Frank and Louie lived long lives of 15 years despite the rare mutation known as the Janus cat.
Photo: reproduction
One Cat with two heads, two almost separate faces, each with its own nose and mouth, but a single brain. The condition is rare, and animals with this mutation rarely survive more than a day. Frank and LouieHowever, he lived a long life in the United States.
The condition is called Janu’s cat. The animal was born on September 8, 1999 and died on December 4, 2014 at the age of 15 years and 87 days. Her longevity earned her the title of longest living Janus cat.
the term Janu’s cat was by Dr. Karl Shuker, a British zoologist who works as a life science consultant for Guinness World Records. “Cats like Frank and Louie, who were born with two faces, suffer from a developmental disorder known as diprosopia. The face enlarges and partially doubles during embryogenesis because of overproduction of a particular protein called SHH,” Shuker explained.
“The technical term for such a cat is Diprosopus, but since that’s not the easiest term to pronounce when I first wrote about these cats over a decade ago, I coined the term for them.Janu’s cat‘, named after the Roman god of doors, Janus, who had one body and one head but two faces, just like these cats.
Frank and Louie were cared for by Martha Stevens, an American veterinary assistant. She was working at an animal hospital when the breeder brought the twoheaded cat in for euthanasia. She felt sorry for the dayold kitten and decided to save it, despite experts warning her it was unlikely to survive long.
At first he could not feed himself. Martha fed him with a tube and special food. After three months he learned to eat independently. A big step, as starvation is one of the leading causes of death for Janus cats, who can have difficulty eating due to their birth defects.
In the first three months, Martha also brought along Frank and Louie to work with her as the kitten required constant care and attention. Over time, he grew stronger and began interacting and playing with other cats. He also developed a special bond with the family dog.
In 2012, the cat was included in the Guinness Book of Records. Back then, Martha talked about the personality of the cat. He is “very relaxed, not afraid of people, very friendly and actually more of a dog than a cat. He walks on a leash; he goes straight to the car — he loves car rides,” he said. After his appearance at the Guinness Frank and Louie became an internet celebrity, appearing in countless news articles and videos.
Two years later, an aggressive form of cancer made Martha make an important decision and put the cat to sleep. “He was 15 years old; an incredible age for one Janu’s cat, far surpasses all previous examples and will probably not be surpassed by any in the future,” Shuker said at the time. “A wonderful testament to the love and dedication Marty has always shown towards him throughout his long and happy life with her. Rest in peace Frank and Louie.
* With information from Guinness World of Records
Source: Editora Terra