History of Pet Cats

Cats as a type of animal have been around for many thousands of years. While dogs were tamed about 25,000 years ago, cats proved to be far more wily. They treasured their independence far too much to become tame. However, about 4,000 years ago, the Egyptians figured it out - they treated the cats like gods! They gave the cats the best of food, put out the finest cushions for the cats to sit on. The cats of course loved this treatment. In return, the cats kept the homes rat-free. Considering how many diseases were carried by rats, and how big a problem rats were back in those days, it was a perfect relationship.

Fast forward to today, we have bred over 40 different recognized breeds today, as well as many mixed breed cats.

Cats are not that far off from the other "cat" creatures out there - tigers, lions, panthers, and so on. Their bodies are in essence the same shape, just a bit smaller. They mark their territory. They like to live in small groups, but they like to hunt and eat alone. They defend their territory from strange cats.

Pet Cat Senses

Eyesight
Cats are excellent hunters, and are wonderful at night particularly. They have huge eyes which let them gather up every tiny bit of light that might exist, from stars or even a sliver of the moon. Their eyes have a lining called "tapetum lucidum" which causes any light in the area to bounce around in their eyes. That means that they can sense movement even in the darkest of rooms.
Some people thought that that cats could only see in black and white. This isn't true - but they do see primarily in blue and green, because these are the colors best seen in the dark. They are best at seeing movement.


Hearing
When cats hunt little mice and critters, they have to be able to hear every move that is made. Their ears can hear up to 70,000 hertz - higher than dogs, and far higher than us humans who can only hear to 20,000 hertz.

Smell
Cats do have a sense of smell of course. When they have a strange scent, they take tiny, short sniffs, to let the aromas go across their nose properly.

Touch
Cats have an incredible sense of touch - especially in their whiskers. Their whiskers are specially formed so that they know exactly the size of the cat. That way if a cat goes into a dark tunnel, as long as the whiskers fit into the tunnel the cat knows that its body will fit as well. They can even sense air movements, to know where fresh air is coming from or if a creature causes the air to stir.

Pet Cat Breeds

About 4,000 years ago there was only one type of pet cat - the North African Wild Cat, tamed by the Egyptians. Over the next 4,000 years, cat owners have worked hard at breeding their cats to promote certain traits. The results are that in modern times we have 41 recognized individual breeds of cats - all developed from those initial one-type pets. Pretty neat!



Long Haired Cats

• American curl
• Balinese
• Birman
• Cymric
• Himalayan
• Javanese
• Kashmir
• Maine coon cat
• Norwegian forest cat
• Oriental longhair
• Persian
• Ragdoll
• Somali
• Turkish Angora
• Turkish Van
  

Short Haired Cats

• Abyssinian
• American curl shorthair
• American shorthair
• American wirehair
• Bombay
• British shorthair
• Burmese
• Chartreux
• Colorpoint shorthair
• Cornish rex
• Devon rex
• Egyptian mau
• Exotic shorthair
• Havana brown
• Japanese bobtail
• Korat
• Manx
• Ocicat
• Oriental shorthair
• Russian blue
• Scottish fold
• Siamese
• Singapura
• Snowshoe
• Sphynx
• Tonkinese

Turkish Van

Turkish Van is a rare and ancient breed that developed in central and southwest Asia, which today encompasses the countries of Iran, Iraq, southwest Soviet Union and eastern Turkey. “Van” is a common term in the region that has been given to a number of towns, villages and even a lake - Lake Van - so it is no surprise that the uniquely patterned cat native to the region was named the “Vancat” by the residents. They were first brought to England in 1955 as the Turkish cats, but this was later changed to Turkish Van to avoid confusion with the Turkish Angora. Although the breed has an ancient lineage, the Turkish Van is a relative newcomer to the United States, arriving in 1982. They are considered regional treasures in their homeland, and are not readily available for export to other countries. Even in areas where the breed has been known for centuries, they are still relatively rare.

Turkish Van Appearance

The van is a large white semi longhaired cat with coloured markings on the head and tail. It is referred to a a piebald cat. The coat has a cashmere texture and does not have an undercoat. The coat is also water resistant which goes hand in hand with one of their personality traits of having a fascination with water.

Turkish Van Personality

The Turkish Van is extremely intelligent and imaginative. A Turkish cat is very lively, loving and demonstrative pet. They frequently chatter in answer to their owners, more often than not getting the last word in.

