Big Floppa, a Russian cat with green eyes and large furry ears, has become the biggest star of internet memes.
Its owner, Andrei Bondarev, a cameraman from Moscow, posted the first photo of his pet on Instagram in April 2018. “To become a big cat, you have to eat a lot!”, said the caption of the post that launched the cat as a protagonist of memes on social networks.
+ Yelling is the worst tactic for educating a puppy, study indicates
His real name is Gosha, and he is a caracal, a wild cat that looks like a lynx. Caracals are native to Africa, Asia, and India, but Gosha was born on December 21, 2017, at a cattery specialized in wild cats in Ukraine.
When he moved to Moscow a few months later, he was adopted by Andrei and his wife Yelena. “Lena saw this animal on the internet and showed me, and we decided to buy a wild cat. Why not? At first, the idea was not entirely serious and seemed like a dream to be fulfilled one beautiful day. But for an entire year, we prepared for it, consulted with experts, and got so used to the idea that we couldn’t back out,” he told the Russia Beyond website.
Georgy, Gosha’s full name, and his pet couriers took more than 24 hours in a minibus to get to Moscow. According to Yelena, in the first few days, he was scared to walk around the apartment, but he did not refuse food. Gosha was “mentored” by Matvei, another cat that the Bondarevs adopted from an animal shelter, which is now over 12 years old.
Little did they know that he would become one of the most famous cats on the internet today. In 2020, he became very popular for a photo where Gosha appears posing in the window with his other brother, Zhora. “Zhora was very offended with us for welcoming another cat and, in the first few weeks, he ignored Gosha and us. Now he is Gosha’s best friend,” said Yelena.
Quickly, internet users started to make memes with the kitten. Check out:
Pumba Caracal
Pumba Caracal, also known as Pumba Cat, is famous for its remarkable pointed ears with darker edges. They also carry a beautiful cinnamon color that can vary between red and gray. Their curious gaze has a very beautiful light green tone with dark edges on the lower eyelids. This species also commonly has some white spots around the muzzle and belly. The short fur is another aspect of the Pumba cat.
The Caracal cat usually has a medium stature, measuring between 40 and 45 cm in height at the withers and being one of the largest cats that exist, even ahead of the giant Maine Coon breed. But don’t think that, being a medium cat, he will not be heavy: a Caracal male can weigh up to 20 kg, while a healthy female can reach up to 16 kg. Another feature is that the tail of this feline measures an incredible 30 cm. And even with all these traits full of particularities, the Caracal cat enchants many cat lovers around the world. See below the 10 main characteristics of the breed.
