Whenever I see Grumpy Cat, aka Tardar Sauce, I just want to hug and pet and love her. She’s freaking adorable, especially in motion. Of course she looks like a sourpuss in still photos, which explains her astronomic rise to fame after her owners posted a photo of her to reddit back in September. Grumpy is an 11 month-old mixed breed who has feline dwarfism. She’s launched countless memes in which she mocks and dismisses anything that people can come up with. In reality Grumpy Cat is a very docile, sweet cat who is happy to be held by her owners and fawned over by millions of fans. She’ll sit through interviews, she’ll grace SXSW with her presence, and she’ll even let her owners bring her to Times Square for tourists to paw. That bothered me a little, and I’ll talk about that in a moment.
Tardar made an appearance on Good Morning America today to promote her new collaboration with Friskies. It wasn’t her first morning show appearance – she was on The Today Show last December. During her segment, they showed Grumpy cat accompanying her owners, Arizona based brother and sister, Tabatha and Bryan Bundesen, to Times Square. Grumpy was recognized by quite a few onlookers, who went on to fawn and pet her. This wasn’t unlike her SXSW appearance, where people lined up around the block for her, and it bothered me a little. Her owners have heard those complaints, and insist that she’s a normal cat “99%” of the time. Her website states that “99% of the time she is a normal kitty. She plays, hides, and acts as cats act. (She LOVES to hide behind the curtains!) She isn’t in front of a camera all of the time like many people perceive.”
That’s sweet and I’m sure she’s a very pampered kitty. I’ve probably had about a dozen kitties living with me over my life (not at one time! The most I had at one time was three) with various roommates and boyfriends, and I don’t think I’ve had one that would let you carry her out in public like that. Some were cool about being held, but they were all so headstrong that they would struggle away from you once you were outside or if they didn’t want to be there. Tardar is just a rare combination of frowny cute and very docile.
Here’s Grumpy Cat’s new Friskies web commercial. “Will Kitty Play With It.” She looks kind of scared and like she’s cowering! It makes me feel bad for her. She can’t help her face, and she’s just a very shy cat.
Photos credit: Friskies and ABC
I’m in love.
How cute is this. How nice to have an animal making money to help you out. Some people are so lucky. I am an animal lover who loves all animals but I have never had one who became famous.
Come on, some of those memes floating around are frigging hilarious!
I’ve laughed quite hard at some of them! They really are funny.
Love the phyllis diller avatar pic. Grumpy cat rules.
As much as I adore Grumpy Cat and would likely turn into a crazy fangirl if I ever met her, I sort of feel bad for her…she probably just wants to lie around on a couch at home, like most kitties, not be trotted around Times Square.
It’s not a criticism of the owners or anything-I’m sure Grumpy is very loved.
Oh yeah – I would go total fangirl too… then she would look at me “You may die now” and I would hang my head and go 🙁
I love Grumpy Cat! (I call myself a Grump-head, lol.) I also kinda feel bad for her because I’m sure she’d rather just be dozing in the sun, but it does look like her owners really care about her so I guess it’s not so bad?
And yeah, I would really fangirl over that feline if I saw her in person.
One of my friends met her (apparently they are family friends) and put an album on Facebook, the cuteness was overwhelming.
I feel bad for her too, hope the owners act responsible.
By the way, is she mentally disabled too? Maybe it’s because of that that she’s so calm at the Times Square – my cat would freak out!
Besides that she’s the cutest cat ever!
I’ve never thought about that before! Can cats have an intellectual disability? (<–that's the new pc term at the moment, it changes constantly). I think so? I looked online really quick (no in-depth library research) and it looks like it's a possibility, but due to an external factory. They aren't born with it. Like I said, not my best research attempt, but if anyone out there does know please tell us! I don't think Tadar is though. She's just a cute little dwarf.
That’s what I was wondering, and also, the spelling of her name is a bit suspect.
@gg lol
She looks exhausted in that interview. All she wants to do is sleep 🙁
All cats look like that most of the day. Even at home, she would be like that – trust me.
I love Grumpy cat! Always makes me laugh
Who couldn’t love Grumpy Cat? She’s frickin hilarious. I hope her owners are taking good care of her, though, and not letting the money overshadow her welfare.
Aw! Thanks for covering Grumpy Cat! She is indeed a celebrity. I would love to see Lil Bub more often as well!!
I think Lil Bub is SO cute but my brother thinks he is terrifying.
I absolutely ADORE Lil Bub as well, she is so darling. Did you know there’s a feature-length movie being made about her, Tardar Sauce/Grumpy Cat, and a bunch of other famous internet kitties.
