Toe Bean Truths: Polydactyl vs Standard Toes

PurrCozi Kitties
Jul 10
4 min read

Maine Coons rank among the world's most popular cat breeds today! They are known for their charming ear tufts, impressive size, and beautiful tails. Maine Coons truly have it all. But, did you know that some Maine Coons are born with extra toes? This is due to a rare genetic trait called polydactylism!

WHAT IS A POLYDACTYL MAINE COON?

To understand what a polydactyl maine coon is you first need to understand what polydactyl is! Polydactyl (or polydatylism) is the presence of extra toes! Doing a deeper dive into the meaning of polydactyl we found that the word "polydactyl" actually comes from Greek origin! The word "poly" meaning "many" and the word "dactyl" meaning fingers! They couldn't have spelled it out any clearer for us... Literally!! So whereas most standard cats have 18 toes 5/5/4/4 (5 toes on the front paws and 4 toes on the back paws), polydactyl Maine Coons can have up tp 7 toes on each paw, adding up to 28 toes!! When you see breeders making a note about a kitten being poldactyl followed by a series of number that look something like this, 7/7/6/6 or 6/6/5/5 that is just the number of toes that the kitten has, the first two numbers being the front paws and the last two numbers being the back paws!

Contrary to misconceptions, polydactyl Maine Coons have properly structured extra toes. These additional digits are usually fully functional, complete with bones, joints, claws, and paw pads. There can be different terminology when describing polydactyl feet. Along with the numbers that we explained above there are also different types of polydactyl.

Postaxial: Extra toes are on the pinky side, or the outside of the paw.

Preaxial: Extra toes are on the thumb side, or the inside of the paw.

Mesoaxial: Extra toes are scattered throughout the paw

The less scientific names include mitten foot, patty foot, split foot and double foot/paw. Below is an amazing example of what polydactyl feet can look like!

What causes Polydactylism and where does it come from?

While some breeders believe polydactyls to be the result of inbreeding this simply is not the case. Polydactylism is the cause of a harmless, dominent gene that occurs naturally in the feline population. One copy of this gene must be present in one of the parents to result in polydactyl kittens. Despite what some "online experts" may say this is a naturally occuring genetic mutation, known has Hw mutation or the Hemingway mutation and has been around for centeries. Polydactylism is a huge part of the Maine Coon cats history.

The very first scientific record of polydactyl cats date back to 1868 by appearing in a paper titled "Extra Digits" published by a man known as Green Wilder who was an anatomist. Whereas 1868 is the first documented case of polydactylism, it is believed that this trait was recognized as early as the 1600s. There are theories that suggest that polydactyl cats had been brought to American by English Puritians. Polydactyl cats were very common among sailors in the northeastern parts of the United States and Canada. In the 1930s a man named

Ernest Hemingway (a famous author) was given a polydactyl cat who he called snow white, by a sea captain in Key West, Florida and this had only furthered the popularity of polydactylism.

Like we discussed above, polydactyl cats have also been known has Hemmingway cats and the mutation recognized as Hemingway mutation (Hm). This comes from Ernest Hemingway, the man we discussed above. Hemingway famously owned a colony of polydactyl cats at his home in Flordia, decendents of his orgininal polydactyl cat named snow white still roam his property today. This has become a well known attraction at his home that is now a museum!

You can find information of this museum and photos of his Polydactyly cats here! https://www.hemingwayhome.com/our-cats

CAN POLYDACTYLISM CAUSE HEALTH CONCERNS IN CATS?

To answer simply no, polydactyl is a trait. So just like coat type, ear size and eye color when preserved and bred ethicaly and responsibly it does not pose any heath risks! While they do not have any additonal health risks, there are a few considerations when it comes to nail care. Extra toes means extra nails. Regular nail trims are super important in preventing any overgrowth and reducing the risk of injury. Checking in between toes and nails from time to time is also a good habit to get into, extra toes can sometimes make it easier for dirt to accumulate.

FUN FACTS!

Polydactyl Maine Coons are also recognized as a branch off of the Maine Coon breed and can be shown through TICA! According to TICA (The International Cat Association), Polydactyl Maine Coons are held to the exact same standards as regular toed Maine Coons. The only difference of course being toes!

TICA SHOW STANDARDS FOR MC/MCP: https://tica.org/phocadownload/MaineCoon-Mainecoon%20Polydactyl.pdf

At one point it was believed that up to 40% of Maine Coons were polydactyl.

Some people believe that polydactyl Maine Coons big paws helped to aid them in snowy climates by acting as a snowshoe.