Abyssinian cats, also known as rabbit cats, Ethiopian cats, Abbeys, etc. People usually judge the origin of cats by their names, but the origin of Abyssinian cats seems to be a bit distant from Abyssinia. Abyssinian is the old name for Ethiopia, but many people believe the Abyssinian cat came from ancient Egypt.
Genetic matching revealed that the Abyssinian cat originated from the Indian Ocean coast, probably from feral cats purchased by colonists and developed around Egypt. There is a legend that Ramses II had asked the Abyssinian king to give him a colony of cats, which he brought to Egypt. It became the origin of the present Abyssinian cat.
Later, in 1868, an English soldier brought back from Alexandria, Egypt, a young female cat named Zula. The Abyssinian line was created when Zula mated with an English Tiger Cat. Although most Abyssinian cats are genetically matched to Zula in appearance, there is no evidence of a direct relationship between the line of cats that became known as Abyssinian and Zula.
The Abyssinian cats we see today are a modified breed and are suitable for apartments, but Abyssinians are not clingy cats and prefer to live alone, so if you want a clingy cat, consider another breed. In addition, because of the low reproduction rate of Abyssinian cats, these cats are also very rare.
- Abyssinian cat morphological characteristics
In addition to the names of rabbit cat and Ethiopian cat, many people will become the Abyssinian cat as a ballet cat because of their graceful demeanor and gait like a ballet dancer. In addition to their lithe body, Abyssinian cats are also fascinating to watch. No cat can resemble a small lion as much as they do, and this natural advantage makes Abyssinian cats stand out from the crowd.
The Abyssinian cat’s coat is dense and earthy yellow, but also blue. The limbs are slender and muscular, and the body is soft and flexible. The tail and paws have the characteristics of the Tiger Pan cat, although the body shape and physique cannot be consistent with the Tiger Pan cat. The head is wedge-shaped, the eyes are almond-shaped, golden yellow, green, and light brown, and there are black stripes on the chin, lips and eye edges, the ears are large, and the forehead has M-shaped markings. Body weight is 4-7.5 kg and moderate in size.
The Abyssinian cat’s eyeliner makes it appear from the front and oblique side to have a more obvious facial contour; in terms of anthropomorphism, it is easier to derive the inner thoughts from the expression than other cat species.
The Abyssinian cat has a distinctive wavy patterned tawny coat, usually a clear golden color, but also blue (a bluish light gray), light yellow, reddish brown, and red (some say “brick red”). There is also a relatively rare “silver” Abyssinian cat with a gradation of white, cream, and gray.
Detailed morphological characteristics of Abyssinian cats
Head: The head is delicately shaped, with a slightly rounded triangular shape. The nose is slightly elevated, the muzzle is short and firm, and the teeth are clipped bite.
Ears: The ears are large and erect, with a wide base and thin margins, and the ends of the ears are slightly pointed and tilted forward. The ear hairs are short and dense, with black or black-brown tips for the reddish-brown species; the tips of the red species are chocolate brown. Inside the ear there are long decorative hairs.
Eyes: The eyes are large and almond-shaped, with slightly hanging tips; the eye margins are black and covered with brown hairs. Eye color is green, yellow, light brown, etc.
Body: medium size, light, muscular, proportional and coordinated.
Limbs: The limbs are long and slender, with slender paws, in harmony with the round and slender body.
Toes: The toes are small and solidly ovate. When standing up, it can be seen to stand up with the tips of its paws. Tail: The tail is long and pointed, tapered, with a thick tail root.
Coat: The coat is fine, soft and flexible. Most of the coat is red and yellow, with different shades, plus the refractive effect to form a pattern; the color of the coat changes subtly when moving, as bright and shiny as silk, extremely attractive.
Coat color: There are two recognized coat colors for Abyssinian cats, i.e. reddish-brown and red. The reddish-brown color has a reddish-brown tone all over the body. The tip of the hair is black or black-brown, and near the root of the hair is reddish-yellow-brown. When the hair tips are completely dark, the back is allowed to be dark. Lower hairs reddish fawn (red, fawn cross) layer tip of hairs tip black. The color of the inner coat of the front chest, abdomen and forelimbs is in harmony with the overall color, with tawny being the most desirable. The lower palate is yellowish.
