In the summer of 2017, a special feline named Olive entered the world of social media when her owner decided to share her beauty with the world on Instagram. Since then, Olive’s fanbase has grown to over 18,000 followers, and it’s easy to see why.
Affectionately called “Odd-Eyed Olive,” this unique cat has a condition known as sectoral heterochromia iridum, which gives her eyes multiple colors. Cats with this condition often have eye colors that include shades of blue, orange, and yellow. Interestingly, humans can have the same condition. While Olive’s eye color is rare, it’s more common in white cats like her, as the genes that control fur color and eye color are closely linked.
Olive lives with her owner, Kim, in Derby, England. When Kim first found Olive on a pet sale website, she had no clue the kitten had this eye condition because her eyes hadn’t fully developed yet. As Olive grew older, the colors in her eyes became more vibrant and mesmerizing. Kim told the Daily Mail:
“I got the kittens from a pet-for-sale website. I was looking for a new kitten to join the family, bringing the total to four. I wanted an energetic one to fit in with my other cats. I didn’t choose her for her eyes. It was quite dark when I picked her up, and the lady lifted her into the light, mentioning that her eyes might turn out to look a bit odd. At that point, I had no idea how they’d turn out.”
If you’ve ever had multiple cats, you’ll understand why there are no group photos of all four of Kim’s cats together. Although Olive stands out due to her rare eyes, her other furry companions are just as stunning in their own ways. Olive’s closest friend among them is another cat named Charlie, while she simply tolerates the other household members, including a cat named Fifi.
Although cats with this unique eye condition sometimes face health challenges like deafness or vision problems, Olive is fortunate to be free from these issues. The cats mostly live indoors, but they occasionally enjoy some supervised outdoor adventures in the garden.
Though Olive is undeniably the “star” of the household, the videos of Charlie’s clumsy antics are a source of endless entertainment for their fans.
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While Olive’s Instagram captions don’t reveal a lot about her day-to-day life, the more than 170 photos of her and her fellow cats paint a vivid picture of their happy lives. The videos are even more delightful, giving us a peek into the playful and comfortable life these cats enjoy in their charming English home, complete with plenty of toys and a lush, green backyard.