He is an adult ginger tabby-and-white who looks like a kitten. In the photo below he is being weighed at the vet’s and the scales record 1.61 kgs which is 3.5 pounds. His guardian says he weighs 1.7 kg (3.74 pounds). He is a miniature cat and his name is Munchie. As you can see he has very cloudy eyes too.
The LADbible author says that he is a dwarf cat (incorrect?). The form of dwarfism that we see in cats shortens the legs. This is not the inherited condition that makes Munchie small. He is said to have a rare of form of dwarfism. He looks like a miniature cat to me.
It appears that Munchie inherited hypoparathyroidism. We are told that there is only one other cat (in the UK or the world?) with the condition. It causes law calcium and phosphorus blood levels due the parathyroid glands producing too little parathyroid hormone.
This is NOT the same as hypothyroidism in cats. The tiny parathyroid glands are located in the neck. As you can tell they control calcium levels.
In humans the symptoms of hypoparathyroidism include tingling in the fingertips and toes, twitching facial muscles, tiredness and cramps plus coarse hair and dry skin.
The treatment is a dietary supplement of calcium and Vitamin D for life. As usual with interesting looking cats he has an Instagram account (12.2k followers). Munchie was brought into a vet’s after being dumped. At the date of this post he is 7-months-of-age. He’ll remain very small. Cats become adult in terms of size at around 6 months.
Munchie lives with Emily Tomlinson who has done wanders to care for him and keep him healthy. One last point: as mentioned his eyes are cloudy. Apparently it does not affect his sight. I am surprised to hear that. My research indicates that is needs vet treatment but the vet has okayed his eyes, it seems.
P.S. In an attempt to provide constructive criticism, Munchie’s Instagram account would do better if the photographs were of a better quality. I’d also question whether it is ethical to have an Instagram page in the first place.
SOME MORE ON DWARF CATS:
Munchkin Cat Breed
Dwarf cats 2023 – full discussion
Kinkalow dwarf cat – full details
Are Munchkin Cats genetically modified?
Plush toy or real cat?
Picture of the chest and forelegs of a Bambino cat
Please search using the search box at the top of the site. You are bound to find what you are looking for.
Aww, poor little guy… I hope he continues to be well taken care of and feels better than he apparently does here. I can see by his stance and facial expression that he does not. Just look at him, the poor fellow. I always feel so sorry for the sick ones.
Yes, I agree, he looks uncomfortable. This is the problem with us, we can’t really tell for sure how cats feel.