POLYDACTYL MAINE COONS AND TICA REGISTRATION

In TICA, polydactyly is not simply an extra detail added to a Maine Coon's description. The Maine Coon Polydactyl has its own breed designation, MCP, and a defined place within the Maine Coon Breed Group.

A pedigree can tell us that a cat is registered.

It cannot, by itself, tell us that the cat is an outstanding example of its breed.

That distinction matters particularly with the polydactyl Maine Coon, where registration, phenotype and show quality are sometimes treated as though they mean the same thing.

They do not.

Within The International Cat Association, the Maine Coon and Maine Coon Polydactyl belong to the same Breed Group, but carry separate breed designations: MC for the Maine Coon and MCP for the Maine Coon Polydactyl.

Those three letters formally recognise polydactyly within TICA's Maine Coon breed structure. They do not reduce the cat to its additional toes.

MC and MCP belong to the same Breed Group

TICA's current standard defines the Maine Coon Breed Group as MC and MCP.

The Maine Coon Polydactyl is therefore not treated as an unrelated breed with a different ideal. The essential Maine Coon must still be there.

The standard describes a substantial cat with a broad chest, strong boning, a long rectangular body, a long flowing tail and large, well tufted feet. Overall balance and proportion are essential, and no single feature should dominate the appearance of the cat.

For an MCP, that principle is particularly relevant.

The paws may be the first feature somebody notices.

They should never become the entire cat.

Why 2015 matters

The present position has a relatively recent history.

TICA accepted the Maine Coon for Championship when the association was established in 1979. In 2015, polydactyl Maine Coons were assigned the separate breed name Maine Coon Polydactyl, abbreviated MCP, and accepted for Championship in a separate class from nonpolydactyl Maine Coons.

The Maine Coon Breed Section consequently became the MC and MCP Breed Group.

This was more than a change in terminology.

Championship recognition gave the polydactyl Maine Coon a defined place within TICA's competitive breed structure. An MCP was no longer simply a Maine Coon whose additional toes happened to be accommodated.

Polydactyly became formally recognised within the breed designation.

What TICA actually requires of an MCP paw

The written standard is considerably more precise than the shorthand often used when describing polydactyl cats.

For an MCP, the feet should be large and well tufted. Additional toes may occur on the front feet, the hind feet, or both.

Both mitten and patty expressions are accepted.

Symmetrical expression is preferred.

The maximum permitted is seven toes on any one foot.

That wording is important.

A polydactyl Maine Coon does not need additional toes on all four feet. It does not need to be mitten pawed or patty pawed exclusively, and corresponding paws do not have to be perfect mirror images for the cat to possess a polydactyl phenotype.

Variation is part of the characteristic itself.

Seven is a limit, not an ideal

The seven toe maximum is easily misunderstood.

Seven is not the ideal number of toes.

It is the maximum permitted on an individual foot.

TICA recognises variation from a single additional dewclaw to additional toes on every foot. The standard does not establish a hierarchy in which the cat with the greatest number of toes automatically possesses the better paw.

This is worth emphasising because dramatic toe counts are visually memorable and easy to market.

The written standard does not make them a measure of quality.

A foot with six toes is not inherently inferior to one with seven simply because seven is the permitted maximum.

The number defines a boundary.

It does not define excellence.

Symmetry is preferred, but it does not define the trait

TICA describes symmetrical expression as preferred.

That is not the same as saying that symmetry determines whether a cat is polydactyl.

A cat can show different expressions on corresponding paws and still possess the phenotype. In the show ring, however, the standard gives symmetry value.

This distinction matters.

Biology describes what can occur.

A breed standard describes the characteristics against which an individual exhibit is evaluated.

The existence of a trait and the preferred expression of that trait are not necessarily the same question.

How much of the standard is actually about the paws?

Surprisingly little.

The current TICA Maine Coon Breed Group standard evaluates the complete cat across 100 points.

The head accounts for 35 points.

The body accounts for 35.

Coat, colour and pattern account for 20.

Balance accounts for 10.

Within the body section, legs and feet together account for four points.

That places the famous polydactyl paws in their proper context.

