Four-year-old Fedya, a gray rescued cat from Russia, has become a social media sensation thanks to his funny permanently startled look.

When Fedya’s owner, Natalya Zhdanova, found him in her backyard in 2020, she had no idea he would one day become an Instagram star with over 300,000 followers. At the time, she wasn’t even sure he would survive. He had been born with a coordination issue and struggled to move around, but as he grew, his condition improved, and before long he was behaving like a normal cat, although he didn’t really look like one. Natalya claims she didn’t really notice his unusual looks, but her friends always seemed amused by Fedya’s constantly startled appearance, and she reluctantly started posting photos of him on social media. The rest, as they say, is history.

Read More »

Felis nigripes, the African black-footed cat, stands at just 8 to 10 inches tall and weighs roughly 200 times less than the average lion, but it is actually the most efficient feline predator on the planet.

The black-footed cat is actually the smallest African feline, smaller even than the average alley cat, but you shouldn’t be fooled by its demure stature, because it is actually the deadliest of all the world’s felines. This adorable furball has an accelerated metabolism that requires it to hunt almost non-stop, which means that it kills an average of 10 to 14 rodents or small birds every night, more victims than a leopard hunts in a month. To top it all off, its predations success is around 60 percent, while lions only succeed in catching their victims about 20 to 25 percent of the time.

Read More »

Maryam al-Balushi, an animal lover from Muscat, in Oman, shares her house with 480 cats, most of which were strays, and 12 dogs, spending almost $8,000 a month on food and vet bills for them.

The 51-year-old retired civil servant might seem like a life-long animal lover, but the truth is she hasn’t always been fond of them. It all started in 2008, when her son brought home a small Persian cat as a pet, which al-Balushi wasn’t at all thrilled about, especially since her son didn’t really take care of it. As time went by, Maryam started getting used to her feline pet, and eventually they became inseparable. In 2011, Maryam al-Balushi went through a severe depression, and she credits her first cat for helping her through that difficult period. In the years that followed, she dedicated herself to helping stray cats and taking them into her home.

Read More »

A Japanese cosplay enthusiast from Tokushima has been getting a lot of attention online thanks to his adorable collection of costume cat costumes inspired by characters in popular anime.

The talented artist, who goes by Yagyou (@YagyouNEKO) on Twitter, is the one-man-team behind one of the most adorable projects I’ve seen on social media in a while. After choosing a character from some of his favorite anime – he has an affinity for Studio Ghibli work- he starts working on the feline cosplay costume. He conceptualizes and designs the outfit, cuts and sews the material himself, dresses the felines and even takes the photographs himself. Looking at some of his costumes and the artistic photos he takes, it’s hard to believe he does everything himself.

Read More »

Le Le, a British Shorthair cat from Wuhan, China, has become a symbol of resistance during the current pandemic, showing us human that if she could survive by herself in a locked apartment for 40 days, then we can handle a bit of social distancing and isolation too.

This story of feline endurance and survival began in January of 2020, when the Covid-19 crisis in Wuhan was still in its infancy. One by one, Le Le’s human family had to be hospitalized after becoming infected with the coronavirus, and before the Chinese New Year (January 25) rolled up, the heavily pregnant cat had been left by herself. Her owners had decided not to hire someone look after her, or even check in on her from time to time, because they didn’t known whether their home was contaminated with the virus or not. So they just opened a bag of cat food and hoped for thee best.

Read More »

Xafi and Auri are two feline sisters taking Instagram with their contrasting neat, silver coats and mesmerizing ocean eyes.

Instagram has no shortage of animal superstars, from the angry-looking Pompous Albert, to Ghost, the singing samoyed, but when it comes to the most beautiful turquoise eyes to get lost in, there’s no competing with Xafi and Auri. The so-called “American Type” Russian Blue Cats share the most beautiful eyes you’ve ever seen, rivaled only by those of fellow Instagram stars Iris and Abyss.

Read More »

Created by crossing a wild Caracal and an Abyssinian cat, the Caracat is currently the world’s rarest and most expensive cat breed. It numbers only 30 specimens, and owning one costs 1.5 million Russian rubles, or $23,400.

