by Sasha Allen and Emily R. Condon

Butterscotch the Bunny, who some students consider a University of Maryland celebrity, will soon have merchandise available for his fans, owner Sam Booker said.

Booker, a 23 year old United Parcel Service warehouse employee from Columbia, Maryland, said that while he is not a student at UMD, he tries to bring Butterscotch on campus once a week to let students talk to, pet, and even hold Butterscotch.

“I think [Butterscotch] just brings people together,” Booker said, “I like to try to brighten people’s day, and [my favorite part about bringing him to campus is] probably making people smile. It’s really cool.”

In upcoming weeks, Booker intends to start a merchandise sale for Butterscotch.

“[The merch] was just an idea someone threw out. I don’t know [when it’s going to drop] but I’m really excited for it. I have the pictures, I just need people who know what they’re doing because I don’t know what I’m doing. I want to make a website,” said Booker.

Booker adopted Butterscotch around a year ago from a farm in Virginia. The campus rabbit got his name on McKeldin Mall from students who went up to meet him. 

“Someone here [near the Testudo in front of Mckeldin Library] helped me name him,” Booker said, “People were just throwing names at me, and I was like ‘Butterscotch is perfect’.” 

Booker said he enjoys interacting with students as much as Butterscotch does.

“For me, I get to meet like a bunch of new people,” said Booker, who said he typically sits near  busy areas like  Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center or on McKeldin mall. 

Dylan Tam, freshman finance major, said he looks out for Butterscotch on the daily.

“I see Butterscotch everyday. I’ll usually just talk to Sam and watch him [Butterscotch] walk. He’s a cool bunny. [He makes people] happy. Everyone’s always like, ‘ooo can I pet your bunny? Is that a bunny?’ He’s just so cute,” said Tam.

Although Butterscotch is relatively new to campus, Booker is not. In recent years, he has brought his three year old cat, Hyper, to campus.

“When it gets cooler [I’ll bring Hyper],” said Booker. “He’s usually the shoulder cat and he’ll [sit] on my shoulders when I’m walking. He’s just like Butterscotch, he’s very chill.”

Members of the campus community said that Hyper’s popularity has not been overshadowed by Butterscotch.

“I remember my freshman year that everyone loved when he [Sam] came around with his cat on his shoulder,” said Marilyn Yang, a junior environmental science and policy major.

But Yang said she likes Butterscotch just as much as she likes Hyper.

“[Butterscotch] is so cute. It’s a highlight of my day if I see [Sam] walking around with Butterscotch” Yang said.

Butterscotch draws in students when he hangs around campus with Booker. 

“I always get that look where it’s like, ‘I want to pet your bunny, but I don’t know if I can,’” Booker said, “I always ask, ‘Do you want to pet the bunny?’”

Photos by Emily Condon.