Turkish Van cats often retrieve toy mice, balls and crumpled paper, and will exhaust their owners long before they tire themselves.

An intriguing aspect of Turkish Vans is their insatiable curiosity for water, A few are not interested but the majority can be found dipping their paws, toys and bedding in water bowls, or sitting in sinks and baths waiting for the tap to be turned on. They will also assist with rituals like dishwashing and often sit entranced while their owners are showering.

Sphinx

Sphynx History

There have been many occurrences of hairless cats throughout history. The modern day Sphynx started in Toronto, Canada in 1966 with the birth of a hairless cat. During the 1970's several more hairless cats were born. After this time, the breed was developed principally in Europe.

Sphynx Suitability

Sphynx are suitable for active households as they crave human attention. Sphynx are very active and love to the centre of attention, they are not suited to people wanting a quiet docile cat.

Due to their unique characteristics they do require special maintenance including a weekly routine of bathing, trimming nails and cleaning ears.

Sphynx also may require extra heating during the colder months. This can usually be achieved through the use of heat mat (depending on your temperature extremes).

Sphynx Appearance

Sphynx cats and kittens are not totally hairless as they have a peach fuzz over much of their body. Their coat is often described as a warm chamois. For this reason many owners describe them as their living hot water bottle.

Sphynx have normal cat proportions. However as they lack fur their ears are more pronounced and their tail is often described as a rats tail.

Sphynx Colours

They come in all the usual colour varieties including, tortoiseshell, chocolate, black, blue, lilac, chocolate etc.

Somali

Fun, bubbly, affectionate, clever, confident and very attractive. Sounds like the perfect party guest? Of course it does, and I am talking about the Somali cat. They are not only delightful guests but also live-in companions, as they love to help with the housework!

It appears that longhairs had been appearing in Abyssinian litters for many years and from the 1960s onward several dedicated breeders in Australia, the USA and England worked to attain full recognition and acceptance of the semi-longhaired cousin of the Abyssinian. The Somali is now accepted in registries worldwide. Breed Standards (the description of the ideal breed specimen) closely resemble the Abyssinian’s aside from the coat length.


Somali Appearance and Colours
The Somali has an elegant, athletic build that is medium in size. Males tend to weigh in at 4 - 5 kg, females slightly smaller. The face retains the tabby markings of the 'M' on the forehead, however the rest of the cat should be free of tabby markings. The ears are large and pricked forwards and the expression is alert and curious. Eyes can be green or amber, the richer colour the better.

In Australia Somalis are commonly available in the four eumelanistic colours of Tawny (called ruddy in the USA, usual in the UK), Cinnamon (also called sorrel), Blue and Fawn The above four colours are also possible in a silver version, called respectively Black Silver, Cinnamon Silver, Blue Silver and Fawn Silver. In silver colours, a particular gene inhibits the base coat colour, leaving the ticking on a white undercoat. Each colour has its own special appeal. In some states chocolate and chocolate silver are being bred.


Somali Coat
The coat of the Somali really attracts attention the ticking gives a wild appearance that is very unusual for a longer haired cat. Each hair has bands of contrasting colour. The Somali coat is longest in the breeches, and the lovely ruff. A real feature of the Somali is the tail, which has earned them the name the Feline Fox. The beautiful coat is very easy to care for, due to the silky texture that does not have a tendency to matt. A weekly comb is all that is needed to keep the Somali looking and feeling good, and the cats enjoy this.

Singapura

The Singapura are affectionate, and outwardly friendly, no one is a stranger to them. They are however very quiet cats, with soft gentle voices. They love human company.

They make perfect housecats with no need or interest in going outside. They are very small in size. Singapuras are gentle cats, but they are also playful and remain so, throughout their lives - even older cats enjoy a good game.

Singapura are mischievous and inquisitive, meaning that they will investigate anything thoroughly. They are very quick witted, able to adapt and learn, intelligent, lightning fast and genuinely tough and hardy. They get on well with children and other pets.

Singapura Coat and Colours

Singapura's have a ticked sepia coat. They come in one colour brown/beige referred to as either brown ticked agouti or sepia agouti. The Singapura's eyes can be bold green or amber. The coat is short and silky and doesn't require a lot of grooming.