The Adventures of Buster the One-Eyed Rooster

We’re not sure if you guys are aware, but there’s a pretty famous one-eyed rooster who lives over in Coral Bay. His name is Buster – Buster Keaton-Geller, St. John Rooster Extraordinaire to be exact.

Buster isn’t your average barnyard rooster; His life is actually quite the opposite. Some would say he’s been living the lap of luxury for the past two years, ever since Cheryl Geller rescued him. (You may recognize Cheryl’s name – she is the co-owner of The Tourist Trap in Coral Bay. She is also an avid animal lover.)

It was the afternoon of September 14, 2011 and Cheryl was on her way home when she spotted poor Buster laying in the middle of the road. He wasn’t moving and Cheryl feared the worst. She pulled over and walked up to him, and noticed he was still alive. Cheryl scooped up the badly injured bird and immediately brought him home.

His injuries were pretty gruesome – he had deep puncture wounds and was covered in scabs. Poor Buster was dehydrated and emaciated. He only had one eye. It was pretty clear to Cheryl that his injuries stemmed from cockfighting, which, sadly, is still legal in the US territories and in Puerto Rico.

Buster was in such bad shape that Cheryl thought it’d be best to euthanize him, but she gave it a few hours as she had a scheduled appointment with a veterinarian at her home later that day. The vet, Dr. Jan who left the island last summer, told Cheryl it was possible to nurse little Buster back to health. And while it took some time, it worked. And in the two years since, Buster has become one popular bird.

So how exactly does a one-eyed rooster become so famous? Behold the power of social media.

It all started over on The Tourist Trap’s Facebook page and continued over on Buster’s personal Facebook page. Once Buster was well, Cheryl started posting pictures and quick stories about their adventures, and we have to admit, they were pretty darn amusing. Buster is also credited for Cheryl’s stunning sunrise pictures, which are also posted on her Facebook page. Prior to living with Buster, Cheryl was only used to seeing sunrises following long nights working on her computer (Cheryl is also a graphic designer). Well Buster and his early morning cock-a-doodle-doos clearly changed that.

Here are just a few Facebook pics that caught our attention over the years…

Cheryl’s partner Larry Grenier isn’t 100 percent sold on Buster living in the house and he definitely doesn’t like Buster taking baths in his sink. So this is what Cheryl came up with – a unique bath tub for Buster.

And he needs a place to hang out, right?

He even wears pants.

And now this one really cracked us up. Cheryl posted it last Thursday and captioned it, “I don’t want to ignite a political maelstrom or anything, but I don’t get all the hoopla over Sen. Ted Cruz. I fillabuster two, three times a day.”

But Buster’s adventures aren’t solely situated in Coral Bay – Buster’s a bird on the go. He recently ventured out to Cruz Bay where an admirer recognized him from Facebook. He’s also been to the movies in St. Thomas – twice.

“I don’t think they realized he was in my purse when I went in and I don’t think people realized he was on my lap during the whole time either,” Cheryl said. “I think that’s the last thing they would think.”

So what are people’s reactions when they see Cheryl and Buster out on the town?

“They usually say, ‘Now, I’ve seen everything,'” Cheryl said with a laugh. “But really, people are just blown away that a rooster is that tame. I could literally walk around with him on my shoulder. I just never knew a rooster, a fighting cock, would have as much personality as he has. He’s awesome. He’s the best.”

If you would like to follow Buster’s adventures, please check him out over on his Facebook page by clicking here. You can also see some of Cheryl’s stunning sunrise photos, which are posted regularly, over on Buster’s page as well.