Holy cat! Samson, a Maine coon who lives in Brooklyn, appears to have locked down the title of the largest cat in New York City, according to the New York Post, and is quickly becoming the internet's new favorite feline.
Samson weighs an impressive 28 pounds and measures 4 feet long, and is currently riding out his 15 minutes of fame, as the giant cat has appeared in multiple outlets, including Good Day New York and Today.com. The feline has also amassed nearly 65,000 followers on Instagram (@catstradamus).
Photos of the hulking puss on Instagram show his owner, Jonathan Zurbel, having some good fun with his fluffy cat. Photos mostly include different individuals lifting the giant pet into their arms or above their heads.
According to Lisa Lippman, a Manhattan veterinarian who spoke with the Post, most cats weigh only around 10 pounds. "He is by far the biggest cat I've ever heard of, especially in New York City," she told the Post. The average male Maine coon tips the scales at 18 pounds, according to the International Cat Association.
Zurbel, who now considers himself 4-year-old Samson's "meow-nager," told Today.com that until last year, his feline pal — who currently enjoys six cans of food a day, according to Today.com — was a more average (for the breed, anyway) 19 pounds. But then the kitty hit a growth spurt and captured the internet's attention.
Internet fame can be fickle, but Zurbel told the New York Post, “If there’s one thing that rules the internet, it’s cats. It didn’t take long to build an organic following.”
Samson's adoring fandom clearly enjoys the photos posted. One depicts a Photoshopped image of a kitten wreaking havoc on a city. The caption read, “Soon I’ll be this big..CATZILLA!! Except I’ll help all the homeless cats.”
And that's what Zurbel hopes his cat's fame will do — inspire those considering adding a pet to their families to adopt at a local shelter. "There's just so many cats that need a place to live and are wonderful too," Zurbel told Today.com.
