Ralph was in the process of moving from New York to California when he got a call from an animal rescue on July 14, 2019, about a tiny newborn kitten in Colorado who was desperately in need of help. “They were asked to contact me as I am a veterinarian who for many years specialized in the care of neonatal kittens,” explains Ralph.


Ralph learned the kitten was a just a few hours old, and she had been surrendered to the rescue after she was rejected by her biological mother. He also discovered the little kitten was born with diprosopus, an extremely rare congenital condition caused by an overabundance of sonic hedgehog protein. “This protein is responsible for facial development in the womb,” explains Ralph. “Diprosopus is a condition in which the body and limbs are normal but facial features are duplicated.”


In addition to his experience caring for neonatal kittens, Ralph — who has three blind cats — had a lot of experience looking after special needs cats, so he jumped at the opportunity to help the little feline. “There was no doubt in my mind that I would do all I could to help her survive,” says Ralph, and so he picked the little black kitten up from the rescue when she was just three hours old. “I named her Duo because of her two faces.”


Visit our website to learn more about Duo: www.meow.af/duo