Yams is 6 years old and never had issues with her extra toes before, but this year she started pulling on the claws and chewing them into stubs. We found a cat orthopedist who determined that since Yams was putting weight on the malformed extra toes, they were causing pain. Her most outward normal toes had also started turning sideways because of how much she was compensating posture-wise. That unfortunately meant the thumbs had to go.
She's still recovering from the surgery but seems energetic and more bothered by the drugs and cone than having just been operated on. We on the other hand loved her big paws so it's like we're feeling the loss more than she is. Yams is a very active cat and I take her on walks with me, which probably contributed to the toe issues. A less active, exclusively indoor cat probably doesn't move around as much.
Despite losing her iconic thumbs, I'm looking forward to taking her on walks again. Curious to see if her silly gait stays or if she starts walking like a normal cat.
This also as a heads up that the extra toes aren't always problem free.
EDIT: Wanted to add that Yams was on painkillers for a week before we decided what to do with the toes. The gnawing stopped immediately. She was otherwise perfectly healthy and left other toes alone, so there was only one conclusion to come to.
