This four-eared cat is up for adoption, and the applications are rolling in

An Alabama cat that’s up for adoption is getting a lot of buzz, thanks in part to its extra set of ears.

“He has two extra earflaps that are just in front of his regular ears and they are smaller, and it’s almost like they’re backwards,” Stephanie Brown, who is fostering the rare feline, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.

“They don’t cause any problems or discomfort. It doesn’t affect his hearing. They’re just additional skin flaps.”

Brown who is fostering Dobby in Pelham, Ala., says veterinarians told her this genetic mutation is extremely rare.

The shelter, Kitty Cat Haven and Rescue, co-signs this. In an emailed statement to CBC Radio, they noted, “we’ve been a rescue since 2017 and have taken in over 6,800 cats and kittens and he is certainly a first for us.”

Meeting Dobby

Brown first found out about Dobby from a Facebook post by his previous owners, who said Dobby was having trouble getting along with their other cat.

They named him after the house elf from Harry Potter books, inspired by his prominent ears. But Dobby’s uniqueness doesn’t stop there. He was born with a short, curled tail and a severe underbite that will require surgery. 

But Brown says none of that — not even Dobby’s two obvious eccentricities — is stopping the adoption requests from flooding in. Quite the opposite, actually. The shelter is getting a flood of people wanting to adopt Dobby.

“We’ve had to kind of pump the brakes on asking people to apply for him,” said Brown.

“He’s not quite adoptable yet. He’s going to need a dental surgery coming up in April and then after that, we’ll open up for adoptions and I don’t expect we’ll have any trouble there.”

And for future pet owners who have fallen for Dobby’s extra ears, have no fear. 

Brown says the veterinarian confirmed the additional ears aren’t expected to cause any issues down the road.

“I would hate to see him lose his extra ears, I think it makes him all the more special,” said Brown.

Choosing to foster

Brown has been fostering animals with her husband since 2020, when they learned about the need for foster families in the cat adoption process.

“It’s immensely rewarding. It is difficult. But it is something that I can’t see us ever stopping,” said Brown.

Dobby isn’t the first quirky kitty Brown has welcomed into her home.

Between her own “wobbly” cat Phoebe, three other cats, a dog, and a young daughter, her household is already full. And yet, she admits even that hasn’t stopped her from toying with the idea of adopting Dobby herself. 

“It is something that is always a temptation,” said Brown. “For now, I’ll just have to say, ‘We’ll see.’”