Woman Gets Kitten Who Was Litter Runt—Can't Believe His Size 8 Months Later

2 hours ago 2

Liz O'Connell is a Newsweek Reporter based in North Carolina. Her focus is on pet news and videos. Liz joined Newsweek in 2023 and had previously worked at PetHelpful.com, the Charlotte Business Journal, and The Anson Record. She is a graduate of the University of Arizona. Languages: English. You can get in touch with Liz by emailing e.oconnell@newsweek.com.

Liz O'Connell

Pets Reporter

When bringing home the runt of a litter, one would expect that animal to stay small throughout their life, but a pet parent from Seattle quickly learned that isn't always the case.

Owner Onjha, known on TikTok as @onjha, welcomed home a tiny, black kitten named Lou about eight months ago. Before taking him home, she was told he wouldn't get too big as he was the "runt of the litter," a term used to describe the smallest baby born to a group. The low birth weight of a runt could be caused by genetics, health issues in the mother or an illness, an article by Hepper says.

Onjha didn't mind the kitty's small size. She was going to love Lou no matter if he was a runt or not. But after few months Onjha realized what she was told about his size might not be correct.

"Around six months, I definitely noticed that he was growing a little bit quicker than he had been," Onjha told Newsweek via TikTok. "But at around eight or nine months, I went to take him to get fixed and that's when I realized that I had a giant cat."

Onjha added that while at the appointment, the veterinarian handed Lou back to her looking "absolutely shocked." Even the vet couldn't believe after seeing his paperwork how big Lou had grown. At eight months, he weighed nearly 30 pounds.

She showcased Lou's quick transformation in a recent TikTok video. The first clip shows Lou as a tiny kitten, curled up in Onjha's lap. She then reveals how he looks now, eight months later, as she holds him up next to a mirror. She has to use her entire arm to support the enormous feline.

Viewer Reactions

The TikTok video has amassed over 1.2 million views and 238,400 likes. People have flooded the comment section to express their shock over Lou's transformation.

"Your love for him made him grow into a giant," said one viewer, while a second commented: "It's always the runts that flourish!"

Another added: "Girl put that thing back outside. That's a puma."

Someone jokingly asked: "The runt of WHAt [litter]? Jaguars??"

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