Most cats have 18 toes – 5 on each front paw and 4 on each back foot. Paws the polydactyl cat has a whopping 28!
In fact, the 2-year-old cat is tied with another cat (a Canadian kitty named Jake) for the Guinness World Record for feline with the most toes!
Owner Jeanne Martin says all those extra toes come in handy. She tells CBS Minnesota, “It almost looks like a catcher’s mitt,” Martin said, adding that the extra digits on her front paws help her grip narrow surfaces.
And she always has to remind the vet’s office to make sure they clip all 28 nails when she takes Paws in for a nail trim! They don’t even charge extra.
Polydactyl cats are also called Hemingway cats after Ernest Hemingway, the famous cat-loving author, who at one time had more than 50 cats – at least half of whom were polydactyl! Many of the cats that still live on the Hemingway property in Key West are decendents of his original cats.
What other world records are held by cats? Click here to find out! What world record would your cat hold? Tell us!
