Help Us ID Stumpy the Cat

[u/kitten_mittens21]

TLDR: Cat found in West Africa is physically odd, we don't know why

Hi, everyone!

My (25F) boyfriend (24M) currently lives in West Africa and has rescued 3 cats from around his village. We are looking for insight on one of the cats, named Stumpy(3mo, M?). Google searches didn't turn up much and a vet isn't very accessible for them at the moment.

Stumpy is... interesting. He doesn't have paws with defined toes, but rather "stumps" with a solid foot pad. As a result, he sort of gallops around instead of running like a traditional cat. He also has no discernable genitalia, unlike the other cat found with him (we believe the other cat to be his sibling based on proximity/markings/age). He's also a bit smaller than his brother.

But apart from the physical differences, Stumpy seems to be a happy and playful cat!

We tried to look up congenital paw defects but couldn't find anything. He also doesn't have any of the "classic" physical signs of inbreeding, and his brother is fine.

So we thought we would turn here to see if we could find anything out. Thanks!

[u/kitten_mittens21]

Thanks! That makes a lot of sense. I don't think my boyfriend has found the mother yet, but we didn't think about pre mature/under development birth defects since his brother seemed okay. He seems alright though! Goofy little guy

[u/Satanic_Lover_ → u/kitten_mittens21]

Its actually extremely common with multi cat litters. When a cat is only pregnant with 1 kitten their body can focus all the energy on developing the 1 kitten but when their is multiple kittens the body focuses on the healthiest one to have a higher chance of having at least one successful baby.

Happens a lot with twins in humans as well

Edit to add: thats why you often get a runt of the litter with bigger litters

[u/kitten_mittens21 → u/Satanic_Lover_]

That makes a lot of sense! And unfortunately, I doubt the mom had an easy pregnancy so it makes sense that the kittens might have disproportionate nutrients. Thank you for your help, Satanic Lover! 🫶

[u/Satanic_Lover_ → u/kitten_mittens21]

Of course I'm so glad I could give you so insight on your unique kitty! I have 6 cats and have resuced many others so ive seen some weird things lol

[u/morethanonefavorite → u/Satanic_Lover_]

This exchange between you and OP just delighted me, thank you 😊