Mischievous was an understatement when it came to the dexterity that Pigeon had with her front ‘mitten’ feet.  If you think about how often you use your thumbs throughout the day, just think of thumbs on your cat, with claws!

I gave up trying to have a hamster.  There was not a cage made that Pigeon could not open.  Cabinets, drawers and boxes were an absolute delight to her, as she would wrap her paw around the handle, secure it with her thumb and pull. 

Polydactyls, commonly called mitten feet or thumb cats are a rarity to many who have never seen one.  These cats are not to be confused with radial hypoplasia cats who have ‘patty’ feet or ‘hamburger feet’ that have extra toes but spread out more evenly to cause flat feet or squittens that have extra joints in their toes, like fingers.

Ernest Hemingway brought the polydactyl to the forefront of our day as a collector, thus the slang, a Hemingway cat.  It is said that his cats came from sailors who protected these cats on journeys at sea as a good luck charm. 

No one really knows where this mutation began or how long ago but I do know that my Pigeon is special.  She just isn’t allowed in my house anymore.