Meow (cat)
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Meow ( – May 5, 2012), also known as Meow the obese cat, was a male domestic
cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...
who attracted international attention when an animal shelter publicized efforts to slim him down, in an attempt to have him adopted. However, Meow died of lung failure two weeks after entering the animal shelter, on May 5, 2012. He was the world's heaviest cat at his time of death, weighing .


Weight

Domestic cats are as large as most other members of the genus ''Felis'', typically weighing between and . Meow weighed , the heaviest cat in the world—though not on record. Himmy, a cat from Australia, had weighed 21.3 kilograms (46.8 pounds) upon dying during his tenth year, in 1986.
Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
has since retired the title to discourage deliberate overfeeding. Being the world's heaviest cat, Meow occasionally appeared on U.S. television shows. In 2010 he was featured on an episode of ''
Anderson Live ''Anderson Live'', known in its first season as ''Anderson'', is an American syndicated talk show that was hosted by CNN anchorman Anderson Cooper, who also served as executive producer in his first foray into daytime talk television. It debuted ...
'', which was hosted by U.S.
television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...
Anderson Cooper. Meow was again featured on ''Anderson Live'' on April 30, 2012, with Cooper carrying the fat cat.


Weight loss and death

Meow was moved to the Santa Fe Animal Shelter & Humane Society two weeks before he died because his 87-year-old owner could no longer care for him. The animal shelter fed Meow a strict
high-protein diet A high-protein diet is a diet in which 20% or more of the total daily calories comes from protein.Longe, Jacqueline L. (2008). ''High-protein diet''. In ''The Gale Encyclopedia of Diets: A Guide to Health and Nutrition''. Gale. pp. 524-526. Most ...
to slim him. The shelter also planned to publicize Meow and his diet on their
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
page. Meow's publicity was expected to arouse interest in his adoption. He lost two pounds (0.9 kilograms) at the animal shelter, and the shelter planned to make him lose at least eight more (3.6 kilograms) so he could be adopted. However, Meow contracted breathing problems by May 2, 2012; after undergoing a battery of tests, which included
X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10  picometers to 10  nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...
and cardiac ultrasound, he was put on oxygen therapy. On May 4 Meow was brought to a veterinary hospital to undergo emergency treatment: four veterinarians tried to save him, but he died on the afternoon of May 5.


See also

*
Obesity in pets Obesity in pets occurs when excessive adipose tissue accumulates in the body, and is generally defined as occurring when an animal's body weight is at least 20% greater than its optimal body weight. Obesity is associated with metabolic and hormona ...
* Corduroy (cat) *
Prince Chunk Prince Chunk (also known as Princess Chunk and Captain Chunk, real name: Powder) (1998 – November 21, 2010) was a domestic shorthair cat, who at one time was alleged to weigh 44 pounds (20 kg), a world record. He was found in Voorhees, New Je ...
*
List of individual cats This is a list of famous cats which achieved some degree of popularity either in their own right or by association with someone famous. Before the modern era * Nedjem or Nojem ( Egyptian: ''nḏm'' "Sweet One" or "Sweetie"), 15th century BC. The ...


References

{{reflist 2010 animal births 2012 animal deaths Individual cats Male mammals