You can see the trailer on YouTube, it’s called “Lil Bub and Friends.”
She looks so cuddly! I’m not a cat person, I have a Yorkie and he is a terrier so he is active and won’t cuddle. I’d love to have her as a cuddle buddy! She is a dwarf cat or something?
For dog lovers, go to Youtube and look up Maymo the Lemon Beagle. Especially his Christmas present.
Oh boy, Grumpy Cat’s going to be even grumpier now I hijacked his thread with a DOG.
Oh I love Mamyo . He’s the dog that rolls around in pickles and steals water bottles right?
I love Grumpy she seems lovely.Really she seems like a great cat.
That’s Maymo! He’s hysterical. I love the chewing the faces off his toys ones so his person takes a photo with his head it it instead. 🙂
There’s plenty of love for doggies around here too, not too worry 😉
That beagle is super-cute! I’ve never seen a Beagle with that kind of coloring before…
She’s adorable. But does anyone else think they named her “Tard” as in “Retarded” but had to scramble and say her name was “Tardar Sauce” when she got famous? Or were they stupid and didn’t know how to spell Tartar Sauce in the first place?
Either way, I judge them.
+1000
lmao!
Oh yeah, I totally think they did that.
Grumpy Cat is the cutest thing ever. I hope (and actually think it is probably true) that her owners are careful with her and how many people get to touch her and handle her. I would think she’d get sore after too many pettings and strokings (insert your own dirty joke here)
Absolutely that’s what they did.
I love that cat. I think she seems fine in the ad, cats would really freak out if they were scared. I also think if she didn’t like being held all the time, she’d let everyone know.
The other cat was beautiful, and so was the cat in the 2nd ad (a Russian blue?). I guess every cat is beautiful, though.
I agree. Some cats are just docile cuddlebugs that love being anywhere as long as they are held and petted. I have one like that.
Well if that’s the case, they should have played it off with something better than “Tardar Sauce.” ..like “Tardy Hardy” or something..bc, as mentioned above, it’s Tartar…lol so stupid
I don’t know if this adds to your concern or abates it a little but I honestly think Grumps might be developmentally-delayed. It’s really rare for a cat to be SO nonreactive and passive.
I have a Scottish Fold and she is the cuddliest, SWEETEST cat-never claws or bites and very very docile, doesn’t freak out at the vet’s, will sit on a car seat and chill while being transported (I’ve only done this a couple times, just to give her a break from the carrier) but even SHE would freak out from all the cameras and people.
I have a ragdoll cat that looks very similar to this one…..but not the same expression…..she is very docile as well. That breed is known for it.
Oh that makes sense…
I love Rag Dolls-they have such a cute “sweetheart” face 🙂
Yeah. They downplayed it. I saw the first Reddit post when it was happening and that name came up. IIRC they played up the name for Reddit yuks, not trying to be offensive, and then when the meme took off, they had to cover quickly. I don’t hold it against them. They learned their lesson I think about being cavalier with that word and they seem like good cat parents.
Agreed, it was almost certainly Tard and not Tarder Sauce. I’ve read that the cat has a form of feline dwarfism. When you watch videos of Tard in motion, you can totally see that the cat isn’t quite like other cats.
Such a cutie though!
This cat is my spirit animal.
I love her face, if they ever did a voice over for her, it would have to be really raspy (like Big Ang).
I love her
But bring her home. Stop whoring her out for fame and money. Let her be a cat
…She’s a cat. She has no idea what’s going on, and while she may be a little shy, she certainly doesn’t seem to mind the attention. If I had a weird-looking pet that I could make a ton of money off of just by taking pictures of it and bringing it on a few talk shows, I totally would.
Cats get very stressed in unfamiliar places, it’s not fair to her.
cats aren’t meant to be moved around like this. It’s not in their natures to enjoy being passed around, in new cities constantly.
Cats freak out over moving to a new house and usually need to be shut into one room for a while so they can gradually adjust to the change.
Even if she’s shy and docile, I’d be very worried about the impact of so many new places and faces and traveling. I hope a vet is keeping a close eye on her for signs that the stress is starting to impact her health.
..then you don’t deserve a pet. It’s a living thing, not an inanimate object.
Well, that’s a bit insensitive. “She’s a cat. She has no idea what’s going on.” Um, she’s a living being. I guarantee she’s processing her surroundings in some way, regardless of her seemingly passive outward demeanor.
