A Michigan Cat Just Tied A World Record That Had Stood Since 2002.
Toby Henderson is a 10-month-old polydactyl cat from Lansing, Michigan, who has just been officially certified by Guinness World Records as sharing the title of most toes on a cat with 28 total, tying a record set in 2002 by a Canadian cat named Jake that had stood unchallenged for more than two decades. Most cats have 18 toes, five on each front paw and four on each back paw. Toby has 10 extra, distributed across his four paws in an arrangement so dramatic that his owner Delaney Henderson, who already had another polydactyl cat named Connie, said she had been prepared for some bonus toes but was completely unprepared for Toby. When she first saw his paws, she genuinely could not believe what she was looking at. She adopted him anyway, specifically because of his sweet face and expressive personality, and named him Toby. The name, as Guinness noted, is perfect.
Each of Toby's 28 toes has its own claw, pad, and bone structure, which is the Guinness requirement for a toe to officially count, and the verification was carried out by a veterinarian who counted all of them carefully and confirmed the tally. His care requirements are straightforward beyond the extra nail trimming: Delaney noted that Toby also has 30 claws, which requires a more thorough session at the vet than the average cat appointment, but that he is otherwise in excellent health and the extra toes cause him no problems. She said when he is not a ball of energy he is a giant baby who loves cuddles, purrs the moment anyone touches him, and falls asleep between her legs on the couch. He and Connie chase each other through the house like siblings. Delaney adopted both cats through rescue organizations and encouraged anyone thinking about adding a pet to their family to start by contacting a shelter. Toby ties Jake and joins a small club of genuinely extraordinary cats, and Delaney said she is grateful every day that she let a pair of impossibly large paws convince her to bring him home.
