Winged cats have been known to exist since the 19th century, but only a handful of people have actually seen, let alone owned one. This woman in Sichuan province watched as her beloved kitty grew angel wings on his back last summer after a bunch of female cats tried to mate with him. “Many female cats in heat came to harass him, and then the wings started to grow”, she said.

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Geneticists have a less romantic theory. They believe it could be a genetic defect, a skin condition, or the result of poor grooming. Yet this is not the only cat that has been found to have “wings”. Here are a few other examples.

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