This kitty may very well be extremely docile and accommodating by nature, and perhaps she is also mentally developmentally delayed, as someone else already mentioned here. But by instinct, cats are prone to becoming very stressed by even the slightest changes in their environment, routine, etc. — and they don’t necessarily always show it, though it does take a toll on their health. They can also be unpredictable and have flight responses that are triggered in a fraction of an instant. It concerns me that Tardar Sauce is being handled out in the open in Times Square, an environment in which she could easily go into sensory overload and completely flip out, out of the blue. Her owners seem like decent people, but I hope they know when enough is enough and don’t let the dollar signs cloud their sensibility.
I also hope they’re not feeding Grumpy kitty Friskies. It’s one of the lowest-grade commercial cat foods available. It’s like getting your nutrients from McDonald’s extra value meals every day.
If I tried this with any of my lot, I’d be shredded like my chairs are! Mine are more like Simon’s Cat.
I love Grumpy Cat. But I’d think all that traveling around and assorted people handling her would stress her out.
Her family should be content with the still pictures taken at their home and let the poor little cat have some peace.
+1
I’m jealous I want to cuddle the grumpy cat.
Side note my mum said I remind her of the grumpy cat because I’m small and moody
Is it just me or is it weird that ADULT brother and sister own the cat? I mean isn’t this just a pet? Why would they own it together.
I know! When I heard that, I assumed they were, like, 19 and 20 and that was a family pet. I think they’re a lot of money to be made and neither wants to let go of any claim.
The story linked from their names in the article explains that. The brother went to visit the sister, took a picture of the cat which he had never met before and posted it on Reddit. Then it went viral and I think he hatched up the idea to capitalize on it. They weren’t living together before this, I don’t think they even are now (it says he has a girlfriend and a kid) and he didn’t “own” the cat until she got famous.
http://usat.ly/ToY9ml
Oh ok lol…….I thought they were taking the whole weird cat lady stigma to a new and grosser level. 🙂
yes, I think they even live in different States. But like you said, it’s the sister that owns the cat.
Grumpy cat rocks! Most cats i’ve seen or been owned by wouldn’t take to the traveling well so I hope her tour goes quickly
I am worried they are exposing Grumpy Cat to germs and diseases with all that petting by strangers. Not good.
Grumpy Cat; this is her famous time of her nine lives. She reminds me of my cat, who just disappeared 🙂 That cat would sit on the passenger seat when I drove, so I drove him all around.
I hope our grumpy faced friend has had all of her vaccinations. I especially love the Kristen Stewart/Grumpy Cat comparison. I think Tardar Sauce seems like a gentle and loving little soul.
This article makes me a little sad right now. My 14 y/o ball point ragdoll is having a pancreatic inflammation spell (she has chronic pancreatitis). It’s not life threatening at the moment but I worry that one of these days these attacks will be the end of her.
What are you feeding your kitty?If you are feeding any dry food that definitely can be a trigger.
I pulled all dry food from her diet about a year ago. As of right now, she will only eat Fancy Feast. She’s always been a picky eater so finding a food that’s good for her and she likes is hard. I do want to get her away from Fancy Feast though.
Fancy Feast is problematic with all the fish and wheat gluten which both can cause inflammation as a result of an allergic response. With patience any cat can be transitioned to other foods. Before Grain chicken, turkey or quail would be good to try first. All are grain free with no fish or wheat gluten and are basically meat and vitamins. You might also want to check out http://catnutrition.org and http://catinfo.org for a lot of excellent information regarding feeding cats.
I’ve tried giving her the BG chicken, quail and turkey foods. She refused to eat them. I’ve also tried giving her BFF, Tiki, Wellness, Pinnacle and Deli cat (she loved the tunas of the first two, no surprise there) to no avail. I usually give each one a try for two days. I know all of the dangers of why she shouldn’t eat fish. She used to be a primarily dry food kitty until she got diagnosed. I used to feed her the grain free Pinnacle cat food.
Just FYI to my catladies: Friskies is not healthy food. Tinned food is generally better for kitties, but in any case you want meat to be the main ingredient, not “meat by-products” because “meat by-products” are not actual meat. Just because it has a certain percentage of protein does not mean it is necessarily in a form that is nutritionally accessible for kitty.
Also, if your cat seems to barf a lot, try removing fish from the diet; many cats are allergic but it is in a lot of cat foods because of the smell. This made a huge difference to one of my rescue babies.
=^. .^=
All these things are true. My kitty isn’t allergic to fish but another issue is a B-vitamin deficency. Taurine is an essential mineral cats need and fish lacks. Turkey, chicken and liver are much better for them. The unfortunate fact though is that my cat is ill with pancreatitis and also a picky eater and has is down to 6 lbs when she is normally around 7 1/2. She only wants Fancy Feast flaked tuna or flaked trout. FF is better than Friskies but not by much. At this point, I am letting her eat what she wants as seafood is high in protein and low in fat (she requires a low fat diet due to her pancreatitis). When she recovers though, I will likely be making the switch to Hi-Tor.
