Polydactyls

[silvana]

Hi! My name is Silvana. My cat, Bright Eyes, is a polydactyl(has extra toes), and I was wondering if anyone else 'round here has a polydactyl cat.


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Huggs,
Silvana

[Karen]

I don't own any cats, but I grew up in a neighborhood rife with polydactyl, tuxedo cats. There was a prolific mama poly across the way, and most of the cats in the neighborhood had more than the usual number of toes! I did grow up in central Massachusetts, so very much in New England ... But I have always found it kinda funny when people say - my cat is special because she is a "rare" polydactyl! http://PetoftheDay.com/talk/smile.gif

[Pam]

Check the link below for the Ernest Hemingway House in Key West, Florida. There are 50+ cats that roam freely around, many with 6 toes.
http://www.thehistorynet.com/HistoricTraveler/articles/sum96_cover.htm

[luvdemabys]

One of the sweetest cats who ever did me the honor of being "mine" was a smoky grey alley cat with an extra toe per foot. He was introduced by a friend whose husband decided that FIVE cats in their household was enough. (They later got up to 13.) Gimli was supposed to be a companion for our elegant blue Gandalf (a gorgeous but foul tempered beast.) Gandy hated Gimli as much as he hated everybody, but we adored him. So loving and gentle. Anyway, this was in Denver, for whatever that adds to the discussion.

[silvana]

WOW! I didn't think I'd get such a large amount of replies! My cat is VERY territorial. If I have my sister's cat, Graykin (gorgeous blue tabby mosaic), on my bed she won't jump up. http://PetoftheDay.com/talk/smile.gif

I got Bright Eyes from my eighth grade science teacher.

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Huggs,
Silvana

[lhg0962]

Out of curiosity...when they have an extra toe, do they have an extra pad and an extra claw? Don't think I ever met one, so I just wanted to know what to look for!

[tatsxxx11]

My precious Satin, a.k.a. "Tuna," who has passed to the Rainbow Bridge was a polydactyl. But what made her most precious, was that she was also a tripod. She had been a "factory" cat, hanging around as a homeless girl, before I adopted her. The workers there were, for the most part, kind to her and would feed her. At one time she developed a bladder infection and naturally was having "accidents." This infuriated one of the worker's so much, that he kicked her and she flew across the room, into the workings of one of the machines. She lost her right hind leg. Despite such cruelty, she never lost her HUGE capacity to forgive and love. We use to joke that God, knowing she would lose her leg, gave her 7 toes per foot. A total of 21! One more than the ususal 20! The loss of her leg never held her back. She was one special girl.

[Troy]

"...Despite such cruelty, she never lost her HUGE capacity to forgive and love..."

If only more people were like Satin!

[4 feline house]

Tuna's story of cruelty brings to mind a little guy who was in my life for way too short a time...

My sister-in-law's best friend found a little black kitten and named him "Sleeper" because he liked to sleep in her hair. She couldn't keep him, though, and my brother and sister-in-law already had four or five. I only had one, so I got him by default. He had strange knock-knees, and when I took him to the vet the first time, he took x-rays and determined that he had a congenitally deformed hip. The other hip, however, was also severely damaged, and the vet said it looked suspiciously like he'd been kicked. This kitten was less than three months old at the time, and the vet said the injury was several weeks old. The vet said it was a miracle he could even walk. But he had even worse news: he had FIP. The outlook wasn't good. But he was in no current distress, and was such a sweety, I decided to cross any necessary bridges when we came to them. Sleeper lived up to his name - such a cuddler. My son was only a few months old at the time, and Sleeper's favorite place to sleep was Alan's crib. (I certainly was not one of those new parents who got rid of the pets!) My son still had some of his jerky newborn movements and would sometimes hit Sleeper accidently, but he just buzzed louder and burrowed deeper into him. When he wasn't "babysitting" he followed me everywhere, always eager to jump in my lap when I sat down. He didn't play much like most kittens his age, probably because it was too hard for him to get around, or maybe because he didn't feel good. One day I noticed his belly was distended, so I took him to the vet. He aspirated the fluid, but said he probably wasn't in any particular discomfort, so if I wished we could just keep medicating him, keeping him comfortable, and hoping for the best. I took him home, but it was obvious he was going downhill. It was a few days later when I looked up and saw him coming out of the bedroom. His belly was so distended his crippled little legs could not even support it, and he was dragging himself along the floor with his front legs. Even though it was the middle of the night, I couldn't stand to see that little sweety like that, so I bundled my baby up, bundled little Sleeper up, and took him to the emergency vet. He was so sweet he was still purring as he drifted off, only five months old. I drove home crying and shouting to God that I hoped he had a special place in hell for animal abusers. That was 16 years ago and I still can't tell this story out loud without choking up.

It never ceases to amaze me how all the Tunas and Sleepers of the world can still be so loving and forgiving after all the pain and cruelty inflicted upon them. Sometimes I think we don't deserve these precious creatures.

[Laura]

That was such a sad story, but thank goodness Sleeper had a such a wonderful person to care for him in the short time he had.

[Helen]

Oh, Spencer, I'm sure we here will all be tremendously affected by this sad story - if only we weren't "preaching to the converted".

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Helen

[4 feline house]

I'm glad the volunteers in that Humane Society were more up front with the "surrenderers" than they are (or at least were at one time) at the N. Texas H.S. My mom, who is a prolific contributor to the Humane Society, in terms of cash, supplies, and foster care, was up there once and heard some dad telling his kids "they'll find a good home for [throwaway] puppy" while the volunteer stood mute. My mother, in her usual no-nonsense, straightforward, dam the torpedos manner, looked at the volunteer and said, "Why don't you tell those kids the truth? That their dog will be dead in 3 days?" Her intention, of course, was not to traumatize the kids, but to light a fire under the NTHS's butt about educating the public about what REALLY happens to most surrendered pets. I agree that the story should be widely distributed, to pet stores, vets, obedience classes, as well as government shelters and private shelters. There will always be the clods and yahoos that will never get it and never care, but there will always be more who do.

[silvana]

"Out of curiosity...when they have an extra toe, do they have an extra pad and an extra claw? Don't think I ever met one, so I just wanted to know what to look for!"

Yes, they do have an extra pad and claw. With B.E. one of her claws doesn't sheath so when she walks she makes a sort of clicking sound which alerts us to her presence. My grandmother has told me numerous times to trim the claw but I simply reply that it's part of her character. http://PetoftheDay.com/talk/biggrin.gif

"...and does it give them an edge catching rats?"

I wouldn't know. Bright Eyes is an indoor cat. But it does help her when she's playing her lavender stuffed bunny(which is twice the size of her head). She's done a lot of stuff with that thing. It's ended up in the toilet once, in the washer(not her fault), and on my bed countless times. She plays catch, yes catch, with it, tosses it up in the air and gets it back where she wants it when its fallen with that extra claw of hers.


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Huggs,
Silvana

[tatsxxx11]

Dear 4 Feline House. You and Sleeper will always be in my heart and prayers. What a wonderful, brave thing you did for beautiful Sleeper. She sounded like the most gentle of souls. I hope she and Tuna are together now at the Bridge. Playing and happy, healthy and whole, where there is no cruelty, only love and kindness. Thank you all for taking the time to read of Tuna's story. I miss her so.

[4 feline house]

Thank you, Tats, and you and yours are in my prayers too. I know they are together at the Rainbow Bridge waiting until it's time for us to cross. God bless!