Cindy Lou the Smol is a tiny cat with adorable alien eyes who’ll always be kitten sized

Cindy Lou is named after Cindy Lou Who from The Grinch, as she was found by 21-year-old Maria Runyon the week before Christmas.

That winter of 2018 was particularly cold.

Maria told Metro.co.uk: ‘Cindy Lou was dropped by someone about a week before christmas in 2018 with a note that said “I can’t take care of her. I know you will.

‘They closed her in a Taco Bell party pack box and left her in 15 degree Fahrenheit weather at night. We heard her meow around midnight and brought her in to warm her up.

‘She melted our hearts so we kept her.’

Maria, who’s a nursing student in Southern Ohio, lives with her family who have been rescuing cats for many years, with Maria saying they’ve probably taken in around 60 since she was little.

Despite being experienced owners, though, Maria is a little bit more careful when it comes to Cindy Lou.

That’s because she’s very small, and has never grown any bigger than the size of a standard kitten.

She’s just over one year old now, and weights roughly 4 to 5 pounds, which is less than half that on a standard domestic adult cat.

Her pupils are also always dilated, which makes her look like an adorable bush baby or alien.

It also probably means it’s very hard to say no to her. Puppy-dog eyes have nothing on Cindy Lou’s peepers.

‘She has no known condition from the local vets, only that she is small for a full-grown cat and her pupils are probably just showing her excitement,’ says Maria.

‘Being small, we do try to look out for her more than our other cats because she has a higher chance of hurting herself due to her personality (she runs and jumps and plays constantly).’

After a number of requests, Maria decided to make an Instagram for Cindy Lou, and the response has mostly been positive.

Maria says, ‘There were a few who were concerned about her eyes, thinking she may have pressure behind them.