Kitten finds new home after being rescued by Rumpke driver at landfill

COLERAIN TOWNSHIP — A kitten is alive and has a new forever home all thanks to a Rumpke garbage truck driver.

Steve Johnson made a pit stop at a portable toilet at Rumpke Sanitary Landfill in Colerain Township when he heard a faint meow, the company said in a social media post. After a brief search, he discovered a few-week-old kitten under the restroom.

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“She was very scared, but after a few minutes of me petting her back, she calmed right down,” Johnson said. “I am a big animal advocate, and I’m just glad we were able to assist this animal.”

Johnson took the kitten back to the Rumpke office where team members fed and cared for the kitten and began the search for its forever home – which is with another team member, the company said.

“Unfortunately, it is an all-too-common scenario to find animals discarded at our landfills,” said Molly Yeager, Rumpke communications manage. “But fortunately, we have many animal lovers that work here and have adopted them over the years. We are very appreciative of Steve, the team’s quick actions, and that this kitten is now safe and loved.”

The company said there was much debate on what the kitten should be named – with ideas like Land-FILL-o-mina or Fluffy, but the new owner shared that the kitten was named Coco.

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