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Part-II: Cat Breed Information

Cat Breeds Info

Abyssinian

This muscular cat has a soft coat, pointed ears, and a long

tail. It comes in various colors like red, fawn, cream, lilac, or ruddy in America while it could be sorrel or fawn in the UK.

This breed is very energetic.

American Bobtail

This cat could be long-haired or short-haired. These cats have

a broad head with medium-sized ears, a wide nose, and a

clear muzzle. Legs are proportionate to body length and the

length of its tail is half the body length.

American Curl

This medium-sized cat has a soft and silky coat. It has walnut-

shaped large eyes with wide and back-curving large ears. Its

nose is straight and has a rounded muzzle with a firm chin.

American Shorthair

This cat is normally has specific patterns and colors like

brown, silver, cream cameo, or red. It has a dense short coat.

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This cat is affectionate and gets on well with children, cats and other animals.

American Wirehair

This breed is popular in the USA, although found all over the

world. This breed came into existence through selective

breeding of a male kitten from nonpedigreed parents. It has a

curly coat in different colors. This breed has crimped hair.

Balinese

This medium-sized cat has a fine and silky coat. A tapering

head starts from the nose and forms a triangle at the ears. It

has long and slender legs. Its feather-like tail tapers at the

end.

Bengal

This is a special breed developed through a domestic cat and

an Asian Leopard cat. It is a well-tempered exotic breed with

high-energy levels. They are excellent companions and require

lot of affection and attention.

Birman

This breed exhibits controlled behavior. Although it is a long-

haired cat, it does not require extensive grooming. This breed

takes part in all action around it and loves playing with toys

and children.

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Bombay

These medium-sized muscular cats have fine and shiny coats.

Eyes are large and ears tilt forward with rounded tips. It has a round face, short snub nose, firm chin, and round muzzle.

British Shorthair

This breed is present in a multitude of colors, patterns, and

combinations. Tabby cats could be lilac-silver, chocolate

tortoiseshell silver, and others. Solid cats are normally black, white, red, blue, and other colors.

Burmese

This breed has a short and glossy coat with large and round

eyes. It has a round head with a firm rounded chin and short

muzzle. The body is medium sized and the legs are

proportionate to its body size. It has a straight tail.

Chartreux

This breed has a soft, short, and dense coat with a woolly

texture. It is an affectionate and smart breed. It loves the

telephone and television. These cats mature at the age of

three.

Cornish Rex

This breed has an egg-shaped head with high cheekbones and

a round muzzle. Eyes are oval-shaped and the ears are large.

This breed has a short and wavy coat.

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Devon Rex

This breed was discovered in the sixties. It has a small head

with large ears. It has a crinkly coat and an impish face. It is easy to train this breed to perform simple tricks. It prefers

being in warm places in the house.

Egyptian Mau

This elegant breed has an attractive coat that is silky, dense,

and glossy. It normally has light green almond-shaped eyes.

This breed is extrovert and smart. It can learn and perform

small tricks.

European Burmese

This breed has a short, satin, and thick coat without any

undercoat. It has a round head with high cheekbones. It has

slender legs. This breed is heavy, although it may not appear

so.

Exotic Shorthair

These playful cats have a soft and dense coat with a thick

undercoat. Eyes are large and bright and ears have a slight tip

towards the front. Legs are short and strong and have a short

curvy tail.

Havana Brown

This breed is predominantly in brown color. It is more reddish

brown than blackish brown. Although whiskers are brown,

they turn white with age.

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Himalayan

This breed developed through breeding of traditional Persian

cats with Siamese cats. They have chubby faces with long and

flowing coats. They like a quiet and calm atmosphere.

Japanese Bobtail

This breed has a medium-sized coat with large and oval eyes.

It has a long head with a long nose and high cheekbones. It

has a unique tail and large and wide eyes.

Javanese

This breed comes in different color combinations and patterns.

Although they look delicate, they are extremely strong and

muscular. This breed is smart and can identify playtimes and

mealtimes clearly.

Korat

This breed of medium sized cats has smaller females than

males. It has a single thick coat with short to medium length.

Eyes are large and round with ears set high.

Maine Coon

This breed is the original American cat. These cats normally

measure five feet from nose to tail. Brown tabby with

mackerel or classic markings is the common color of this

breed.

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Manx

Most cats of this breed do not have a tail, although there are a few with tails. These cats have a round and stout appearance

with long hind legs and short backs.

