A cat with no ears has gone viral on TikTok and users have quickly fallen in love with him.
Grace Herndon, 23, a photographer from Virginia, US, has shot to viral fame after sharing life with her one-of-a-kind furry friend, Alex the earless cat.
Alex, who used to be a stray, initially had no health complications, but soon developed a foul odour from his ears which resulted in him taking antibiotics.
Sadly the vets soon discovered that he had tumour-like growths in his ears which had completely blocked one of his ear canals, as well as the other ear completely.
As the infection could have possibly reached his brain and caused neurological issues, as well as death, they decided to remove his ears completely.
“We were really worried because we wanted Alex to be okay but there was no way to remove the infection because the growths blocked it,” Grace told Jam Press.
“They were benign growths but were dangerous as they had gotten a bit out of control.”
In 2019, the feline underwent two procedures to have his ears removed and although the family were worried, he was soon back to his happy, playful self.
Grace recently uploaded a video of her beloved pet on TikTok, which has since received 2.2 million views and over 828,600 likes.
The feline was welcomed into the family after he was found aimlessly wandering around their neighbourhood in 2010.
As the tabby cat wasn’t neutered, Grace’s aunt, Terri, 51, decided to take him in and get him “fixed” before releasing him again.
However, he kept coming back and decided to make the home his own – where is now one of five cats, plus one other dog.
Grace said: “[We have] all rescues and he loves to climb trees, play with his toys, especially big dog toys for some reason.
“He’s always jumping around, a lot more than he used to and he was a lot chunkier.
“I think because he’s so happy and more active now, that’s probably why he’s lost a lot of weight.”
In the TikTok clip, she pans over Alex who stands elegantly in the middle of their living room.
As his ball-shaped head takes centre stage, it’s hard not to fall in love with this unique feline, with users quick to share witty comments.
“No he will NOT hear u out,” one viewer commented. [sic]
Another person wrote: “Cat don’t wanna hear it.” [sic]
“Tube,” someone else said.
One viewer added: “Bro got a swimming lesson.” [sic]
“Wireless cat,” another person said.
Grace is surprised about her cat’s fast-growing popularity but isn’t shocked that people have fallen in love with him.
She added: “So many people loved him and wanted to know what happened.
“I explained and have since grown a following because of it.
“I wondered why I hadn’t posted him sooner.”
