Giant 33-Pound Shelter Cat Finds Best Family To Love Him

Part 1 of 2

When Mike Wilson and Megan Hanneman decided to drop by the Humane Society of West Michigan one day in April, they didn’t expect to leave with a new pet.

The couple had been discussing expanding their family with a kitten, but when they spotted Bronson — an enormous, 3-year-old orange cat weighing a whopping 33 pounds — it was love at first sight.

Bronson struck quite an imposing silhouette among the other felines at the shelter, and the couple couldn’t help but be impressed.

“When we first saw him, we were shocked at how big he was,” Wilson told The Dodo. “Neither of us had seen a cat that size before and we thought he was so cute and cuddly, like a large stuffed animal! We immediately went over to gaze at him from outside his room.”

Wilson and Hanneman waited in line to be interviewed so they could meet Bronson, but had to leave for work before they were able to sit down with the shelter employee.

Still, they couldn’t stop ogling the snapshot they had taken of the enormous cat before they left. “On the way to work, we were talking about him nonstop and started regretting not sticking around for him,” Wilson said.

As the day wore on, the couple’s fear that Bronson would be adopted grew, so they rushed back to the shelter as soon as they could.

“We started feeling like he would be adopted in no time because of how quickly we were drawn to him,” Wilson said. “We returned right when they opened the following day and were so happy to see him again!”

Bronson had come to the humane society after his elderly owner passed away. Shelter workers were told that he was called “Fat Kat,” and that though he had lived in a home with multiple pets, he was a bit of a loner and always kept to himself.

No one was quite sure how such a young cat had gained so much weight.

“The staff changed his name once they brought him in, but his naming kind of sheds light on how seriously they were taking his obesity,” Wilson said. “Their best guess was that he was fed either too much kibble or was being fed table scraps.”

At Bronson’s size, he stood an increased risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes, along with many other health complications. The interviewer warned the couple that Bronson’s eventual adopter would need to help him lose weight at a slow pace through diet and exercise. The young cat’s hefty measurements also made it difficult for him to adequately clean himself, so they would need to brush him daily to help keep his backside clean.

When Wilson and Hanneman finally met Bronson in person, they were shocked by how love-hungry the cat was, seemingly desperate for pets and affection. And though their hands were oily after touching his striped orange fur, the couple knew they had to bring him home.

“He was quite unkempt and had a lot of dander in his hair, mostly due to him not being able to groom himself because of his size,” Wilson said. “I just wanted to take him home, clean him up and care for him.”