Mainelymagic Maine Coon Cats and Polydactyl Maine Coons

Polydactyly in the Maine Coon cat

It is accepted that a good percentage of the breed were polydactyls originally. The definitive book of the Maine Coon “That Yankee Cat” by Marilis Hornidge discusses the standard;
“The paws are large and round with their prominent tufts. The number of claws in those paws was perhaps the most controversial of all issues in the final stages of setting up a standard. The traditional MC was frequently a polydactyl or many-toed cat, a genetic mutation that occurs with great frequency in the upper north-eastern United States...Whatever the reason for its abundance in this geographic area, the “poly” or snowshoe-footed cat is part of the Maine Coon legend. Polydactylism was so dear to the hearts of the original group of enthusiasts who drew up the MCBFA standard, that rather than divide the ranks, a special classification with its own standard was set up for cats possessing the trait.”

Some authors estimate the percentage of polydactyls in the breed to be originally as high as 40%. In an interview in 1976 (not long after the Maine Coon was first accepted for showing) one of the foremost experts in the breed Beth Hicks stated:
“I don’t know if you are familiar with it but there was a study done by someone connected with a university in the 1950’s which showed that 40% of the Maines were polydactyls. Now, this was before they came back on the show circuit.”
Sadly, it appears that this trait is being bred out of the Maine Coon simply to fit in with the dictates of the show world.

Polydactylism was not seen in other breeds when the Maine Coon was first accepted as a breed and all other breed show standards listed 5 toes in front and 4 behind. When the Maine Coon Breeders and Fanciers Association (MCBFA) were putting together a show standard there was a lot of debate surrounding the issue of polydactylism. There was some resistance to the acceptance of the Maine Coon—“it's only a barn cat after all” - and many felt that insisting on allowing the standard to reflect the polydactyl variation could be the death knell for its acceptance into the show hall. It was always the intention of that early group of dedicated fanciers that once the ordinary Maine Coon was accepted, they would then put forward the polydactyl standard. Early correspondence and literature dating back to 1969, shows that polydactyl cats were always intended to be accepted for showing and they were never viewed as deformed or detrimental.

The official publication of the MCBFA the “Scratch Sheet” of 1970 clearly shows that there was (and still is) a Maine Coon Polydactyl Standard voted in by the membership as follows:
““Our MCBFA Polydactyl Standard has been voted in by our membership, and the wording is as follows. The Maine Coon Polydactyl Cat should conform to the Standard of the Maine Coon Cat, with the exception that multiple toes are allowed on either fore or hind paws or both.”(Ref 7)

The Maine Coon Polydactyl Standard remains in effect today - it has never been removed. The Cat FAQ on the MCFBA web site refers to the trait: “However, modern purebred Maine Coons are rarely polydactyls. This is because all cat associations automatically disqualify polydactyls from competition in the purebred classes. Because of this, most polydactyls were culled from the Maine Coon breed decades ago and only a few breeders continue to work with them.”(Ref 8)

This goes some way in establishing that the attempted eradication of the polydactyl was simply motivated by show issues and not for any health reason.

The statement above that "all cat associations automatically disqualify polydactyls from competition in the purebred classes" is no longer correct as the New Zealand Cat Fancy has accepted polydactylism in the Maine Coon by altering the standard to allow for extra toes.

Article 4b of the MCBFA constitution clearly states that an object of the society is “..protecting the Maine Coon Cat from obliteration of any of its naturally evolved features.” But unfortunately the fanciers now at the helm are many years distant from those original devotees and have moved away from the polydactyl trait and preserving the breed’s heritage.

Those original breeders who instigated the acceptance of the Maine Coon clearly intended the polydactyl standard to be implemented as soon as the breed cemented its championship status. In a letter of 29th September 1973, the then President of the MCBFA Mr Ljostad says
“We have a six toed kitten in our house too. You are right that they are not accepted at cat shows yet. We knew that many Maine Coons were polydactyl and did not want this trait to get entirely lost from the breed…..”(Ref 9)
The word “yet” at the end of the second sentence clearly indicates that this trait was intended to be recognised in the future.

Mainelymagic Digitally Enhanced (top) along with Mainelymagic The Jazzman P were the first polydactyls in the world to gain the title of Champion.

Sarah Hartwell observes;
Polydactyl cats are said to be virtually non-existent in Europe, because "unusual looking cats" were destroyed due to witchcraft superstitions, practically eliminating the trait (Kelly, Larson, 1993). I do not know whether Britain was included in the generic term "Europe" or whether it meant mainland (continental) Europe only. In Norway, polydactyl cats are known as "ship's cats" as the extra toes supposedly gave them better balance on ships in stormy weather; they are not uncommon and polydactyl kittens are sought after pets. Polydactyl random-bred cats have been reported in Sweden though other European cat lovers (locations not reported) had apparently never seen a polydactyl. They are common enough in Britain to be considered unremarkable.

Polydactyl cats were considered "lucky" by sailors. Sailors also believed polydactyl cats to be superior mousers and ratters. Employed as ships' ratters and lucky mascots, they would have reached America with early British settlers hence their greater frequency in Eastern states. A disproportionately high number of "lucky" polydactyl cats, compared to normal-toed cats, would have found their way there. This would lead to a greater proportion of polydactyls than usual for a random-breeding cat population. (Ref 2)
The incidence in the breed today is unknown but is very much reduced from the original estimated 40%. This is because most mainstream breeders, who enjoy showing, do not breed polydactyls as they cannot be shown.

In her 2004 article in the “Maine Attraction”, Lucinda King writes;
“Recent discussions show that many UK breeders oppose the polydactyl, yet research by the writer shows that many of these breeders have polydactyls in the first 5 generations of their pedigrees. Indeed some of the top show cats in the UK come from polydactyl lineage. One argument for this is that a poly to non-poly mating will derive a litter where 40 to 50% of the resultant litter will be polys, but all of the litter usually have increased boning. Hence perhaps thereby producing the size often required to do well in show in the non-poly.

A crude analysis of members web sites of the two GCCF affiliated Maine Coon Clubs in the UK show that of those with pedigrees or pedigree names on their web sites that can be traced, 63% of these breeder members have polydactyls within the first 5 generations of at least one of their Dams pedigrees. This figure is lower for Sires with 37% having polys within the first 5 generations of at least one of their Sires. However, it must be remembered that a Sire will produce many more progeny than that of a Dam.”(Ref 10)