Kitten rescued from box has ‘extremely rare’ mutation. See why he’s ‘1 in a million’
A litter of kittens was saved from a box — then came a “one in a million” discovery.
One of the cats has four ears, a trait that no one at a Tennessee animal shelter had seen before now.
“This is an extremely rare genetic mutation and is completely harmless,” True Rescue wrote July 31 in a Facebook post. “We decided to name this kitten Audio because he has built-in surround-sound speakers!”
Photos shared online show Audio has an extra set of ears that have grown backwards. The condition isn’t believed to cause him pain or hearing loss.
“Everything internally is structurally normal,” Kristin Condit, director of operations for the Nashville-area shelter, told McClatchy News in a phone interview. “We knew he could hear (because) he hears us opening cans of food.”
Audio landed at the rescue July 30 after he and his three feline siblings were found abandoned inside a duct-taped cardboard box that had no air holes. A good Samaritan reportedly spotted the box outside a fence the day before trash pickup.
The roughly 2-month-old cats were found underweight with parasites and upper respiratory symptoms. After intake, a rescue worker noticed one of the kittens had a feature that turned out to be an extra ear.
“We were both very taken aback. That’s not something any of us affiliated with True Rescue have ever seen, probably the rarest of genetic abnormalities that we’ve heard of,” Condit said, adding that their shelter’s veterinarian had only known of one other case of a cat with four ears.
At the rescue, Audio also has become known for being a sweet cat who prefers being held on people’s shoulders. He’s described as more outgoing than his siblings, whose names are Radio, Walkie and CB.
Audio’s story had garnered hundreds of reactions and dozens of comments on Facebook. The kitten is seen as a “good luck charm” because he arrived about a week after flooding hit the shelter in Mount Juliet, a roughly 20-mile drive east from Nashville.
“Getting the attention from Audio and his situation and story on the cusp of such a really traumatic time for our rescue is sort of a blessing in disguise,” Condit said.
As of Aug. 1, True Rescue didn’t have a timeline for when Audio would be finished socializing and go up for adoption. But the organization is accepting applications online at truerescue.org/adoptable-pets.
“Audio’s story is truly one in a million for us, and it’s shining a light on the passion that we have for cat and kitten rescue,” Condit said.
This story was originally published August 1, 2024 at 2:31 PM with the headline "Kitten rescued from box has ‘extremely rare’ mutation. See why he’s ‘1 in a million’."
