Some cats show multiple moods, but what if they show multiple faces? Meet Frank and Louie, a cat with not only two names but also two faces on one head. Born 12 years ago, the cat – also known as the Janus cat – is not expected to live long, the Associated Press reports. Janus cats almost never survive and most have birth defects, including cleft palates, which make it difficult for them to suckle and often cause them to starve or choke on milk in their lungs and die of pneumonia.
However, for unknown reasons, Frank and Louie did not suffer from these common diseases and were recorded in the 2012 Guinness World Records as the longest-surviving Janus cats. Click to see more photos of Frank and Louie, the two-faced cat…
Frank and Louie were born with two faces, two mouths, two noses and three eyes. He can only see with two of his three eyes. The middle eye can’t even blink, which makes it seem like Frank and Louie are staring even when his other eyes are closed.
“It’s funny because people walk up to him and think it’s a cute fluffy white cat and they walk up with big smiles on their faces to pat him, like, ‘Oh , what a beautiful cat’ and I saw the look of horror on their faces when they actually saw his face,’ said the cat’s owner, Marty Stevens.
Stevens used a feeding tube to feed the cat for the first three months of its life, hoping it would reduce the risk of choking on food going down its mouth.
Turns out Stevens didn’t have to worry about him choking because Frank and Louie only used one of his mouths to eat – the other mouth had no lower jaw and wasn’t connected to one of his esophagus.
So what is the cat’s personality like? Frank and Louie do not seem to mind his condition and have developed friendly personalities. Janus cats are known for their soft, silky fur, docile temperament, and penchant for relaxing in someone else’s arms like a rag doll.
“He’s very, very laid back, not afraid of people, very friendly and really more like a dog than a cat,” Stevens said. “He walks on a leash, he goes right into the car; he loves car rides.”
Frank and Louie may be the longest-lived two-faced cat, but he’s certainly not the only one. This Janus kitten was born with 4 eyes, 2 noses, 2 mouths and 2 ears on June 8, 2000. This kitten unfortunately passed away a few days later, The Courier Times reported.