Extra the kitten has been aptly named by her owners - she has 26 toes that give her a distinct advantage over her naturally climbing moggie mates."Her human family noticed there was something different with the three-month-old kitten when she started scratching more than other cats.
"You would sort of want to wear boxing gloves when you play with her," says Kaelene Gerrard, who lives with her partner Eli Eliu and daughters Mercy, six, and 12-year-old Shardae.
She examined the frisky feline's paws and did a double take at what she found.
"We counted and then recounted but we had it right the first time," she says.
Extra has seven toes on each front paw and six toes on each back paw - instead of the normal five on each. "
Story at stuff.co.nz
Polydactyl cats on wiki.
1 comment:
Extra is certainly special because of her extra toes, but moreso because they all appear to be symmetrical and well formed.
She's a 7-7-6-6. "Normal" cats are 5-5-4-4. Extra has 2 "extra" toes on each paw and the "extras" on the front look rather like "thumbs". The "extras" on the rear are normal looking "additional traction" toes.
Whether an evolution or deformity, polydactyl cats are certainly unique.
Often the poly toes are mis-shapen and can cause problems, especially when there is more than one "extra" per foot. Miss Extra looks like that won't be an issue, but keep an eye on her claws just to be sure.
My "Hobo" is a 6-6-5-5 and her paws are very well formed. Her motto is "I have thumbs, and know how to use them"!!
As she grows, you may notice that Extras personality is a little "different" than other cats that you have known. I can't quantify the "difference", but I think you will notice it.
Best of luck with that special cat.
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