I often joke about how I sometimes wish my dogs could stay looking like puppies, but with their grown-up manners. Of course, that’s a silly thing to want since my boys are just as cute and wonderful as adults as they were as puppies.
And they’ve learned to listen and that the bathroom is outside, not in mahm’s bed.
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Occasionally, though, an animal is born with a condition that keeps them looking little and cute for their whole lives.
Unsurprisingly, these animals can get pretty popular on social media.
Which is a double-edged sword. Some argue that by celebrating these pets, we’re promoting unsafe breeding practices that force animals to conform to a certain look, even if it’s bad for their health.
Others believe that these cats and dogs spread awareness of animals with special needs, showing both the joy of having one in your family and the struggles that come with it. Without awareness many would be discarded or euthanized.
That’s likely how a kitten named Munchie ended up abandoned at only a couple weeks old.
Munchie was brought to a vet clinic when he was found and diagnosed with bilateral corneal odeama. Basically, his eyes are cloudy, but his vision isn’t actually impeded by it. Whoever dumped him probably didn’t bother to look into the actual cause.
Emily Tomlinson worked at that clinic and decided to take the little kitten home.
That was in September, but Emily was starting to wonder if something else was wrong with Munchie as Christmas rolled around.
He had gained very little weight for a growing kitten, and then on the day after Christmas, he collapsed.
After four nights of intensive care and testing, Munchie was found to have hypocalcemia. His levels of calcium were a quarter of what the minimum healthy range is.
Munchie was put on a special regimen of supplements to help him recover while vets ran tests to find the cause of the deficiency.
In the end, he was found to have hypoparathyroidism, a rare disorder of the parathyroid that can cause a number of issues with calcium and Vitamin D.
It’s so rare that only one other case of a kitten diagnosed with it can be found in medical research.
Due to lack of historical data, it’s hard to say whether the condition will affect Munchie’s lifespan or health in the future.
But for now, on his special diet, he’s just like any other healthy kitty — just smaller.
At almost six months old he weighs less than four pounds, half of what an average cat his age should be.
His weak bones may keep him from jumping very high, but Emily says that he’s a very good climber.
If you’d like to follow Munchie’s journey, check him out on Instagram @minature_munchie .
h/t: LADbible
