Sophie has two jobs, and neither of them involves hopping around the outback. She is a kangaroo, and she spends her working hours split between a downtown Knoxville law firm and a Western Avenue vape shop in Knoxville, a setup that has turned her into something of a local fixture.
A Kangaroo on the Payroll, So to Speak
Sophie’s caretaker is Dale Montpelier Sr., the managing partner of Montpelier & Associates, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel. The firm operates out of the Bank of America Center at 550 W. Main St., Suite 600, in downtown Knoxville, per Montpelier & Associates’ own website, which was founded in 2024 by Dale J. Montpelier. Sophie is one of two kangaroos connected to the firm, alongside a kangaroo named Jack.
The firm’s site describes Montpelier as someone who enjoys spending time with his kangaroos Jack and Sophie, and the pair have become more than pets. The News Sentinel reports that Jack and Sophie became figureheads of the law firm itself, a branding choice that puts two marsupials front and center for a business built on contracts and courtrooms rather than pouches and hopping.
From Law Office to Vape Shop
Sophie’s second job is at Blue Roo, a vape shop on Western Avenue owned by Dale Montpelier Jr., the station’s report notes. It is an unusual pairing — legal briefs by day, vape products by... also day — but it is the arrangement the News Sentinel describes as giving Sophie her two jobs, at a law office and a local vape shop.
Montpelier Sr. adopted Jack first, about four years before the article published, and Sophie joined the household roughly two years after that, according to the same account. The two kangaroos are described as regulars in community outreach, with Montpelier & Associates stating that Jack and Sophie are known for visits to schools and nursing homes across East Tennessee.
Is It Even Legal to Own a Kangaroo?
The News Sentinel’s reporting states plainly that it is legal to own a kangaroo in Tennessee, and WBIR reported that Dale Montpelier Sr. said kangaroos do not require a license or tags in the state. It is not the first time a Knoxville-area kangaroo has made local headlines; WBIR.com reported in July on a Knoxville kangaroo turning up at a vape shop and in court.
For now, Sophie’s routine remains the stuff of local curiosity: a kangaroo cared for by Dale Montpelier Sr., who runs a downtown law firm, and who also works at a Western Avenue vape shop owned by Dale Montpelier Jr.
