has now gone global, with supporters from the USA to Canada to Norway. Tabiner stated
“The bottom line is it should not be in the store, as it is not Tesco policy, and we are doing everything we can to discourage it from coming in. It is absolutely not a shop pet.”
Pumpkin mostly lays by the door. Jo says keeping Pumpkin, who is now six years old, out of the store would be to turn him into an indoor-only cat. She doesn’t feel that’s fair since he appeared welcome in the store for the past year and was just recently asked to leave.
A spokesperson for Tesco stated:
“Although we love the little ginger cat who visits Acres Way Express a food store isn’t the best place for a cat to be, so our colleagues gently encourage him to go out when he tries to come in.”
Jo isn’t sure why Little Pumpkin was asked to leave since he’d been welcome for the past year. Nor is she sure how they’re keeping him out of the store. Different news media says staff at Tesca is being polite as they ask the kitty to leave.
Will boycotting the business help get Pumpkin back in the stores’ good graces? Would you boycott a business that doesn’t welcome a ‘resident cat?’ How should this be handled?
Apparently there’s a closed group on Facebook dedicated to Little Pumpkin. I haven’t found any info on it but apparently the community shares photos of him along with the latest news. Jo stated she’s received over 200 new friend requests but that’s nothing compared to how famous her kitty has become over the past few days.
