An overweight rescued cat in Russia that became a minor social media celebrity in end-August for having tipped the scales at 17kg – the weight of an average four-year-old child – has died after vets said they found cancerous tumours in his body.

       Kroshik – Russian for Crumbs – was put on a diet and exercise regimen by staff at an animal shelter in Perm, a city near the Ural Mountains, and managed to shed almost 3kg, according to the staff.

       However, the chonky orange tabby, which could be a real-life version of obese cartoon cat Garfield, suddenly developed breathing difficulties on Oct 26 and died a few hours later.

       In a social media post, Matroskin Shelter, where Kroshik was residing, said the official cause of death was still pending the results of his full post-mortem, but vets found “multiple growths in the spleen and metastases in other internal organs”.

       “Due to the huge fat deposits, the ultrasound could not show an adequate picture of the condition of Kroshik’s internal organs, so we could only focus on blood indicators, which were normal,” the shelter said.

       The cat also did not display any outward signs of being ill, said Ms Galiana More, the shelter’s owner.

       “It hurts that we didn’t know about it before, couldn’t help,” she told the New York Post, adding: “This is a great loss for us, because Kroshik was a symbol of hope for everyone.”

       Kroshik is believed to have been abandoned and somehow found his way into the basement of a hospital in Perm, where well-meaning people fed him biscuits and soup.

       As a result, he ballooned so much that he was not able to walk when rescuers found him.

       He was then put on a strict diet and exercise regimen that included walking on an underwater treadmill.

       The shelter previously said Kroshik had shed almost 3kg and was able to jump on low couches and pillows.