Person adopts a teeny weeny kitten that never grows, wonders if there's something wrong with her, but the vet says she's simply going to be tiny furrever: 'There is nothing wrong with her'

Author image for Mariel Ruvinsky
Mariel Ruvinsky • Writer and Editor
Jan 8, 2026 10:00 AM EST

In case you didn't know, forever kittens are something that exists. 

Well, not exactly. These tiny cats don't actually remain kittens forever. They just stay… small. Some kittens are born tiny and stay that way. It's normal, and it can happen for a whole range of reasons. It's the same way that some cats just keep growing, more and more, until you start wondering if what you adopted was an actual house cat or not. Usually, it is. It's just a big cat. Sometimes, cats change color as they grow older, and of course, that would make you concerned, but you don't always need to be. Sometimes, it's just harmless vitiligo, and you're going to have a very unique-looking cat for the rest of your life.

You should always take the cats to the vet if you are concerned about them. We will never tell you not to do that. But once you are given the diagnosis, and if the diagnosis happens to be as cute as "your cat is going to look like a kitten forever", then we only ask one thing of you… post pictures. Post lots and lots of pictures of your adorably forever-small kitten. 

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    "It is normal for my cat to be so small? (She is 3 y/o)"

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    a 1:1 banana for scale (She had vet checkups and there is nothing wrong with her XD, I just want to share this little beast)
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    TRASH
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    Cheezburger Image 10593509632
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  • Some kitties simply remain small like this. It could happen for a lot of reasons — sometimes it’s just genetics, giving them tiny frames no matter how old they get. Other times, they were the tiniest in the litter, the little runt who had to hustle a bit harder to keep up with their siblings, and that smallness just sticks with them. And sometimes, a cat simply grows at its own pace, never quite filling out to the size you might expect, but still being full of personality, curiosity, and all the charm of a full-grown kitty. Being small doesn’t mean being fragile or unhealthy. It's just who they are. Them being extra adorable like this is just the cherry on top for us. 

  • 05
    dngrgates This is Peggy. She's 11 and weighs only 7lbs on a good day.
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    meltedkuchikopi5 this is ghibli. she is 2 and only weights pounds, occasionally 7 after a big wet food serving.
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  • 07
    Strawberry Curious Lasko Margot is 8 pounds but it's only cause she's gotten a little rotund lately
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  • 08
    DreXkind omg we gotta get a mini cat get-together!!! are you in vancouver by chance?:) Asta wants to meet up, 2.5 years, 4 lbs
    via DreXkind
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    Teagies3961
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  • 10
    This is Gemma, she's 4 years old and about 6.5lbs! I got her as a barn kitten, her mom was about the same size as well. You might see Savaryn in the background, she was a rescue and she's also teenie tiny(8lbs). Savaryn's growth was stunted from having kittens way too young, I got her after her kittens were grown enough to be adopted as well. :)
    via Teagies3961
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    Anothersadwatersign Reddit users be like: Banana for reference I keep this photo ready to go! She's 2!
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    Familiar_Rip_8871 I had a 6lb tortie who lived with us for 22 years. We thought she was a kitten when we found her but she never grew so who knows how old she was.
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    Live-Okra-9868 My mom rescued a kitten from the side of the road far from any homes. Brought her home to where we had a cat with kittens. She was roughly the same size. They grew and grew and grew. She did not. We realized she was a forever kitten and had no idea how old she actually was.
    via Live-Okra-9868
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    LydiasBoy Toy
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    Button is just under 6lbs, and 2.5 years old. I'm guessing she was just the runt of the litter, sadly her two siblings were stillborn, so we can't know for sure. She got plenty of mommas milk though. Just a tiny bundle of energy who doesn't know she's smol.
    via LydiasBoyToy

  • One of our favorite things about cat internet is this - people seeing a story about a cat and instantly sharing their own similar stories. The fact that we could scroll and scroll through the responses to this story and see more adorable forever-small kittens is the best thing that could happen. And there really were a lot of responses. Choosing our favorite ones was one of the most difficult things for us to do when putting this story together. It was really difficult. Truly a hardship. It was totally not the best time that we had the whole day. 

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    imlostineggsaisle One of my kittens is TINY. She feels like she weighs nothing when you pick her up. She's about 6 months old right now and just a little over half the size of her brothers and sister who are between 6 to 8 lbs each. She sure doesn't act little though. She can take down any of the others if she gets a sneak attack, lol.
    via imlostineggsaisle
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    NooblerJay This is Noob. AKA Baby Scroobs, Grandma Noob, Scroobalooba Doob Doob. She is 7 lbs and 11 years old. :)
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    shieldmaiden21 My parents cat is 17 and 4.5lbs! She's always just been tiny :)
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    pestypoo DO IT this is my super tiny baby girl!! she's only 5.5 pounds she's also 3. she's the runt of her litter
    via pestypoo

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aww wholesome cat adorable adoption heartwarming tiny cute adopted small story Cats rescue
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