Ernest Hemingway, a notoriously manly man, for better or worse, was given a gift of a polydactyl kitten by a sea captain. Polydactyl cats, those which have more than the regulation number of toes, were said to be good luck on a ship because they had more ways to grip the deck. There is some disagreement over whether this kitten was named Snowball, or was Snowball's kitten named Snow White, but Hemingway fell in love with the cat and installed her at his Key West home. He doted on the white cat and her kittens and grandkittens. When Hemingway died in 1961, his will stated that all of the cat's descendants, many of which were polydactyl, would be housed there and protected in perpetuity.
The Hemingway estate has carried out those wishes, and more than 50 years later is home to nearly 60 cats, about half of which are polydactyl. In fact, cats with extra toes anywhere are often called Hemingway cats. Visitors to the estate report that the cats are very friendly. If you can't visit, you can see the cats by downloading a cat app from the estate's website. -via Metafilter
(Image credit: Hans Malmberg)
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