With its shortsighted small legs and low - slung body , some mass see the munchkincatas the feline reading of adachshund . Here are seven fact you might not have known about these lovely , stubby - limbed pets .
1. The munchkin breed arose from a genetic mutation.
Like many strange computerized axial tomography types ( including theCornish rexand theManx , to name a few ) , the munchkin breed arose from a ad-lib genetic mutation . The munchkin ’s short leg are get by anautosomal dominant gene , which causes the long bones in a cat ’s legs to grow inadequate . A cat only needs one copy of the cistron to inherit little leg and to pass the trait along to its kitty .
One warning to breeders : The munchkin gene is sometimes referred to as the“lethal ” genebecause a munchkin cat fertilized egg that receives one of these genes from each parent wo n’t survive . That ’s why breeder do n’t pair two short - legged munchkin regurgitate together . Arabian tea born with long branch can gestate the munchkin gene , and they ’re often mated with each other , or a short - legged munchkin cat , to produce a litter of healthy , stubby - limbed kitty .
2. Munchkin cats come in all kinds of shades, patterns, and colors.
The munchkin ’s most distinguishing feature of speech is its legs , which are bow - legged and typically half as long as a regular cat ’s limb . Their front legs are also unremarkably somewhat unretentive than their hind leg . away from its stubby appendages , the Munchkin front and act precisely like anormal , intermediate - sized feline , and fall in a variety of patterns , semblance , and fur lengths .
3. The first American munchkin was a pregnant stray named Blackberry.
Throughout the 20th 100 , various individual document sighting of short - legged feral cats in Great Britain , Russia , and New England . But it was n’t until the eighties that mass formally began breeding the “ kangaroo cat , ” which some peoplecalled the kittybecause its foreleg were short than its hind legs , and because some munchkins are know to perch up on their back leg , likely because they are fairly long .
The modern - day American munchkin qat is descend from a shortsighted - legged meaning stray , deliver in Rayville , Louisiana , in the early eighties by a euphony teacher named Sandra Hochenedel . The cat , whom Hochenedel named Blackberry , bear similar - looking kitten , and Hochenedelgave one of them to her friend , Kay LaFrance . Because LaFrance permit the cat , named Toulouse , roam around outside , her neighborhood was soon filled with short - legged cat .
Hochenedel and LaFrance believed they had a new stock on their handwriting . In 1990 , the two connect withSolveig Pflueger , a geneticist , cat show judge , and formerchairpersonof the International Cat Association ’s ( TICA ) genetic science committee . Pflueger and other experts examine the Caterpillar to valuate the inheritance and aspect of their short - legged trait .
The geneticists were disturbed that the munchkin would have problem with its spine , similar to short - legged dog breed . They did n’t find any deformities in the cat ’ joints or backbones , but , as the breed was so new , some critics did n’t believe that these studies were unequivocal at the time .
4. It’s unclear how the munchkin cat got its name.
The munchkin computerized tomography is presumably named afterThe Wizard of Oz ’s munchkins , but there are two contradictory tales as to how they received the cognomen . fit in to one bill , LaFrance gave Pflueger a few of the short - limbed cats , and one of them turned out to be pregnant . Pflueger ’s daughter named one of themMushroom the Munchkin , andvoilà , a breed was born .
But another story state that Hochenedel ’s inadequate - legged kittens were asked to appear onGood Morning America . The show called her and asked the name of the breed , and Hochenedel quickly opt “ munchkin ” in honor of the Hellenic movie and novel .
5. The munchkin cat is a controversial breed.
The munchkin was n’t met with outstretched arms , but rather , with unsheathed claws . Some members of the world were horrified over the cat ’s strong-arm shape , and one of TICA ’s jurist even quit , compare the breed to “ a dwarf ” and claiming to be “ perfectly horrified ” by them .
Today , many people argue that breed the munchkin isunethicalbecause it perpetuates strong-arm disfiguration . Experts say that munchkins are o.k. , wellness - saucy . However , due to the disceptation , the Cat Fanciers Association ( CFA ) and the American Cat Fanciers Association ( ACFA)won’t recognizethe munchkin , and PETA hasspoken outabout the strain as well .
6. Munchkins can have health problems.
Aside from their slimly rummy walk ( and a difficultness jumping onto gamy surfaces ) , munchkins are considered to be a relatively healthy stock . Typically , they live from around12 to 15 years . Some kittens do , however , suffer fromlordosis — a stipulation in which the spinal musclesgrow too forgetful , making the spine sink down into the cat ’s consistency . In bad - fount scenario , this circumstance can be fatal .
Munchkins are also sometimes afflicted by funnel shape chest , also known aspectus excavatum , a deformity that causes the cat ’s breast bone to sink inwards . But because other hombre breeds are smite by lordosis andpectus excavatum , many munchkin breeders ( andsome researchers ) debate that neither condition is specific to just these scant - legged kitty .
7. A munchkin is the world’s shortest living cat.
In 2013,Guinness World Recordsnamed Lilieput , a tortoiseshell munchkin khat from Napa , California , the world’sshortest living khat . The diminutive kitty stands a mere5.25 column inch tallfrom the bottoms of her manus to the top of her shoulders .
A version of this article was originally published in 2016 and has been updated for 2023 .
