CHAPTER

2. 8 CHAPTER Cats

3. History of the Cat • Descended from dog ancestor Miacis • General timeline • First feline cat: ~35 million years ago • Modern cats: ~7 million years ago • Domestication: ~4,000 years ago • Cats today came from African Wild Cat • Roughly 38 species of cats today

4. General Cat Classifications • Threegenuses • Roaring cats (Panthera) • Nonroaring cats (Felis) • Cheetah (Acinonyx) • Two major groups of domesticated cats • Shorthaired • Longhaired • One miscellaneous domesticated group • Semi-longhaired and either shorthaired or longhaired

5. Abyssinian American Shorthair American Wirehair Bombay Breed Burmese British Shorthair Chartreux Colorpoint Cornish Rex Devon Rex Egyptian Mau Exotic Shorthair Havana Brown Japanese Bobtail Shorthaired Cat Breeds (A–J)

6. Korat Malayan Manx Ocicat Oriental Shorthair Russian Blue Scottish Fold Siamese Singapura Snowshoe Breed Sphynx Tonkinese Shorthaired Cat Breeds (K–Z)

7. Balinese and Javanese Birman Cymric Himalayan and Kashmir Maine Coon Norwegian Forest Cat Persian Breed Ragdoll Somali Turkish Angora Longhaired Cat Breeds

8. Miscellaneous Cat Breeds • American Curl • Turkish Van • LaPerm • Selkirk Rex • Siberian

9. Popular Cat Breeds From foukeffa.org Written by Melinda Goplin Whitehall High School, WI GA Ag Ed Curriculum Office To accompany the Georgia Agriculture Education Curriculum Course 02423 July 2001

10. Cat Breeds

11. Abyssinian * One of the oldest breeds known * Descendant of Egypt and worshiped as sacred * Extremely affectionate, quiet, highly intelligent, and alert. Very active and can be taught to retrieve!

12. American Shorthair • Brought to U.S. from England • Affectionate, great lap cat, easily disciplined and trained • Very large cat, males-14 lbs., female- 1 lb • 34 recognized color patterns

13. Sacred cat of Burma • Very sociable; needs company, sweet natured, charming, intelligent • medium to large in size • Genetic defects have been known to occur: weak hind legs, nasal obstruction, poor occlusion Birman

14. Bombay • Cross between Burmese and American Short-hair • graceful, charming, gets along well with others, including strangers • Medium size • Jet black with copper colored eyes

15. Burmese • Originated in the U.S.- 1930’s by crossing a Siamese and Burma • sweet disposition, stubborn, bossy, and angry. Like to be held • Upper respiratory diseases are common in kittens especially if inbred

16. Devon Rex • Crossed domestic cat with a feral (wild) cared for stray • medium size • wide based ears are set low and very characteristic of breed • likes people and can be taught to retrieve • Excellent climber

17. Japanese Bobtail • Japanese origin sign of good luck • affectionate, sweet tempered, and loves people • medium to large size • distinctive “short” (bob) tail is kinked and hair forms a “pom” • Care must be taken not to hurt the sensitive tail area.

18. Korat • Native to Thailand- highly prized • intelligent and active, protective of family members, reserved with strangers. • Silver tipped fur • Prone to upper respiratory infections. Vaccinations are important!

19. Manx • Native to Isle of Man • Result of a genetic mutation • affectionate but leans towards one-on-one relationships, very healthy • 3 types: no tail (rumpy), short tail (stumpy), and long tail (longy) • Carrier of lethal gene that makes weak spines causing paralysis

20. Oriental Shorthair • Multiple colors • talkative companion, intelligent, witty, elegant, dependent upon people, playful • medium size, can be mistaken for Siamese • Good health, except some respiratory problems

21. Oldest and most popular breed • well-mannered, easygoing, quiet, excellent apartment cats • divided into 6 groups for showing purposes, depending on eye and coat color • Some white are born deaf if blue eyed or odd eyed (one blue/one green) • Require daily grooming, often experience breathing problems and clogged tear ducts Persian

22. Ragdoll • Originated in U.S. in 1960’s • Named for its floppy posture when handled • They have little fear or pain, docile, quiet, and composed • Large and heavy breed

23. Siamese • One-on-one cat, even within a family • talkative, loyal, fearless, very unpredictable • medium size, very long, refined • very little pigmentation; mask, ear, foot and tail tips • Always has blue eyes • Sensitive to vaccinations and anesthetics

24. Singapura • Originates in Singapore • Shy, but warms up after feeling of safety • playful and sociable • small breed; Males-6 lbs, females-4 lbs • Ticked coat is famous trait

25. Somali • Crossed with Abyssinian recessive carriers for long hair • Friendly, affectionate, prefers company, playful, very active • medium size • usually orange-brown ticked with black or red ticked with brown coat • gold or green eyes

26. Turkish Angora • “Ankara Cats” • Polite, intelligent, and very responsive. • Prefers a clean, almost spotless environment • small to medium size • use to be only white, now many colors are noted • Persian cousin

27. Scottish Fold • Natural Mutation • Ears are folded downward and forward • Excellent family cat, gets along well with other cats or dogs • medium size • crippling gene may affect length of life

28. Sphynx • Canadian origination- 1960’s • Hairless, indoor cat • Very dependent upon people for survival • Constant purr, affectionate, adore body contact • Needs to eat frequent meals because of its lack to store body fat • Body temperature is higher than normal

29. Methods of Cat Feeding • Dietary makeup • Cats need almost twice as much protein as dogs (30 to 40 percent) • Fats should make up ~10 percent • Food sources • Animals are best protein source • Commercial foods are best—No dog food • Food amount • Driven by cat’s age, weight, breed, condition, and activity level • Frequent feedings for kittens and pregnant females

30. Methods of Cat Exercise and Training • Amount of exercise varies according to cat’s breed and environment • Toys and play equipment are sources of exercise • Cats should be trained to litter box and scratching post as kittens • Trick training is similar to that for dogs

31. Methods of Cat Grooming and Care • Grooming benefits all cats • Longhaired cats should have daily care • Hand grooming usually enough for shorthairs • Cat baths should begin at 4 months • Other checks during regular grooming • Ears for mites • Eyesfor infection • Teeth and gums for soreness • Claws for trimming

32. Infectious Cat Diseases • Feline panleukopenia • Feline herpesvirus (FHV) and feline calicivirus (FCV) • Feline rhinotracheitis (PVR) • Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) • Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) • Feline pneumonitis • Rabies

33. Noninfectious Cat Diseases • Feline urologic syndrome (FUS) • Wet eyes

34. Internal Cat Parasites • Toxoplasmosis • Ascarids and hookworms • Tapeworms

35. External Cat Parasites • Lice • Mites • Feline scabies • Other external parasites

36. Cat Fungal Diseases and Poisonings • Similar to those for dogs • Fungal diseases • Ringworm • Systemic fungal infections • Poisonings • Insecticides • Plants • Household chemicals • Herbicides • Medications • Metal poisonings • Antifreeze

37. Reproduction • Heat – lasts 9-10 days • If not bred heat returns in 15-21 days • Male penis is barbed – stimulates ovulation • Pregnancy – 65 days • Overpopulation issues – neuteringimportant