Poor kitty!! Is she not interested in brothy homemade chicken and rice?
I made a fresh chicken gravy with jasmine rice puree and even put some small raw chicken chunks. She wouldn’t touch it.
Fish is very likely your problem. Keep in mind that the fish that goes into pet food is low quality and all fish is contaminated with mercury and pcbs. See http://www.littlebigcat.com/nutrition/why-fish-is-dangerous-for-cats/ and http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/energy/stories/84-of-fish-contaminated-by-mercury-study-finds
Rice is another ingredient that does not belong in catfood and is a factor responsible for high blood sugar and obesity. With pancreatitis, the stress this puts on the pancreas, which, in an obligate carnivore, is not designed to process a high carbohydrate load, is not good. Diabetes is a risk. Low fat diets for pancreatitis in cats are no longer recommended by experts. This was based, unfortunately, on humans and dogs, but cats have a requirement for a high amount of fat in their diets and that should not change. Pancreatic enzymes are a must, and a pill version is available if the cat will not eat the powder mixed in food.
I know how dangerous fish is. But what do you do when your cat refuses everything else you try to feed her? I can’t allow her to starve and it’s better than nothing.
Was just cuddling with my kitty and thinking about your poor fuzzy. You obviously know a LOT and I’m sure you have researched and tried everything but am curious if you have given Hills prescription i/d feline a go? The tinned, not the dry. It is my go to food whenever I get desperate about a sick kitty refusing to eat and drink. I add extra water and mash it all up and find that it gets nursed when nothing else will.
Good luck! My kitty is sending purrs your way!
You will probably have to start very slowly and add tiny bits of the new food, gradually increasing the new and decreasing the old. It may take weeks or longer but there really is no better option. I’ve been through this myself many times and have never failed with patience and persistence. The following is for transitioning from dry to wet, but you can use some of the same principles for your situation: http://www.catinfo.org/docs/TipsForTransitioning1-14-11.pdf
Agreed! I used to feed my cat Friskies, then switched to Wellness/Felidae/Holistic Select and she looks and acts so much healthier. It’s really not that much more expensive if you get the big cans. Friskies is about 50 cents a can (1 can per day), and Felidae is about $2.40 for a large can, which lasts 2-3 days. Totally worth it.
So true! My almost 18 year old Burmese is highly food allergic and I blame the tuna her previous owner fed her daily.
When was the last time you saw a kitty swimming in the deep sea?
Very true
At least where I live, any food sold in a grocery store is pretty much bad for your cat. Friskies etc are all crap
My cat won’t go anywhere near friskies or the popular brands. We have her on Wellness Indoor formula and she loves it. It’s grain free 🙂
Acana is a great brand for outdoor cats but is higher in fat and protein in my experience. It was just too much for my indoor kitty’s activity level(she was gaining weight so quickly). so we switched to Wellness Indoor and she’s at a good weight now.
Her wet food isn’t the best though, Meow Mix Market Select. She won’t let me change it though. They were sold out once and I got dirty looks every night when I fed her another brand. I got a stink eye and she’d refuse to eat it for an hour before giving in.
Ugh, NO. This really upsets me. Remember “Meow” the obese cat that was super famous last year? Its owners brought it all over the country to be on talk shows, and it ended up dying of heart failure. I know that obesity played a large role in that, but the stress of constantly traveling and being in unfamiliar environments is not good for a cat.
Take Grumpy cat home and let her be a cat.
That cat was 40 lbs. It is beyond moronic to suggest that its heart attack was due to anything BUT being obese. It was a ticking time bomb and was wildly lucky to live as long as it did at that awful weight.
I hate hate hate the commercial and I hate that they are forcing her to do all these public appearances. Her body language in the commercial makes it clear this is not fun for her and they are assholes for making her do this. This is not good. Not good at all.
And Friskies is cheap crap.
Agree regarding Friskies being cheap s**t that’s terrible for cats. But about Grumpy Cat’s commercial, I think the reason she kinda just sits there and wobbles a bit is because of her feline dwarfism (see my comment to Syko below), which makes walking difficult for her. And I think that’s why she’s always crouching down—here’s a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-1g3SDswGA
Poor kitty 🙁 Anyway, I take more issue with them trotting her all over Times Square, SXSW, and letting strangers paw all over her than her being in a commercial. At least that was probably filmed in a secure environment.
Is she a dwarf, or is she a Munchkin kitty? They have very short legs.
