Meet Manchester, the mixed-breed cat with teeny tiny legs who has become an internet sensation.
A mix of Scottish Straight and ‘Munchkin’, Manchester – or Manchy for short – has become a viral sensation due to his super short legs.
Manchester lives with his owner in Russia and has already racked up over 60,000 followers on Instagram.
You might have never heard of this tiny breed of cats, but ‘Munchkins’ have been around since the ’80s. The entire species descend from just two cats who were born in Louisiana with a genetic mutation that caused them to have tiny legs.
‘Munchkin’ or ‘sausage’ cats have quite a controversial breeding history, with many people saying that the unnatural appearance, characterised by a genetic mutation, can cause a variety of health issues in the cat.
Peta explains that breeding any animal to have ‘specific physical features is cruel and irresponsible’.
Andrew Prentis, of Hyde Park Veterinary Centre, warned in 2017 that breeding cats to effectively have no legs ‘for entirely cosmetic reasons is very disappointing’.
For many years The International Cat Association did not recognise ‘Munchkin’ as a breed of cat due to the controversial breeding practises.
Despite this, many fans on Instagram love little Manchester. His owner describes him as ‘very playful and vociferous’, telling Metro that he is ‘always meowing, loves playing mad games, and is always running around the house’.
Manchester was born in 2018 and is named after Manchester United, as owner Alexander has been a fan since 1998.
He added: “I decided to create an Instagram account for him because I thought he was cute enough to please other people. As it turned out, he has quite a lot of fans!
“I think the main reason he has been so popular is because of his cute appearance and adorable post.”
