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What is the Normal Number of Toes?
The normal cat paw has five toes on the front, and four on the back. The fifth toe on the front is the dew claw and is normally found on the inside of the front paw. Any number of toes over the norm, usually an extra one or two but occasionally three or four, makes the cat what is termed a "Polydactyl."
A Poly - what????
Polydactyl is a term that refers to a cat with extra toes – usually found on the front paws and occasionally on the back. This is the result of a mutant gene (Pd) that is dominant. In other words, if a parent has extra toes, then it is most likely that some of their offspring will as well.
The Pd gene is basically considered to be a genetic fault and cats with this feature should not be used in a breeding program for any breed.
How big are the extra toes?
Sometimes, the extra toes cannot be easily seen, but more often than not they consist of an extra toe on the side of the paw.
But I have a Hemingway Cat …
Ernest Hemingway acquired a cat with six toes and was very taken with this special feature. A colony of about 60 cats, descendents of this original cat and about half of them having extra toes, now live on the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum in Key West, Florida. Because of the notoriety of the cats on this estate, cats with the extra toes are often referred to as "Hemingway cats".
For more information about the Hemingway cats, see:
http://www.hemingwayhome.com
Are pedigreed cats ever Polydactyls?
No. The breed standards for all CFA recognized breeds call for disqualification if a pedigreed cat has extra toes. Responsible breeders of pedigreed cats will not use a cat known to carry the Pd gene in their breeding program.
Do Polydactyl Cats Require Extra Care?
No, not really, although it may take you longer to clip their claws because they have so many! Their paws should be checked regularly in case you have missed clipping a claw and it grows around and into a paw pad which can be painful for the cat.
The following links are included here for informational and educational purposes only. Please be aware that the Cat Fanciers' Association has no control over the content of any of these sites and that web sites may change their content frequently. The linking to these sites should not be taken as an endorsement of either the content or ideas expressed at these sites.
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Last Updated: October 24 2004
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