Wild Caracals have long been revered for their exotic beauty and elegance. In ancient Egypt they were often embalmed and buried with pharaohs and depicted in intricate murals, while in China, emperors gave them away as special gifts. Even today, cat lovers are fascinated with this majestic feline and some companies sell them as domestic pets. But pure-breed Caracals can sometimes become aggressive, even if they have lived among humans for generations, which is why the Caracat was created, in 2007.

Caracats can grow up to 50 centimeters (19.7 inches) in height and weigh up to 15 kilograms (33 lbs). First generation Caracats have the distinctive black-tufted ears and long sharp claws of Caracals and screech instead of meowing. These traits fade away from the second generation, but some owners prefer to declaw them for safety, which most breeders don’t agree with, for ethical reasons.

Read More »

Tennessee-based breeders have created a new breed of cat with a touch of the supernatural. The ‘Lykoi’ has the looks of a werewolf, but apparently behaves more like a dog. Due to a genetic mutation in a domestic shorthair cat, the Lykoi has no hair around its eyes, nose, ears and muzzle, giving it a werewolfish appearance.

The name ‘Lykoi’ loosely translates as ‘wolf cat’ in Greek. It has patchy hair on the rest of its body and a ‘hound dog personality’. According to the official website for the breed, “They like to hunt around the house for whatever they can find. They show caution to strangers but warm up quickly and become very friendly.”

“There was no human intervention to create the cat,” said breeder Johnny Gobble. “The gene is a natural mutation that appeared in the domestic cat population. We are simply using the genetics of natural processes.”

Read More »

An American couple decided to drastically modify their home to fit the needs of their pet cats, transforming it into a modern-day feline temple known as The Cats’ House.

Bob Walker and Frances Mooney are both mad about cats. They proved it on their wedding day, when they adopted their first cat, who ended up sharing a bed with them that night. But that was only the beginning of their obsession with purring balls of fur. Knowing that cats love to climb to high spots, Bob first built a giant scratching column, using 395 feet of rope. The cats would just run up it at full speed and stop at ceiling. That’s when he realized that to keep his beloved pets happy, he and his wife needed to expand their installation throughout the whole house.

Bob and Frances ended up creating multi-level staircases, a 140-feet-long cat highway and a colorful catwalk, all connected by cat-shaped holes in the walls.They even fitted them with neon lights, so the cats could see where they were going, at night. I thought cats could see purfectly in the dark…but I guess some help couldn’t hurt, right? The Cats’ House also features scratching poles of various sizes, cat shaped statues, portraits and paintings of cats, and even carpets printed with leopard and tiger models.

The Cats’ House started out as the wish of two people to enrich the lives of their pet cats, but it became something much bigger than that. Cat lovers from all around the world started following Bob and Frances’ example and transformed their house into a feline paradise, and The Cats’ House soon became one of San Diego’s minor tourist attractions. The last time the couple opened up their house for visitors, they received 900 guests in four hours.

Since the unusual home became famous, Bob Walker has become an author and photographer, and has written successful books on his amazing cat abode. He admits it’s amazing how trying to change their cats’ lives for the better, ended up changing their lives completely, as well.

Read More »

Lolo, a black jaguar, originally from South America, enjoys her first press conference together with her adorable spotted cub. Looking at the first photo, you can see she’s just as surprised as you are.

She’s the mother, so we can’t really pin this abnormality on her being unfaithful. Believe it or not, it’s not the babies spots that are odd, it’s his mother’s pitch-black fur. Most jaguars have brown spots that help them blend better in their environment, but about 6% of them suffer from a genetic condition known as melanism, which causes them to be entirely black.

Lolo and her two-year-old cub live at the Yaduda zoo, in Jordan. The youngster’s father, Falah, was separated, so he wouldn’t hurt the cub. It’s pretty selfish of us humans to keep such extraordinary creatures in depressing conditions, simply for our entertainment.That little beast is adorable, but just thinking about the rest of his life in a zoo, instead of in the jungle, where he belongs, makes me feel depressed.

Photos by REUTERS via Daylife

Read More »