Munchkin

This new breed is through random mutation of a cat with small

legs. It has a long or a short coat in a multitude of colors. This breed is active and is normally a fast runner.

Nebelung

This breed has a lustrous coat with round green eyes on a

triangular head. It has erect ears and a fluffy tail. These

intelligent cats are affectionate and yet shy.

Norwegian Forest Cat

This is a strong breed and has a silky coat. This breed is

normally of many different colors. This breed matures late,

normally around four years old. These cats are friendly pets.

Ocicat

This breed has a smooth and thick coat with large and pointed

ears and almond-shaped eyes. These cats have medium-sized

muscular legs and a slim and tapered tail.

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Oriental

These medium-sized cats could have long or short hair with a

downy undercoat. Normally, this breed is fleckless green, blue,

or an orange color. It has a long slim neck with a fine muzzle.

Persian

This is one of the oldest breeds. It sports a thick coat and has a wide head with far-set ears and large eyes. These cats

require regular grooming to maintain fur in good condition.

Pixie-Bob

This breed is normally over-sized with heavy bones. It has a

naturally bobbed tail of around two to six inches. These are

quiet cats but are affectionate and get along excellently with

dogs and other pets at home.

Ragamuffin

These large cats are seen in many patterns, colors, and

combinations. They mature at around four years of age and

have a long life. These are very adaptable cats.

Ragdoll

These cats are of many color combinations and patterns like

blue-cream, seal-tortoiseshell lynx, lilac cream lynx, and

others. These cats could have a link to Burmese and Birman

cats.

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Russian Blue

These cats have silvery-blue coats. They are believed to

belong to royal families of Russia. These intelligent cats are

very affectionate towards children and elders alike.

Savannah

This exotic breed is a cross between a domestic cat and an

African Serval. These are tall, slim, and large breeds. They

sport dark coats with spots of a lighter shade like a silver coat with dark spots, or a tan coat with black or brownish spots.

Scottish Fold

This breed is in many colors. It is normally in folded ear or

straight ear type. The special characteristic of this breed is the fold of its ear. This is due to a spontaneous mutation of an

incomplete dominant gene.

Siamese

This is a very popular breed. Original Siamese cats had a dark

brown contrasted body with lighter shades. Four more shades

developed from this later. These are aggressive and assertive

cats.

Siberian

This long-haired breed are hypo-allergenic due to their lack of

a specific protein. These are playful, affectionate, and gentle

cats. They make excellent companions.

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Singapura

This breed is originally from Singapore. It has a muscular build with strong and slender legs. Its slender tail has a blunt tip.

Body color is gold or golden ivory with light bands. It has a

round head and a gentle muzzle.

Snowshoe

This is a small, lean cat breed with large, triangular eyes. Coat is short-haired and tail is medium-sized. They require more

attention than other cats and therefore, cannot stay alone for

long periods.

Sokoke

This is the rarest breed among cats. This moderate-sized cat

has long legs and a short and dense coat. The coat is elastic

and short. Tail is long and thin.

Somali

This breed has a great similarity to a fox. These cats have

numerous color combinations. These cats mature late, around

eighteen months of age. They are otherwise energetic and

playful cats.

Sphynx

This is a medium-sized, short-haired cat. They have large eyes

with high cheekbones. They normally do not have any

whiskers. They have a soft and warm coat with small areas of

fur on the tip of the tail or around their toes.

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Tonkinese

These are short-haired, medium-sized cats. These muscular

cats have large ears over a wedge-shaped head. These cats

are playful and lively.

Turkish Angora

This breed is long and elegant. They have silky and medium

length coats. These cats are normally white in color. They are

intelligent cats and love their owners unconditionally.

Turkish Van

This breed has a seasonal coat with soft and long silky

feathers. They have large oval eyes with high cheekbones, a

round chin, and rounded muzzle. Tail is of medium length.

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Common Cat Colors

Cat colors and combinations could be -

Tabby

Tabbies are cats with stripes. This comes across as the original color of domesticated cat. Tabby patterns could be classic

tabby, mackerel tabby, tickled tabby or spotted tabby. Classic

tabby is the same as blotched tabby. It has bold patterns on

the sides. Mackerel tabby has parallel narrow stripes on the

sides, similar to a tiger. Tickled tabby does not have spots or

stripes. It has tabby markings on the face and hair. A spotted

tabby has large and small spots all over.

A blue tabby could have gray stripes on dark or light blue-

gray. A brown tabby could have black stripes on gray or a

brown color. A cream tabby has cream stripes on a pale cream

color while a red tabby has orange stripes on a cream color.

