Samhar Almomani is a junior public health major with a minor in sociology and the Assistant Features Editor for the Etownian. Living with him on campus is his beautiful pet cat Tyga.

Almomani first got Tyga last May when he went to a pet meet and greet held by the Humane Society in a local PetSmart. After getting Tyga, he brought her on campus to live in his dorm with him.

Tyga is three years old and a Tiger Cat. She enjoys sleeping and looking out of the window. Since Tyga showed such an interest in the outdoors when she looked out the window, Almomani decided to try bringing her outside so that she could enjoy nature, but Tyga did not like this experience at all. “When I put her outside, she dug her claws into the grass, was meowing super loud and wouldn’t move,” Almomani said. “I even bought her a cat stroller to try that, but she did the same thing, so now she stays inside.”

Since Almomani is a resident assistant here on campus, having Tyga has allowed for more residents to reach out to Almomani to create deeper connections. “A lot of my residents like to come over to see my cat and that allows me to talk to them more than if they didn’t have a reason to stop in,” Almomani said.

Having a pet on campus is a big responsibility. You must make sure you’re doing all the cleaning and feeding duties,but another part many don’t consider is the attention you must provide to your pet. To ensure Tyga never gets lonely, Almomani has a Beta Fish named Gabe that Tyga gets to spend all her time with when Almomani’s not home. “I like to say Tyga has her own emotional support animal because when I’m not there, her and Gabe can just hang out together and keep each other company,” he said.

Having Tyga on campus has made a positive difference in Almomani’s everyday life and gives him something to look forward to everyday when coming home.