A Maine Coon believed to be the world’s longest cat has amassed a huge online fan club overnight.
Omar, the Maine Coon from Melbourne, has his very own Instagram account and an army of 14,000 feline fans have started following him and his outstanding growth.
Omar’s owner, Stephy Hirst posted a photograph of her beloved domestic cat to the picture-sharing app and his portrait was picked up by Cats of Instagram.
The cat has proved a hit online, in no small part because of his impressive 120cm (3ft 11in) measurements. Omar also weighs a staggering 14kg (31lbs).
Now, the folks at the Guinness World Records have contacted Hirst to formally measure Omar for the title of the Longest Cat Ever.
The record is currently held by an 118cm (3ft 10.59in) Maine Coon from Wakefield, West Yorkshire.
Stephy told the BBC:
All of our friends want to come over and see our cat. They say ‘is that Photoshopped?’ or ‘that can’t be real’ and then they see him in the flesh.
Omar’s length means he is quite the talented domestic cat.
Despite being an averagely-sized kitten, Omar has grown and grown to such great lengths that he can now reach door handles and the kitchen surfaces – with varying degrees of success.
Omar keeps his physique on a diet of cat food and human-grade kangaroo meat, and exercises on his humans’ trampoline daily.
Sadly, Omar’s fluffy form is too heavy for Stephy and her partner to pick him up regularly.
They even have to transport him to the vet in a dog crate.
Indeed, Omar shares his home with two Shelties called Penny and Rafiki.
Needless to say, Omar has outgrown both of the show dogs.
Omar has since been featured on Australian television, albeit reluctantly. His fame has now crossed oceans, and he’s proving a hit in the UK too.
But ‘he hasn’t really been coping with all the attention’ and ‘he had a little bit of a meltdown this morning’, Ms Hirst told the BBC.
She added:
He’s just looking forward to napping on the trampoline, chowing down on some more kangaroo and trying to keep us awake at night.
I think he’ll be glad to go back to being a normal housecat.
The world record attempt can take up to 12 weeks to determine, and we hope Omar gets to enjoy a little cat nap after the media storm has died down.
A former emo kid who talks too much about 8Chan meme culture, the Kardashian Klan, and how her smartphone is probably killing her. Francesca is a Cardiff University Journalism Masters grad who has done words for BBC, ELLE, The Debrief, DAZED, an art magazine you’ve never heard of and a feminist zine which never went to print.