One of the most unusual members of their family is the American Bobtail cat, which is a real source of pride for US felinologists. Beautiful and rather large animals have excellent character, get on well with people, easily master tricks and useful skills. Description of the appearance of cats and cats is standardized and any deviations from it are considered marriage. An individual approach to breeding in this case made it possible to eliminate the manifestation of unauthorized genetic mutations and to retain many of the hereditary features inherent in American bobtails. It is not surprising that today pets with short tails are found not only in the United States, but also far beyond its borders.
History of origin
The American Bobtail owes its birth to young breeders to the name of Sanders. But the breed could not have arisen if it were not for a series of accidents. Traveling on Indian reservations in Southern Arizona to the careless 60s of the 20th century, the couple was so fascinated by the homeless kitten with an unusual mark — a short tail that seemed to be chopped off, that she decided to take it with him. The baby got the name Jody and turned out to be a male. Sanders did not succeed in clarifying its origin - the local population assured that such offspring is obtained by crossing domestic cats with wild, and even, possibly, with lynxes.
At home, Jody waited for not only a warm shelter and delicious food, but also a company. The people who sheltered him already had a pet - Siamese cat Misha, who, when she had found a short-tailed baby, grew up, became the mother of his children. The offspring that emerged from this unusual union was the first generation of a new breed. The cat gave the children a genetic predisposition to the formation of a shortened tail.
It is worth noting that initially Sanders did not believe in the bike about the "wild" origin of the new pet and found that he just got hurt. But having received offspring with the same hereditary traits, they turned to familiar breeders and received unexpected advice: to begin a targeted breeding of a completely new short-tailed breed. However, the owners of the first feline pair, who presented the world of American bobtails, who were not professional felinologists, almost ruined this good undertaking.
Their efforts, coupled with closely related interbreeding, led to the fact that each new generation of animals became less and less qualitative from the point of view of genetics. Fortunately for modern fans of cats, breeding American bobtail pretty quickly passed into the hands of professionals. Since the 70s of the last century, felinologists have taken steps to preserve the young, but very promising breed. For this, breeding cats of Siamese and Burmese breeds were used, as well as various mestizas and animals, whose origin was unknown.
The calculation was made on the fact that the identified gene mutation will continue in subsequent generations. The calculation was fully justified. The descendants of Jody and Misha, when crossed with the owners of unrelated blood, ensured a stable transfer of the short tail to the kittens. However, even today, most of the animals, known as American Bobtails, are only part of them. Recognition as a breed they received in 2000, with purebreds at that time there were only 215.
Two decades later, the situation has changed little - the American bobtail is considered a rare and expensive kind of cats, and official nurseries are still only in the United States.
Description
The American Bobtail cat is a large-sized animal with well-developed musculature, a short tail and an appearance similar to wild manuli or lynx. According to its standard, the animal has certain characteristics.
- It weighs up to 7.5 kg for cats and up to 5 kg for cats. There are two subtypes of individuals - medium and large size.
- May belong to a short-haired or long-haired subgroup. In the first case, the coat is rather short, stiff, with a vertically located spine and a dense undercoat. Long-haired American Bobtails always look a little shaggy, well trimmed. On the neck, croup, femur and hind legs, tows are distinguished.
- It has a significant life expectancy - up to 15 years.
- Differs tail special shape - with a tassel in the shape of the vane at the end. The presence of creases is allowed. With nervous excitement, the cat raises its tail upwards; at rest, it is lowered, pressed against the body. The length of the caudal process should not be less than 2.5 cm or go beyond the hock.
- Possesses tightly knit tight body, high set on muscular legs. The limbs are shorter in front, the brush is dense, firmly compressed, with well-developed pads.
- It has a wedge-shaped compact head with a pronounced cheekbone line, developed chin. Eyes wide apart, deep-set, rounded or almond-shaped, their color should not be contrasted with coat. The ears are high, large, slightly rounded with a pronounced slope.
Only recently, the short-haired American Bobtails have been recognized as an independent branch of the breed, before that they were rejected for a long time and were not allowed to breed.
The differences between the two types are not only in the length of the guard hair. There is a difference in its rigidity and in the direction of growth.
Character traits
The nature of the American Bobtail is quite independent, but they are contact, available for communication, not aggressive towards other animals. Choosing a cat as a pet, it is necessary to allocate her territory for games and entertainment. Animals, even in adulthood, remain active and in need of movement.
American Bobtail is distinguished by loyalty and devotion to the owner. The owner may have no doubt that the pet may prefer it to someone else. But such loyalty to habits creates certain difficulties: even going on vacation, a business trip, or being a host in a hospital becomes a tragedy and a serious blow to a short-tailed cat.
This breed is one of the few who categorically is not recommended change of ownership.
In general, American Bobtails are excellent companion cats who do not really need their own kind and prefer to communicate with a person. They do not suffer from a lack of free-range, calm and balanced. The animal does not spoil things in the house, behaves correctly, quickly masters the basic rules of behavior.
Coat color options
The most common and recognized color option is tabby in blue or red. Signs of rufism in silver American bobtails are allowed. Owners of color points should have marked residual marks on the body. The more “wild” looks on the pet's hair, the better. But in general, the standard does not give preference to any one version.
Eye color is related to color in animals with point, milk, and sepia colors. All color versions are obtained by crossing with Persian cats.
The result of the selection, including a stratification into a short-haired and long-haired variety.
Conditions of detention
For American Bobtail, you do not need to create a special habitat.The peculiarities of the content of this breed of cats differ little from those that are needed by the purebred pet. The rarity of the animal most often forces the owners to move to the pet's full domestic content.
But bobtails easily get used to the harness and they can easily be walked on a leash, giving the pet a lot of fun.
The subtleties of cat care depend on the length of the coat. Fluffy pets need regular combing, seasonal release from undercoat. Bathing is required as the fur coat gets dirty, but in general, cats do an excellent job with maintaining cleanliness. For cats that are on the street, it is necessary to take measures against the antiparasitic treatment - from fleas, ticks, worms. Eyes and ears are weekly cleaned of dirt, brushing teeth for members of the breed prone to the formation of tartar, is also a mandatory procedure.
The sharp claws of American bobtails need to be ground naturally. A simple haircut does not solve the problem. It is better to teach your pet to use a scraper from childhood.
Feeding
American Bobtail is a breed that needs a balanced diet that takes into account the physical activity of the animal. The optimal solution is a professional ready-made diet containing all the necessary substances. As a food, it is better to choose premium or holistic-class products. The frequency of feeding depends on the age of the cat or cat - on average, an adult animal requires no more than two feedings per day, adolescents under 1.5 years old need three meals a day. Kittens before half a year should receive food 4 times a day.
Health
American Bobtail is a breed that is distinguished by quite good health. Dominant genes of wild cats in combination with carefully dosed new blood impurities gave excellent results. But in the case of intentional or accidental closely related interbreeding, the offspring may receive defective heredity. In this case, animals often exhibit hip dysplasia, allergic reactions, skin dermatitis. Traced predisposition to the formation of tartar.
Short tail due to genetics also has consequences. Animals can be born completely tailless or with a shortened spine.
American bobtails are also predisposed to obesity, as well as to the development of diabetes. These descendants of wild cats do not necessarily need carbohydrate food, but a full-fledged meat diet with an abundance of protein. Improper nutrition can lead to a deterioration in the health of the pet.
All about cats American Bobtail breed, see the following video:
