Midas: The Four-Eared Cat With a Big White Heart

Midas' uniqueness reminds us that beauty lies in our differences

I am a dog person but a cat owner. Well, not quite. You do not own your cat; your cat owns you!

How weird is that? I digress. Let me explain.

Am I a dog or a cat person?

I am a forty-year-old writer living with a tabby cat. Mia is the first cat I have shared the household with.

Yes, dear reader, the place is not even mine; it’s hers. Mia lets me sleep in her bed every night, but most of the time, she’s in charge.

I still love dogs, they are the most trustworthy creatures on this planet, and they give you back every second of their lives unconditionally.

Dogs never get mad at you because you are their alfa, and they live to make you happy.

On the other hand, Cats are some of the most devious yet “purrfect” creatures in the world.

According to science, cats are far more intelligent than we realize. Popular articles often present cat cognition with a negative spin, whereas research suggests that domestic cats, like dogs, have developed a range of behaviors that facilitate their interaction with humans.

“I have studied many philosophers and many cats. The wisdom of cats is infinitely superior.” — Hippolyte Taine

At least in my ongoing relationship with Mia, I never know if she wants to cuddle with me or if she’s sneakily concocting with an AI algorithm to enslave us all and rule the world.

When she looks at me with those green eyes, all that misconception crumbles, and I realize cat perception is not negatively charged. Like any other domestic cat, Mia has a set of behaviors designed to facilitate interaction with humans.

Mia is adorable, even if she is slightly bipolar, and I love her even if my living room couch looks “claw-ful”

I now look at cats from a new angle and am increasingly one of those digital nomads who finds a cat photo on Instagram and lingers there for a while, fascinated by these overwhelmingly cute balls of fur.

I used to love dogs, and then I met Mia. She is turning me into a cat person too.

About Midas

This morning I checked Instagram while Mia nibbled my toes under the covers, and suddenly there she was, Midas, the four-eared kitten.

Midas reportedly inherited that unique trait from her parents through a recessive gene mutation.

Midas' name originates from the Phrygian king, who, according to legend, was known for his long “donkey-like” ears.

Donkey-ears King Midas

According to Greek mythology, King Midas once took his place among the judges of a musical contest disputed between Apollo, the god of music, and Pan, the god of hunters, shepherds, and the wild.

Apollo’s lyre was superior to any other instrument. Hence, the mountain god Tmolos awarded the victory wreath to Apollo. Midas contested the decision in favor of Pan.

Apollo was furious and turned Midas’ human ears into donkey ears, saying: “An ear that cannot distinguish beautiful music cannot be a human ear; it befits you to be donkey-eared.”

Four-eared cat Midas

So that’s the back story of how Midas, the four-eared cat, got that name.

The little one is only four months old and weighs “2065 grams of happiness.”

That is according to the cat's mom, Cemre Polat, who started publishing on social media to show the daily life of the kitten with four fluffy ears.

According to Cemre, Midas has no hearing problems. Her smaller ears still have a vestigial pinna (made of cartilage and covered by skin, fur, or hair) but no external ear canal or eardrum.

Cats are sensitive to sound. With their broad hearing spectrum, they can hear better than humans and even better than most dogs. Midas’ extra pair of ears does not give her superpowers, just incredible cuteness.

Related story: 4-eared cat Yoda

Even though this condition is rare, Midas is not the only kitten with four ears out there.

I already knew about Yoda and how almost everyone rejected him because of his weird-looking ears. His brothers and sisters were all gone, and only Yoda was left in the litter until he happened to find a forever family in Ted and Valerie, who had recently lost their cat of 20 years.

The cat no one wanted would become so famous that the owners were forced to keep him in the household because they were too afraid Yoda would be kidnapped.

Concluding remarks

The heartwarming stories of Midas and Yoda remind us how special our furry friends on four paws are, no matter what they look like, because animals see past the difference and four-eared cats to others of their kind or their canine sister are perfect just the way they are.

Let us not forget that, shall we?

“In the end we are all separate: our stories, no matter how similar, come to a fork and diverge. We are drawn to each other because of our similarities, but it is our differences we must learn to respect.” — Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

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References:

*Ryugo, D. K., & Menotti-Raymond, M. (2012). Feline deafness. The Veterinary clinics of North America. Small animal practice, 42(6), 1179–1207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cvsm.2012.08.008

Greene, K. (2011). “Cats vs. dogs: which pet is smarter?,” in Mysteries of Science: Amazing Animals, ed. US News & World Report (Washington, DC: US News & World Report)

Shreve, K. R. V., and Udell, M. A. R. (2015). What’s inside your cat’s head? A review of cat (Felis silvestris catus) cognition research past, present, and future. Anim. Cogn. 18, 1195–1206. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-015-0897-6.

Article originally published by the author here.