Venus the Two-Faced Cat

Venus is a tortoiseshell cat who became an internet sensation because of her extraordinary face: it is split perfectly down the middle, with one side solid black and the other side orange tabby, and she has one blue eye and one green eye. The striking symmetry makes her appear almost like two different cats fused together. Venus was found on a dairy farm in North Carolina and adopted by a woman named Christina, who posted photos to Facebook in 2012; the images spread across the world within days, earning Venus appearances on National Geographic and the Today show. The science behind her appearance is debated. The most popular explanation is that Venus is a chimera — a single animal formed from two embryos that fused in the womb, meaning different parts of her body carry different sets of DNA. Geneticists note, however, that her colouring could also result from ordinary random X-chromosome inactivation in a tortoiseshell cat, with the dramatic split being a striking coincidence. Only a DNA test of cells from each side of her face would settle it. Either way, Venus's perfectly divided face made her one of the most recognisable cats on the internet, with millions of followers across social media.