The American Bobtail is born from a genetic mutation, responsible for the creation of the breed spontaneously, without human intervention. It is by no means a hybrid breed and is not related to the Japanese Bobtail.
Summary
Origin of the American bobtail cat
The American bobtail cat, as its name suggests, comes from the American continent. It was present on the continent since the Japanese bobtail began to be bred, but it was not until the 60s of the last century when it began to be given importance.
It comes from a cross between a seal point Siamese female and a short-tailed brindle male. This male was acquired by John and Brenda Sanders, from Iowa when they were on vacation in Arizona, and is thought to be a hybrid between a domestic cat and bobtail. In the litter they had, all the kittens had short tails and saw the possibility of a new breed of feline. These kittens were crossed with Burmese and Himalayan cats.
A friend of the Sanders wrote the first standard in the early 1970s: a short-tailed cat with long hair and a white face and paws. However, in the 1980s, breeders had difficulties in relation to consanguinity, making the line too inbred to be used. For this reason, we ended up accepting a cat of all colors, that looks like a bobcat and has long or short hair.
In 1989 it was recognized as a feline breed and from there it began and increased its popularity.
Characteristics of the American bobtail cat
The American Bobtail is a medium to large sized cat with an athletic and muscular body. What is most striking about its physical appearance is its short tail, which varies between a third and half the length of a standard cat’s tail, and can be straight, curved or slightly tangled.
Continuing with the characteristics of the American bobtail, the body is long and rectangular and the thorax is broad. The hind legs are somewhat longer than the front legs and the feet are round, large and sometimes with tufts on the toes. The head is wedge-shaped, wide and not very large in relation to the rest of the body. The eyes are large, oval to almond shaped, moderately wide apart and deep, giving it a wild look. The ears are medium, wide at the base and with slightly rounded tips. The muzzle is broad, the whiskers or vibrissae prominent, and the jaw strong and large.
American bobtail colors
The coat can be short or long, characterized by being dense and double-layered. The pattern can be brindle (tabby), tortoise (tortoiseshell), solid (black, blue, red), bicolor, or tricolor (calico). All colors are accepted in this breed.
American bobtail cat character
The American bobtail cat is characterized by being an energetic, playful, affectionate, intelligent and sociable feline. As soon as he sees an opportunity, he tends to run away to explore the outdoors and try to hunt some prey, as he loves to be out and about. For this reason, he can be taught to go on a leash and take walks with him to satiate that instinct. To do this, do not miss this article: “How to teach a cat to walk on a leash?”.
He is not overly dependent on human affection, but if he shows affection to his caretakers, he has a good character and gets along very well with children and other animals. It is not a very restless or hyperactive cat.
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