I can’t pick up my cat at all, never have been able to. He doesn’t sit on laps either. Very companionable, will sit beside you and follows you room to room, but the not liking to be held is a trait that many Maine Coons have.
Per Grumpy Cat’s website: Her petite size and famous face is likely due to feline dwarfism and her rear end wobbles a bit when she walks due to this; otherwise she is a perfect little kitty! She is not a munchkin cat and was not bred purposefully from other munchkin cats.
Also, thanks for the info about Maine Coons! I’ve long suspected my pound kitty has traces of Coon in her because of her ear tufts and super-fluffy belly, and she also hates being picked up. Loooves to sit in my lap or lay on my chest, but only if she puts herself there.
I want a Maine coon kitty!
I love that face! Her grumpy expression makes me smile every time. 🙂
She is just like my cat! she lets me carry her around outside when I check the mail or go for car rides. I hold her over my shoulder like a baby and she doesn’t fuss. But she’s also the most playful cat ever. Likes to hide around corners and jump you when you walk by.
I had a kitty like that. When my son was small any time he’d take a shower, Moose would patiently sit outside of the bathroom door and as soon as my son came out wrapped in his towel and Moose would pounce and try to pull his towel off. Watching the ensuing struggle was hilarious. Once my son wrestled his towel away, Moose would calmly walk away with a look that seemed to say “well…THAT’S done”. Man, I miss that cat.
I really love this cat but i do feel bad that she’s paraded around everywhere with lots of cameras, lights and people. I hope it doesn’t spook her.
I don’t understand people’s concern about GC being handled and traveling. Show cats travle all of the time and they are constantly being held. Most are well loved and happy.
Yes, I think she enjoys it. My cat would never, EVER let me take him out like they can take Grumpy out, he’d bolt, after shredding my face and hands to bits.
It’s a bunch of concern trolls who have obviously never had several cats TBH.
I love Grumpy Cat/Tardar Sauce. I’m very happy her owners decided to share her cute lil mug with us all. But I’m a huge cat lover anyway. I too hope they give her a little break when she needs it.
Gosh, grumpy cat is adorable! I am a cat person and had to wait to get home to read this post. Otherwise, I would be checking all day at work, hahaha.
When I was a child, my kitty (back then) didn’t like to be held. But it was my fault since I behaved like Elmyra Duff, chasing him all day… lol
I love Grumpy Cat! So cute. And amazingly docile – I can barely hold my cat inside, she’s very stubborn and freaks out easily.
In a controlled environment, I can see bringing the cat and letting people (calmly) meet her, but I can’t believe they took her out to Times Square. She seemed OK, but I have to imagine it was stressful and overwhelming.
LOVE Grumpy cat! She’s so adorable. My Sebastian, who passed away this Christmas Eve past, looked like a grumpy cat too, but he was hilarious & very loving.
Tardar Sauce’s little downward shaped mouth really seals the grumpy deal. Cute.
my 2 kitties are pretty feisty but they love going for car rides in their harnesses and leash, but they would be PISSED if hundreds of people were petting them, they are divas after all.
Tardar is adorable and I really hope her humans treat her well and don’t just see her as a money making piece of property
You have to love Grumpy Cat, if for no other reason than she peed on Harvey (TMZ) at SXSW
Cute cat but I think she is getting exploited. The owners need to let her be a cat and stop trying to make money off her. They seem to be taking advantage of the cat’s sweet nature.
@Mich I think your love and purrs are working. She’s been feeling a lot better the past couple of days.
When my fuzzy feline friend was first diagnosed, we thought she was in the early phases of kidney failure as her creatine was 2.9 and her BUN was 40 (U.S. measurement). But as of this week her creatine has returned to normal (1.9) but her BUN has elevated to 45. I’ve been flushing her system with 100ml of Subcutaneous fluids daily. Her vet thinks that her flare up in August may have caused her little filtration system to go wonky. She was a lot sicker in August than she is now. When she stopped eating for a couple of days, I force fed her some watered Hills i/d. I have a couple of cans in her crash kit I made. What I really want to do everything I can to prevent these flare ups from happening, I can only imagine the damage done to her body whenever this happens. The good news is she is on her way to recovery. Once her weight goes back up, I’ll continue my food experiments but right now I think it’s vital to just get her weight back up and even if it means giving her something that isn’t healthy for her. Her vet agrees with me on this one. I have been sprinkling about 1/12 of a tsp of complex B-vitamins in her food daily, per the suggestion of some members of my email support group and her vet agreed that it will make sure she gets some of her essential B-vitamins. She is already making a good recovery and I hope I can do whatever I can to make these flare ups few and far between.
Awww, that cat is frigen cute
Pokey should be there with her!