When you think of a litter of cuddly kittens, you probably imagine them all curled up somewhere warm and at the side of their loving mother. But with so many stray and feral cats in the world, you’re bound to find a feline family where they don’t belong.
When one construction worker in Montréal reported to his worksite one day, he couldn’t believe his eyes: there right in front of him was a litter of newborn kittens! What the heck were they doing there?
Then he looked closer. He realized that there was something unusual about two of the kittens—but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it…
Industrial construction sites can be very dangerous. This is true no matter where they are in the world. The raw materials required for building and the dangerous machinery and site itself aren’t anything that young people—or animals for that matter—should ever be around.
In order to work on these sites, you need to have a world of training and a load of experience. That was the case for one man working on an industrial construction site in Montréal who many are now calling a hero.
In September of 2017, the man reported for duty on an industrial construction site. He thought it would be like any other day—except, this time, something was different. This time, he would make a discovery that would change the way he saw his job forever…
That morning he happened to spot a litter of kittens crying out for their mother. With no mom in sight, he decided to take them in and care for them. He knew an industrial construction site was no place for them to be!
It took most of his day trying to round up all of the kittens. In fact, he had to make multiple trips to collect them all. He worried that some might’ve slipped away, but he took comfort in the fact that he did the best that he could.
Once the kittens were secured, he contacted a rescue organization named Chatons Orphelins Montréal (COM). Their mission is to provide all of the help and support they can to the stray cats of Montréal, and they did the city a tremendous service.
“The gentleman managed to catch six kittens. One of them was immediately adopted by a family,” said a representative from COM about the rescued kittens. “The guy knew that the other five needed help, so he brought them to us.”
After providing them with medical treatment, COM employees estimated that the kittens were only about seven weeks old. Though a few had parasites, their conditions were treatable and soon they were all back in good health. There was something odd about two of the kittens, though…
These kittens had extra toes! This was the result of a condition called polydactylism, or hyperdactyly. This is an inherited abnormality caused when one gene in the cat doesn’t develop properly. Thankfully, it’s not serious. In fact, some people think it’s lucky!
Polydactyl cats can have as many as eight toes on each foot, and as a result of their condition, their entire paw can seem to be much larger than that of the average cat. Interestingly, this condition usually only affects their front two paws.
Although it’s rare, the condition can affect a cat’s back paws, as well. The Guinness World Record holder for the number of toes on a cat is a Canadian polydactyl kitty called Jake; he has a whopping 28 toes total!
COM wasn’t put off by these kittens’ special features, and the staff was more excited than ever to help the entire litter find a home. “There are two females and three males,” they said. “Chaplin (black, male), Vinny (tiger, male), Muslie (gray, female), Alpha (gray, male) and Zia (gray, female).”
The kittens were immediately placed into foster care. “The five little kittens went to their foster home with Isabelle to continue their weaning and socialization,” said a representative from COM. “The little ones were very active, friendly and playful.”
Once they had a roof over their heads, the kittens felt comfortable enough to really let their personalities show. Alpha, one of the polydactyl kittens, revealed himself to be the calmest of the litter, loving nothing more than a good nap or cuddle.
Zia, meanwhile, proved herself to be the most social of the five. Sure, she enjoyed time spent playing with her siblings, but if things got a little too exciting, she would seek comfort in the lap of the closest person that she could find.
Muslie, the other polydactyl kitten, was the most playful of them all. She couldn’t resist any toy that came her way, especially those covered in feathers! She also loved to launch sneak attacks against her siblings. It looked like she was shaping up to be one heck of a hunter, huh?
Vinny was the kitten with the biggest passion for stirring up trouble. He might love his brothers and sisters, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t pounce on them or steal a toy or wreck some other kind of havoc just to keep things interesting.
Of course, Vinny needed a partner in crime, and he found that in his brother Chaplin! While all of the kittens got along with each other, the bond that Chaplin and Vinny shared was truly one of a kind. They loved to shake things up!
The kittens were doing so well in foster care that the team at COM decided they were ready to find new forever homes. No one could argue that it was something each and every one of these silly kitties deserved.
COM uploaded all of their photos to their Facebook page, and in a matter of weeks, they had been adopted! Just think: without the intervention of that hero on the construction site, these unusual kittens might never have had a chance.
Thank goodness that construction worker took the time to round up these special kittens! Without his help, they might never have found homes at all.
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