Solids and Smokes

Solid color refers to almost the same color all over your cat’s

body. Such solid colors are due to recessive gene that

suppresses tabby patterns. Solid blue is dark blue-gray all

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over while solid black could be coal black or brownish black all over.

Cats with white markings

Such cats could have smaller or larger white areas. Cats with

a few white belly spots has buttons while a cat with a white

spot on the chest has a locket. Cats with white paws is mitted

while Van is an almost white color with a few patches on the

tail and head. Bi-color is half-white while harlequin is white

with large color patches. Tuxedo is a black and white

combination with white color on the paws, chest, and belly.

Tortoiseshell, Patched Tabbies, and Calicoes

A random patch of different colors is a calico, tortie, or

patched tabby. Tortoiseshell and white has a few white areas.

Calico has more white with large black or red tabby patches. A

patched tabby could have a lot of white with patterned color

patches.

Pointed (Siamese) Pattern

If your cat has a dark face, tail, and paws with lighter shading on the body it is a pointed cat. Although this is a characteristic of Siamese cats, other purebreds also share this color

combination.

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Before You Buy a Cat

Before buying and bringing home a cat, you should consider

various factors involving the cat, your house, family members

and other possible factors. If you do not consider such factors, you may have to return your pet soon after you purchase and

bring it home. This can cause lot of misery and sorrow all

around.

Your Situation

Consider your personal situation before purchasing a cat. You

should have sufficient time to care for the cat. If you have a

full-time job, you should be able to take sudden leave to

attend to any emergencies. Cats require company. It is not

sufficient to give shelter to a cat in your house. You have to

give it time just as you care for a child.

If you live in rented accommodation, find out if cats are

permitted within those premises. You should have sufficient

space for rearing a cat and provide scratching posts, litter

boxes, sleeping places for the cat and much more. Consider

whether all your family members are ready to accept a cat

within the house.

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Another important factor is caring for a cat. You should

consider small children within the house; if they can live with

a cat. They should understand how to treat the new cat as a

living being and not as a toy.

Additionally, you should get a cat allergy test done for all

family members. If any of your family members have cat

allergies, it is best not to buy a cat.

You will require feeding bowls, towels, transport carriers or

special boxes to transport cats to different places. You may

have to transport your cat to a friend’s place or for a visit to the veterinarian.

Financial

Cats do have several recurring expenditures. You should

consider your financial situation; whether you can afford the

cat’s medical, food, and other associated expenses.

There are various routine expenses like vaccinations and costs

of other accessories. You should be able to support a cat’s

expenses wherever you move.

Cats normally live for fifteen to eighteen years. You should be

able to support all its expenses over its life.

The Breeder

You should look into the health standards of the place where

you are purchasing your cat. It should be a licensed and

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registered establishment. It is best to purchase from

recommended sources.

You could ask for dependable recommendations from your

friends and relatives that have cats as pets. Get your

veterinarian to perform a thorough examination of the kitten

you purchase and follow up any problems with the breeder as

soon as possible.

The Cat Itself

Refrain from making an impulsive purchase. Do not buy a cat

that looks pathetic or sick. It could cause serious health

problems for your young ones at home. Do not take home a

cat that requires extensive nursing. Your family members

would be aghast if you have to give back the pet after some

time. Check for adequate worming and recent vaccinations of

your kitten.

Adult cats should have proper house training. Do not buy

aggressive cats, as these usually cannot make good household

pets.

Cats are lovable and affectionate pets. They soon become an

important member of your family. Therefore, before

purchasing a cat, consider all possible aspects before you

welcome your new member. This can save you many

heartbreaks and disappointments later.

If you are in doubt over any particular fact, it is best not to

buy and bring home that cat or kitten.

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Selecting a Cat that is Right for You

Many often choose to buy a cat of a specific breed as it

assures specific personality traits. However, this is not always true.

Traits are common to breeds and not to all cats or kittens

within the breed. Breed alone cannot decide the type of cat a

kitten grows into. It depends more on its parentage and the

social order it has been in since its birth.

While selecting a cat that is right for you and your family,

consider these factors:

Kitten or Adult

Kittens are truly irresistibly cute. It would be difficult choosing a cat over a kitten. Nevertheless, you should look into the

practical aspects of choosing a kitten. They require a lot of

attention and care in their growing years. You need to train

them in all aspects like litter training, feeding and mingling

with other pets in the house. Adult cats are normally trained

and can soon settle in new premises and surroundings.

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