They matter, but they do not define the complete assessment.

Head shape, profile, muzzle, chin, ears, eyes, torso, boning, musculature, tail, coat and overall balance remain part of what stands before the judge.

Spectacular paws cannot compensate for a cat that otherwise falls substantially away from the breed standard.

Equally, a beautifully balanced MCP should not be reduced to its toe count.

Registration is not a quality award

This is one of the most important distinctions for a prospective owner to understand.

A TICA registration records a cat within TICA's registration system according to the information and eligibility applicable to that registration.

It should not be interpreted as evidence that TICA has individually examined the cat and declared it an exceptional example of the breed.

Registration and judging have different purposes.

A registered MCP may subsequently be shown and evaluated against the written breed standard. That is where conformation is assessed competitively.

For this reason, TICA registered and show quality are not interchangeable descriptions.

One concerns registry status.

The other concerns the qualities of an individual cat when assessed against the breed standard, ultimately including the opinions of judges if that cat enters the show ring.

Registration does not certify health

MCP is a breed designation.

It is not a health result.

It does not tell us whether the parents have undergone DNA testing, cardiac screening, hip assessment or other health investigations.

It does not describe temperament.

It does not tell us how a kitten was raised.

Nor does it demonstrate that a breeding decision was well considered.

Those questions require their own evidence.

Registration has an important role because pedigree identity and ancestry matter in responsible breeding. But a registration document should not be asked to prove something it was never designed to prove.

Health evidence and registration evidence should remain exactly that: separate forms of evidence.

The standard does not reward exaggeration

There is a broader principle running through the Maine Coon Breed Group standard.

Overall balance and proportion are essential. No single feature should dominate the cat's appearance.

For polydactyl breeding, that principle deserves particular attention.

Large paws photograph beautifully. High toe counts attract attention. A dramatic mitten can easily become the feature by which a kitten is remembered.

None of those things changes the fundamental objective.

An MCP must still be a Maine Coon.

The aim should not be the most extreme possible foot, but a Maine Coon in which polydactyly exists within an otherwise balanced animal.

What Championship recognition actually means

Championship recognition is significant, but its meaning should remain precise.

It means that TICA recognises the Maine Coon Polydactyl within its Championship structure and provides a written standard against which MCP cats can be judged.

It also provides breeders with something valuable: an external reference point.

Individual preferences will always exist. One breeder may favour a particular paw expression, another heavier boning, another a certain head or overall type.

The written standard provides a common framework against which those preferences can be considered.

Conformation judging is not mathematically objective. Interpretation remains part of judging.

But the breeder is not the only person deciding what constitutes a good example of the breed.

What TICA polydactyl Maine Coon registration can and cannot tell you

For somebody considering a polydactyl Maine Coon, the registration should answer an important question:

What is this cat registered as?

It should not end the conversation.

Pedigree and parentage matter.

Health testing matters.

Temperament and development matter.

How the kitten has been raised matters.

If showing is important, the conversation becomes more specific again. Registration as MCP establishes the relevant breed designation, but it cannot promise future success in the show ring.

And for somebody whose first attraction to the polydactyl Maine Coon is simply those extraordinary paws, the standard offers a useful perspective.

More toes do not mean more quality.

MCP describes the cat. It does not define its worth.

The Maine Coon Polydactyl occupies an unusual position.

Its most immediately recognisable characteristic appears in its breed name, yet the standard continually brings attention back to the complete animal.

That is where it belongs.

MCP identifies the Maine Coon Polydactyl within TICA's breed structure.

The standard defines the accepted expressions of the paws and the limits within which they are judged.

The show ring allows the individual cat to be assessed against that standard.

None of those things makes toe count a measure of worth.

The additional digits are part of the phenotype.

The Maine Coon remains the subject.

Buba Ayers

Founder & Breeder, Tycoon Manor

Sources and further reading

The International Cat Association. Maine Coon Breed Group, MC and MCP. Current breed standard, revised 1 May 2025.

The International Cat Association. Maine Coon Polydactyl. Official breed information.

The International Cat Association. 2015 MC and MCP Breed Poll Results. Records relating to the formation of the combined Breed Group.