California Man Planning to Wed His Beloved Cat to Raise Money for Los Angeles Animal Shelter

Couples have broken up and been brought together by the current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Scott Perry has decided to double down and marry his love, Olivia.

Quarantine weddings are common now, but this one will be a bit different — Olivia is a cat.

Perry adopted Olivia, then a 2-year-old, medium-hair feline named Collette, from Best Friends Animal Society Los Angeles with his then-girlfriend in 2015.

Olivia was shy at first, hiding under furniture most of the time, but warmed up to Perry after he went through a breakup.

"I don’t know why Olivia pulled the disappearing act, but within days of my girlfriend leaving the next year, Olivia emerged from her shell and has not left my side ever since!" the owner said in a release about his upcoming nuptials.

The pair have been going strong for five years and have grown especially close over the past two months in quarantine. To re-up on his commitment to Olivia, Perry decided to propose to the cat to show his appreciation for her.

Olivia, who was laying out on the front porch when Perry popped the question, responded to the proposal with a "Meow!" which Perry took as a "Yes!"

Along with spreading a few smiles, the real reason Perry and Olivia are having their not-legally-binding wedding is to help raise money for Best Friends Animal Society Los Angeles, the animal shelter that brought them together.

The "couple" has created a wedding website on Zola filled with witticisms about their nuptials (wedding party? it's just us) and a link to their registry, where fans can leave a message for the couple and donate to Best Friends. Perry and Olivia are hoping to raise $5,000 for the shelter. The duo is also encouraging animal lovers to donate to the local animal rescues they adore.

Everyone is invited to watch the wedding — and can RSVP on the couple's Zola site — which will occur at noon PST on Saturday, May 23, on Perry’s Instagram Live (@scottperry). Overall, the wedding will be a celebration of the joy a shelter pet can bring to your life, and how special of a commitment pet adoption is.

"My kitty has helped me stay sane during this lockdown. Pets allow us to have a warm, positive interaction with another living creature while we have to maintain distance from others. And I am sure that our furry friends have helped millions of others cope with this situation worldwide," Perry said.

"The impact of the work that shelters have done is immeasurable. They provide safety to animals and happiness to families throughout the year, especially when we are smack dab in the middle of kitten season," he added. "I challenge everyone to donate and adopt from local shelters, and commit to their pet on May 23."

Best Friends Animal Society was not notified of Mr. Perry's plans to fund-raise on its behalf. While this is certainly a unique way to raise awareness and funds for homeless pets, and they can see the humor in something like this, "weddings" between pets and people are not endorsed by the organization.

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