Other: nasal mirror is brick red. Black or teal between the toes and black from the toes to the tips of the paws. The eyes range from golden yellow to green, the darker the better. The red species has a soft, sharp red coloration all over, with chocolate tips, but a deep red color is ideal. The tips of the ears and tail end are chocolate brown. The noseglasses are pink. The feet are pink between the toes and chocolate brown from the toes to the tips of the paws.
Although many cats are not clearly distinguished from each other by morphological features, Abyssinian cats are clearly not in this category and we can still easily distinguish them from a group of cats.
- Abyssinian cat personality characteristics
Maybe you don’t know that Abyssinian cats have such a nickname – dog cats. As the name suggests, Abyssinian cats have certain personalities like dogs, such as they are smart, friendly to people and curious, etc. Although Abyssinian cats are cats with independent behaviors, they will build a deep bond with their owners. That’s why people give them such a name.
I. Independent but affectionate
Most cats are independent and they like to immerse themselves in their own world, but even so, it does not mean that they will not develop affection with their own owners. Abyssinian cats will choose the one who treats them the best among those who care for them and interact with him often and depend on him in their lives. However, if they are left out, the Abyssinian cat will become bored and frustrated.
II. Active and friendly
Abyssinian cats are active cats, they will not hide in a safe place as soon as they see people, and because they are very curious, they will easily “take the bait” if they are teased a little.
III. Fun
Abyssinian cats love to play, and if they are bored for a long time, they are likely to have the same feeling of loss as people. Abyssinian cats are also very athletic, especially they are good at climbing high. If you can’t find your cat in the house, they are probably watching the enemy from a high place!
- Abyssinian cat care knowledge
Don’t think that cats like small spaces, Abyssinian cats are not. They like spacious rooms and will get angry if you put them in a small space. Therefore, it is important to plan your Abyssinian cat’s space before keeping them.
In addition to a spacious room, you’d better prepare a climbing frame for them. Some people call Abyssinian cats rock climbers, from this name you can see that Abyssinian cats are good at climbing up and down, a fun cat climbing frame can definitely let them enjoy life. Because of the Abyssinian cat’s active personality, owners must do a good job of putting away fragile objects at home in the process of caring for their cats.
Although Abyssinian cats are active, they rarely disturb the neighbors, their purring is small and gentle, and they are naturally intelligent, so with a little training they can quickly adapt to life in a human home.
Like all cats, Abyssinians love to play and they want to interact with their owners, and they may even suffer from “depression” if their owners leave them alone for a long time. Therefore, if you are away for a long time, make sure to play with your cat when you get home, otherwise you will gradually lose your status in their minds, and if there are other family members to take care of them, they will leave you in the cold and favor other family members.
Abyssinian cats are short-haired cats, so owners do not need to bathe them often, generally, once a month. If the bathing frequency is too high, it may disrupt the balance of oil in the cat’s body and eventually lead to a variety of problems, such as dry hair and dander on the body.
- Abyssinian cat feeding essentials
Abyssinian cats are not fed any differently from other cats, and generally, as long as they are fed cat food, their nutritional needs can be met, however, if you want your cat to eat better, you can make your own cat food for them. When choosing cat food, the owner must look at the range of application of the cat food, for example, when the cat is still young, do not choose adult cat food for them. In addition, the owner can also choose the cat’s favorite flavor according to their preferences.
For the owner of homemade cat food, it is most important to give the cat a scientific and reasonable meal, so that the cat does not suffer from malnutrition or eat food that should not be eaten due to improper diet. Many owners think that it is not a big deal for cats to eat table food, but this is not the case. If cats eat table food for a long time, they are prone to hair loss and urinary diseases.
There are many owners who now feed their cats mainly with cat food and homemade food as a supplement. The advantage of this is that they do not have to worry about their cats not getting sufficient nutrition, nor do they have to worry about their cats not being able to enjoy other treats because they have been eating cat food. However, it should be noted that the food requirements should not be relaxed just because it is supplemented by homemade food. Low salt and low oil are necessary to ensure the cat’s health.
Other notes.
1. The owner can prepare a little snack for the cat outside the main meal, but the snack needs to be supplied in a limited amount, if the unlimited supply of snacks is more likely to cause picky eating, obesity and various diseases in cats.
2. In areas with high humidity, the owner must do a good job of food storage to prevent cat food from becoming moldy.
