World’s fattest cat who went viral trying to escape weight loss camp dies

The world’s fattest cat who went viral for getting caught in a shoe rack trying to escape a weight loss camp has died.

The internet is mourning after Crumbs, also known as Kroshik, the cat who once weighed a whopping 38lbs, died after vets failed to spot cancerous tumors hidden under his fat.

On October 26, Crumbs suddenly died after he started developing breathing problems at the Russian weight loss camp. However, he was making progress in his weight journey, having lost seven pounds thanks to a strict diet and routine exercise.

According to The Mirror, vets had completely missed tumors hidden under his layers of fat. Vets at the Matroskin cat shelter believe the tumors on his lungs and spleen resulted in a multiple organ collapse.

Growing up, Crumbs was raised in the basement of a Russian hospital where he consumed biscuits and soup before being discovered.

He went viral earlier in 2024 when he tried to escape from the cat weight loss camp. While he came close to freedom, the feline ended up getting trapped in a shoe rack, completely hindering his progress.

Galiana More, the owner of the shelter where Crumbs died, told local media: “The cat started suffocating two days ago, lying in an oxygen chamber in the clinic. For the past two hours, we actually pumped him out so that he could continue to breathe so that he survived. Unfortunately, the real cause of death is unknown at the moment.”

“Due to the fact that he was able to lose three kilograms, ultrasound sensors worked, and doctors were able to see multiple tumors in the spleen and do not exclude the possibility of metastases in the lungs. Therefore, it is very difficult to judge what was the root cause – excess weight or neoplasms.”

Crumbs’ weight was once such an issue that he couldn’t even walk and had to use a special underwater treadmill. Once he made enough progress to jump on furniture in the enclosure, he made his daring escape attempt, only to get trapped in the nurse’s shoe rack.

This isn’t the first cat to take the internet by storm. Earlier in October, Maxwell the cat became one of TikTok’s biggest stars with his incredible videos showing off everything from a kitten’s POV.