# I, For One, Welcome Our New Feline Overlords **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 19, 2004, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605 "2004-12-19T04:30:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/1 "2004-12-19T04:30:17Z")
[A cat with opposible thumbs.](http://home.att.net/~billianna/doorstop.html) You know what’s going to happen next. . . ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/2 "2004-12-19T05:16:45Z")
For the love of God! Hide the can opener! ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/3 "2004-12-19T05:25:25Z")
That’s the coolest [polydactyl cat](http://www.messybeast.com/poly-cats.html) I’ve ever seen. _Readies the tributes of (unopened) cans of succulent meats._ ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/4 "2004-12-19T05:27:26Z")
Mew? Mneowwrrr mrrt pfft! Meow! Mew mew mew pneowwwr? Mrrt. Mneeowwrrr! Meep. Puurrrrrrrr… * * * See? There _are_ advantages to being bilingual! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/5 "2004-12-19T05:29:08Z")
> [@Zabali\_Clawbane](#): > > That’s the coolest [polydactyl cat](http://www.messybeast.com/poly-cats.html) I’ve ever seen. _Readies the tributes of (unopened) cans of succulent meats._ Isn’t it, though? I’ve not seen one with that large of a thumb ever before. ---
**Author:** ![Spongemom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Spongemom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spongemom)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/6 "2004-12-19T05:31:31Z")
Nothing more than an over-extended dew claw. I wouldn’t get too excited about it. Unless s/he can actually pick up and hold things, which the page doesn’t say. If that were the case, I’d be headed to Ripley’s Believe It or Not and getting myself a fat check and 15 minutes of fame. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/7 "2004-12-19T05:33:33Z")
Check out the link I posted. 😉 It has some cool factoids and images of polydactyly. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/8 "2004-12-19T05:41:03Z")
[Meet](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=30&pic=pets38.JPG&picindex=37) [our](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=30&pic=pets43.JPG&picindex=42) [Merlin](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=60&pic=pets90.JPG&picindex=89). He doesn’t eat directly from his bowl. He grabs a handful of kibble and daintily places it in his mouth. I keep the knives in a drawer. Ya know, just in case. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/9 "2004-12-19T05:42:37Z")
What a gorgeous fellow! ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/10 "2004-12-19T07:20:37Z")
They’ve already taken over Hemingway’s house. Next stop – the world! 🆒 **Hal Briston** , that’s one beautiful kitty you’ve got there. Is Merlin a Russian Blue or merely a gorgeous alley cat? My former boyfriend had also had a large grey cat named Merlin. ---
**Author:** ![Phatlewt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a698b9/32.png) [@Phatlewt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phatlewt)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/11 "2004-12-19T14:31:44Z")
Snoozing Merlin is super cute! I for one am glad that my cats haven’t had thumbs. They’re all choas-kitties, getting in to enough mischeif with the usual number of toes. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/12 "2004-12-19T14:40:22Z")
Thanks for the compliments, all…I’d better keep them from Merlin, though…he’s stuck-up enough as it is. 🙂 > [@lavenderlemon](#): > > Is Merlin a Russian Blue or merely a gorgeous alley cat? We got him (and all our guys) from a shelter. He’s a little bit too bulky to be a Russian Blue. We’re pretty sure he’s a [Chartreux](http://www.fanciers.com/breed-faqs/chartreux-faq.html). ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/13 "2004-12-19T15:14:33Z")
> [@Hal Briston](#): > > [Meet](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=30&pic=pets38.JPG&picindex=37) [our](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=30&pic=pets43.JPG&picindex=42) [Merlin](http://www.sirblah.com/photo/view.php?album=Pets&mode=&start=60&pic=pets90.JPG&picindex=89). He doesn’t eat directly from his bowl. He grabs a handful of kibble and daintily places it in his mouth. > > I keep the knives in a drawer. Ya know, just in case. **Hal** , he is beautiful! I want to give him a big ol’ hug! ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/14 "2004-12-19T15:49:22Z")
I’ve got a foster cat right now who has TWO thumbs on each front paw. No other doubles. I know another cat who has two claws coming out of one thumb, but my baby’s got two whole thumbs on each side. She spends her days quietly plotting world domination. ---
**Author:** ![Time\_Like\_Tears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df705f/32.png) [@Time\_Like\_Tears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Time_Like_Tears)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/15 "2004-12-19T18:47:05Z")
Hal, your big white fluffy looks just like my big white [fluffy](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v469/timeliketears/Zyll2.jpg). Are his eyes blue (he gets red-eye in the photos)? Is he deaf? Any leads on training tips if he is deaf? Sorry for hijack. My friend Mel has a polydactyl named Twinkle. She has seven full toes on each foot, and has a mix of grey/tan tabby/tortie markings. She is sweet as can be, too, but I seem to be more allergic to her than most other cats. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/16 "2004-12-19T21:34:51Z")
What cool cats! I’d be curious to see if having thumbs causes them to be able to smoke and drink, as well as raising ruckus. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/17 "2004-12-19T22:02:48Z")
I used to have a 'dactyl cat. One of my favorite games (not so much one of his, I think) was to poke him with a pencil 'til he got fed up and grabbed it out of my hand. ---
**Author:** ![MercyStreet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a9adbd/32.png) [@MercyStreet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MercyStreet)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/18 "2004-12-19T22:20:31Z")
**Hal Briston** , my kitty Hankyspank used to do that grab-the-crunchies thing. Our vet suggested that we switch to food bowls wide enough to accommodate Hanky’s whiskers. The believed Hanky didn’t like squished whiskers. We tried the new bowls – no more crunchy-grab. ---
**Author:** ![JimSox5](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5a626/32.png) [@JimSox5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimSox5)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2004, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/19 "2004-12-19T22:28:48Z")
**Deva** , that picture is definitely material for My Cate Hates You. Other than that, I really don’t have much to add. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2004, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605/20 "2004-12-20T02:05:42Z")
**Hal** , My [Digit](http://www.misc-debris.us/sluggypics/album_page.php?pic_id=881) could be your Merlin’s twin! I think Polydactyl’s are the sweetest cats. My Digit has 23 toes total. He won me over as soon as we met. Someone brought him and his brother in to our clinic as strays. He was uninjured but his brother had been hit by a car and had severe head injuries and did not survive. When we had a few quiet moments I took the Digi-kitten out of his cage and held him and he immediately started purring and fell asleep on my chest. That was it, he was mine. He doesn’t use his paws for much mischief, he just waves them around looking cute when he wants attention - which he gets. We also had a 1 to 2 year old polydactly male tabby abandoned at our clinic recently and he is also very sweet. Most of the polydactyls I meet seem to be very sweet. **Deva** , I recently adopted a new kitten, white with blue eyes and deaf as a post. I wish I had some training tips but I don’t. She had a bad habit of jumping into the dishwasher when I load it and recently she tried jumping into the oven when I was baking. But she’s very sweet and doesn’t scare easily. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-for-one-welcome-our-new-feline-overlords/280605.md?page=2)