Polydactyl cat at Ernest Hemingway home in Key West Florida
Recently I saw a local ad where a woman had some six-toed cats she was trying to sell. This was the second time she’d placed an ad, because she wasn’t getting much of a response. I’m surprised. I would have bought one if I could, but I already have two cats, and my landlord only allows two pets.
Six-toed cats, or Polydactyl cats, are not common. Cats normally have four toes on each paw, with the front paws having a fifth dewclaw, or thumb. Polydactyl cats refer to any cat that has more toes than normal, although six is the most common.
Usually when a cat is polydactyl, only the front paws have the extra toes. Extra toes on all four paws is less common, and being polydactyl on the rear paws only is very rare.
The word “polydactyl” is Latin, meaning “many digits”. A polydactyl cat is not deformed. Polydactylism is congenital, and is not life-threatening. Polydactyl kittens may initially have trouble learning to walk and climb, but as they get older, polydactyl cats may exhibit signs of manual dexterity not normally seen in cats. Often, the extra toes act as opposable thumbs, allowing polydactyl cats to grasp objects such as door handles.
Polydactyl cats are also known as “Hemingway cats”, because writer Ernest Hemingway owned many six-toed felines. He received his first polydactyl cat as a gift from a ship’s captain. Upon Hemingway’s death in 1961, his Key West Florida home became a museum and home for his cats and their descendants. Nearly half of the approximately 60 cats that live at the museum are polydactyl.
Polydactyl cats are most common in the Eastern United States and in Southwest England. Many Maine Coon cats are polydactyl, and there is also an American Polydactyl Cat breed.
Photo credit: Averette on en.wikimedia
July 8th, 2009 by Beth VanHoose | Posted in Breeds | Comments (0)
“That’s a big cat.”
I can’t tell you how many times people say that when they meet my kitties, Sofie and Sam. What constitutes a big cat, anyway?
I hosted my monthly book club meeting last week. When one of the girls saw my Sam trying to escape from the bedroom, she gasped, “Oooo, that’s a - that’s a TIGER!” It quickly became somewhat of a joke. Sam quickly retreated back into his hideaway and I wondered if his cat feelings were hurt. Mine were. A little.
You don’t hear people saying that about many dogs.
The Cat Fanciers’ Association lists a plethora of breeds with profiles. My tabby kitties probably fall into the American Shorthair category, which can weigh up to 15 pounds. My indoor “pussnicks” probably weigh a wee bit more than that. They are big cats. But I don’t think they’re huge.
They’re my phat cats.
Photo Credit: debrajean
June 3rd, 2009 by Janet Muniz | Posted in Breeds | Comments (0)
I love this story about cats in Rome. It lets me daydream, first about Rome, which is a city that called my name louder than I expected. I enjoyed visiting Rome much more than I thought I would, and the ruins are, of course, so much a part of the reason why.
I don’t remember seeing a lot of cats there, or a lot of postcards with cats from there. I visited the Eternal City on the day of Pope John Paul’s 25th anniversary as Pope. That time was a magical, beautiful time and Rome was full of pilgrims and people from all over the world, waiting to celebrate with the Pope. The evening news captured every part of it.
I was astounded to find out that you could simply walk through most of the ruins like you would a park. What a thrill. It is the backyard of many modern Romans, is it not?
So why not a backyard for kitties?
On all of our trips abroad, my husband tends to take lots of pictures of the kitties we encounter, and Rome was no exception. The kitties in Spain were much friendlier than in Italy; they actually let you pet them, even if you didn’t have treats for them. Another famous cat sanctuary is the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. The kitties there are very fond of lounging on the park benches.
My personal favorite sighting of a kitty was in Plaza Major in Madrid. We were enjoying tapas and wine there, when I spotted “el gato” running along the top of the roof of the building across the plaza.
Now, for months before our trip, we subjected our own two kitties to Spanish names: “el gato chico” and “la gato chica.” Their puzzled looks always cracked me up, especially since I’m really not sure if they translated to “boy-cat” and “girl-cat.” So when I spotted the kitty way up there on the top of that roof, I yelled out, EL GATO! The we laughed and laughed.
Janet Muniz
(photo credit: wtlphotos)
April 15th, 2009 by Pet Guy | Posted in Breeds | Comments (0)
Loading ...
