I spend a lot of time reading expressions in my pets’ faces that probably aren’t really there. Even though we know that animals don’t act or think the same as humans, we all still do it.
But usually, our animals don’t look quite this human. I was scrolling through cute animals on Reddit, as one does, when I saw a picture of a kitten with a human face.
I was intrigued and horrified and confused all at once, so of course I needed to follow the included link to the Instagram. That’s how I discovered that it wasn’t one human-faced kitten, but FIVE.
The entire litter of kittens look like gray-haired grandpas that you wouldn’t want to talk back to but would also sneak you a Werther’s Original when Mom’s not looking.
They were born in October 2019 to the Russian maine coon breeder Catsvill County. Breeder Tatiana Rastorgueva has been working with the breed for 16 years, with a goal to breed cats with “definite” features.
If by “definite” she means looking like someone used a face swap app with their cat, then she’s definitely on the right track. This isn’t the first time her cats have gone viral, either.
A year ago, another kitten with a remarkably human face made the rounds.
Her name is Valkyrie and much like with this newest litter, people didn’t know how to feel about her.
Something about Valkyrie’s face makes it look even more human than the new kittens do.
Maybe it’s that her super pale irises can almost be mistaken for human-like whites of the eyes.
Valkyrie was eventually sold to a loving home, and I imagine this new batch will get plenty of interest too.
I’m so torn about these kittens. On one hand, they’re interesting and unique and cute. On the other hand, I’m not sure I’d want a creepy old man face staring down at me first thing in the morning.