Record Breaker
Frank and Louie
1999–2014
The two-faced 'Janus' cat who defied the odds to become the longest-surviving of his kind.
- Owner
- Marty Stevens
- Years
- 1999–2014
- Known for
- Record Breaker
Frank and Louie, sometimes called Frankenlouie, was a Janus cat — born with a rare congenital condition called diprosopia that gave him two faces, with two mouths, two noses and three eyes sharing a single skull and one brain.
Born on 8 September 1999, he was brought to the Tufts University veterinary clinic in Massachusetts to be put to sleep just a day old, as Janus kittens almost never survive. A veterinary nurse, Marty Stevens, could not bear it and took him home to care for him herself. Against every expectation he thrived, growing into a friendly, leash-walking house cat.
In 2012 Guinness World Records recognised him as the longest-surviving Janus cat, and he lived to the remarkable age of 15, passing away in December 2014. Frank and Louie became a symbol of how devoted care can give even the most fragile of animals a long and happy life.