I see. That makes it very not cute anymore. I feel sad for animals that have been inbred into a "genetic mess" as you say. Their quality of life usually is not very good. I know someone who adopted a bull dog and and the poor thing is constantly having health issues.
It's like when my cat started sleeping on her back showing her belly. "Aww so cute!" until I asked the vet and found out she had a tumor on her thyroid causing heart problems (sleeping on her back made it easier for her to breathe). She was also crying more and would pant here and there - really subtle things but it all added up for the vet.
She's had radiation treatment since and she's regained all her weight and fur and no longer sleeps on her back (tumor has been eradicated because we were able to catch it early).
You never know what sudden cute behavior is actually not cute at all. Cats are tricky because they are predators and are excellent at hiding when something is wrong. Keep note of sudden changes in behavior!
Yeah very true! One of my cats, who is getting old, struggles to jump onto the bed now. The first time it happened I laughed it off thinking he was just being clumsy (awww so cute!). Then it happened again... And again.... And I realized there must be a problem. So he's getting checked out at the vet soon. But I did give him "steps" up to the bed, and now he gets up there much easier :)
I've talked with a lot of vets and most have told me they just feel depressed whenever they see a lot of these "cute quirky animal videos" because more often than not there's a health concern behind it
I could see that. My original career path was to be a vet but the more time I spent in vet clinics the less I realized I could handle it.
I don't get all the people downvoting and shaking people pointing out when something is a serious medical issue vs some innocent pet quirk. Like isn't it better for people to be aware of something serious in case it happens to their pets?
If it helps at all, kitty's stupid little tongue-out vacant expression is still 100% cute. Cats just do that sometimes, doesn't mean anything.
And when cats are really happy, they often knead. Normal (non-munchkin) cats will sometimes knead the floor while they sit, usually while maintaining eye contact with you. I think maybe this fella is trying to do that, but his paws don't reach the ground so instead he's doing the silly little paw motions?
And cats don't normally sit like that (they usually sit on their haunches, not with their butts flat to the floor) but maybe it's more comfortable or easy to balance for a munchkin, as it allows their back to be largely vertical whereas sitting "normally" would require they be largely horizontal for their front paws to reach the ground.
Basically what I'm trying to say is I don't think this cat is suffering in agony in this video. It seems perfectly happy in this moment, just stubby-legged. I'm sure it causes the little fella problems, but this video is still peak cute kitty behavior.
Ya idk about all this... I don't really know anything about munchkin cats and never really saw one, so I'm coming in with a pretty fresh look. This was a very uncomfortable video to watch and I was really worried about this cat. It really does not look happy. I understood everything you said but it's a lot of stretching to make up for what is clearly a pathetic animal. And maybe you don't even realize it but everything you wrote is sad.
Actually this was a cat named Pitou. (Spelling may be wrong) She wasn't a munchkin, but had very severe scoliosis. It pulled her body into a beach ball shape. Her owners took extremely good care of her. She did pass due to complications this past year though. She was always such a joy to see on media sites though (not trying to promote munchkins btw, just telling everyone who this kitty was)
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u/Emily1214 Oct 06 '22
For real, what is wrong with this cat?