Atchoum

Nathalie Côté, a wedding photographer based in Granby, Quebec, acquired Atchoum from a litter of Persian kittens in late 2014 and began noticing the abnormal hair growth pattern when the kitten was approximately ten weeks old. Veterinary examination at the Saint-Hyacinthe veterinary teaching hospital diagnosed hypertrichosis universalis, a single-gene variation that produces continuous hair growth across the entire body, including regions normally hair-free in cats. The diagnosis is rare enough in cats that the case appears in subsequent veterinary literature on the condition, including a 2017 case report in the Canadian Veterinary Journal. The Persian breed standard already requires a long-haired coat, but Atchoum's growth extends substantially beyond breed-standard length, and his fur must be trimmed by Côté every two to three weeks to maintain visibility through the eyes and ears. The Instagram account, launched in 2014, has reached approximately a hundred thousand followers across its active period, and the cat has been profiled in National Geographic, BuzzFeed, Bored Panda, the Daily Mail, and a series of French-language Quebec-press features. Côté has been clear about the trimming regimen in interviews, framing the upkeep as ongoing welfare work rather than a cosmetic styling choice. The household's charitable activity includes regular donations to the Montreal SPCA and to Refuge AMR, a Quebec rescue that handles special-needs feline placements. Atchoum has appeared in two children's books published in Quebec, both written by Côté and illustrated by collaborators, and a small line of merchandise sold through the Instagram account funds the ongoing veterinary upkeep. The cat turned approximately eleven in 2025; the account remains active with continued posts about the trimming process, occasional excursions to local outdoor spaces under harness, and interactions with the household's other cats. Côté has used the platform to advocate against the breeding of cats with rare genetic conditions for visual appeal, framing Atchoum's situation as accidental rather than selectable. Veterinary geneticists at the University of Montreal have cited the case in lecture material on autosomal genetic variation in domestic cats.