Who doesn’t love a Munchkin cat? The special appeal of Munchkins is that they tend to maintain a kitten-like appearance throughout their lives!
Have you heard the urban myth claiming that Munchkin cats became a breed when a stray kitty once ordered an extra short iced cat-puccino at her local cat cafe, and the rest, as they say, is hisssstory.
Truth be told, all cats have the short-legged gene but munchkin cats hold a dominant copy which results in their short stature. But we’re sticking with the urban legend story (besides we have proof – see photo below). >^..^<
Aside from their short legs, Munchkin cats have a normal physique. The rest of their body is not miniature and they are compact, sturdy cats. Medium in size with normal musculoskeletal development they have no restrictions on color and pattern of coat or eyes. Their hind legs are slightly longer than their forelegs, and the short limbs don’t allow these cats to jump high, but they are still very adept at all other movements.
We’re dedicating this post to Katie and Frankie – two of our favorite Munchkins who live in Michigan, USA. Frankie (aka Franklin) is a Standard Longhair who was born in June of 2016, and Katie (aka Kaden) is a British Shorthair born in July of the same year. Spoiler alert – Frankie is a boy…but more on that later. And yes, they are really, really ADORABLE!
We had the opportunity to speak with their wonderful mom (Lawren) and quiz her on the background of these two cuties…here’s what she shared with us:
Q: Do they get along well?
They do get along well! When we first brought Katie home Franklin was really excited to have a little sibling and really wanted to cuddle and play all the time, perhaps more than Katie wanted! They don’t cuddle as often now that they’re older but they love chasing each other around the house. We still catch them snuggling when they think we aren’t looking though.
Q: Are their names meaningful in some special way?
They were both named after my partner and I’s houses we lived in at college. Students usually lived in the same house for all 4 years so they really developed a meaningful sense of community within the house. Each house was named after notable students and staff at the university from their founding years. I lived in Kate Morris house, she was the first student to receive a Ph.D. at the university, and my partner lived in Franklin King house, a beloved groundskeeper who served the university for 50 years. But you may have noticed that Katie is actually a male cat! He was so small that they mis-gendered him as a kitten. We renamed him to Kaden, but kept the nickname Katie. Now he responds to both!
Q: What was the inspurration to start their adorable IG feed?
I started their Instagram account because I wanted a way to document them growing up. We all know that the kitten phase never lasts long enough, so having these photos and videos was a nice way to remember those days and all the fun that we continue to have together. I was also looking for a way to get back into photography and this seemed like the perfect combination of the two.
Q: How would you describe their purrsonalites?
They have two COMPLETELY opposite personalities. Franklin is very sophisticated, independent, proper, and adventurous. Katie is goofy, affectionate, and a bit of a spaz. He gets excitable really easily and will zoom all around the living room and up and down the stairs when he’s in a playful mood. He usually does this when playing with his feather toys or chasing light reflections on the wall. But every so often he just looks around excitedly, and zooms off on his own. I’m convinced he sees things! Haha! Meanwhile, Franklin just watches him and seems to shake his head in disapproval.
Q: Funniest thing either have ever done?
They have a hilarious obsession with Nerf darts. I don’t know what’s so special about it, but they LOVE playing with Nerf darts. Whenever they hear us loading the darts into the Nerf gun they come running as fast as they can. They could chase them for hours. Franklin even puts them in his water bowl when he’s done.
Q: Naughtiest thing either have ever done?
They love to do parkour in the mornings around the living room, especially on our beautiful leather chair! We’re trying really hard to break that habit since the hair is starting to look like it’s been through better days. But they each have their own specific vices as well. Franklin will chew chords if we’re not careful, he seems to be a connoisseur of Apple products in particular. Katie on the other hand loves to chomp on plants. We’re currently growing cat grass so that he has something to munch on instead of our house plants.
Q: Are they spoiled? If so, in what way?
They are definitely spoiled!! They get lots of treats, toys (which they never seem to like more than an old fashioned cardboard box), and cute bow ties. We definitely spoil them more than we spoil ourselves!
Q: Do they co-operate willingly during most photo shoots?
They usually cooperate with photoshoots especially if there is treats involved. Of the two of them, Franklin would be the one to not cooperate, he’s just so independent. That being said, as soon as we try to stage a photoshoot with both of them together, it’s nearly impossible to get them to both cooperate at the same time. But we’ve found that having them both sit on a stool works well. They know that the stool means they get treats so they tend to cooperate together then.
Q: Any big adventures planned?
We would love to take Franklin on a camping and canoeing adventure up at Pictured Rock. The views are gorgeous and he loves spending time walking with outdoors. If he had it his way we would go on adventures every day, but we live in the city and there aren’t many isolated outdoors locations to take him nearby.
Q: If Katie & Frankie were famous person celebs…who do you think they’d be?
It is so difficult to think of REAL famous people, but Katie would definitely be Doug the dog from the movie Up. He always wants attention, is in your face 24/7, loves to chase things, and in general is absolutely nuts.
Franklin would be the journalist Anderson Cooper. He is handsome, sophisticated, poised, and a prolific traveler.
Q: Anything the duo might like to say to their many IG fans?
We hope you get as much joy from Katie and Frankie as we do! What started as a way to document them growing up has evolved into a way for us to spread their cuteness with everyone else. We always love and appreciate your support.
[clickToTweet tweet=”Meet Two Adorable Munchkin Cats Named Katie and Frankie” quote=”Meet Two Adorable Munchkin Cats Named Katie and Frankie”]
Check out their Super Mario Odyssey adventure video:
Summary
A very special thanks to Lawren and of course, to the stars of the show, the uber-adorable Katie and Frankie. Please follow their IG feed at @katieandfrankie.
I would be interested in two topics. One if Munchkins are a purely American appearance, because I have never seen any neither in Europe nor in the Middle East.
The other question I have is if this gene becoming dominant is just a genetic chance or if it was done so purposely during breading. The fact that one cat is a standard American Longhair and the other a British Short-hair seems to indicate that no, but your article does not say anything on the topic.