Pat Dollard

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Cat gives birth to freak feline with two faces

(Times Online)

A vet got more than he bargained for when a cat he was helping in labour gave birth to a two-headed kitten in Western Australia.

Veterinarian George Huber and nurse Louisa Burgess had to do a double take when the grey and white freak feline was born with two faces.

It was born at the Swan Veterinary Clinic in Perth, Western Australia, when its mother was brought in after suffering complications during birth.

The tiny kitten – smaller than a hand – was one of three born in the litter, but its siblings were not born with any deformities.

Ms Burgess said she had never seen a two-faced cat in her 12-year career.

“I have seen cats with two tails and extra legs, but not this,” she told the website inmycommunity.com.au.

The kitten eats out of just one mouth because of a cleft palate, but both its mouths miaow simultaneously.

And despite its deformity, Ms Burgess said the cat appeared healthy.

“It has a full tummy and it survived the night so that is a good sign,” she said. “It seems content, it meows and purrs.

“This is the result of a congenital deformity. Something has gone wrong in the early embryonic development.”

The kitten’s owners, who wish to remain anonymous, said they plan to keep their unusual pet and are thinking of calling it either Mr Men or Quasi Modo.

Only about one in a million cats are born with two heads, however the deformity is more common among other animals, especially snakes and turtles.