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Australian Mist

The Australian Mist (Spotted Mist) is a breed of cat developed in Australia.

This cat breed was developed by Dr Truda Straede in Australia commencing in 1976, hence its name. The breed was developed by crossing the Burmese, Abyssinian, and Domestic shorthair cats to create a shorthaired cat with a spotted coat. The name was changed from 'Spotted Mist' to 'Australian Mist' in 1998 when cats with marbled coats, rather than spots, were accepted as part of the breed.

Physical characteristics

Australian Mists are medium-sized short haired cats, with a round head and large, expressive eyes. The coat patterns have three levels of definition; (1) ground color, paler than pattern; (2) pattern, delicate though distinct from ground color; (3) appears to wear a misted veil, caused by random ticking in the solid color areas. The legs and tail are ringed or barred, and the face and neck also have delicate lines of color. Australian Mist cats come in seven colors: brown, blue, chocolate, lilac, caramel, gold and peach.



Cat Temperament

They make perfect pets for children of all ages, even very young ones, as they are tolerant of handling, and are not inclined to scratch. As kittens they are lively, but sober up a little on maturity. Their life expectancy is in the mid to late teens.



Australian Mists thrive on human contact, making them happy to remain indoors between dusk and dawn or to be wholly indoor pets, an advantage as most people now prefer to keep their pets indoors. This also protects native wildlife. Some Mists can be trained to go for walks on a lead.



Their tendency to crawl into the nearest lap with or without invitation and to constantly hang around to see what people are up to, makes them excellent companions for home workers and invalids. Desexed cats and kittens fit in easily with all sorts of cats and dogs. Selective breeding has further enhanced these qualities, creating a truly companionable pet, which quickly becomes a member of the family.



Cat Distribution

As a relatively new breed, most Australian Mist catteries are in Australia, however there are a few in the U.K. and some desexed cats have been introduced to America and several other countries.



Breed Acceptance Status

The cat breed is now accepted for Championship status by the World Cat Federation. The Australian Mist celebrated 20 years as a Championship breed in Australia during 2006.


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Abyssinian - Cat Breeds

The Abyssinian is a cat breeds of domesticated cat with a distinctive ticked coat. There are many stories about its origins, often revolving around Egypt, but the actual origins are uncertain. The Abyssinian has become one of the most popular breeds of shorthair cat in the USA.

Appearance

The Abyssinian's body is of medium length, lithe, and with well-developed muscles. The legs are slender in proportion to the body, with a fine bone structure. The paws are small and oval. The Abyssinian has a fairly long tail, broad at the base and tapering to a point.



The head is broad and moderately wedge-shaped, with almond-shaped eyes that range from gold, green, hazel or copper. The nose and chin usually form a straight vertical line when viewed in profile. The Abyssinian's alert, relatively large ears are broad and cupped at the base, and moderately pointed at the tips, where tufts of hair are commonly seen. Large ear tufts are viewed as a must for show breeds. An M-shaped marking is sometimes found in the fur on the forehead. The "M" shaped marking, also referred to "frown lines", appear above an Abyssinian's eyes. They have markings, most often referred to as "mascara lines", appearing from the corners of their eyes.



Coat types and genetic makeup

The coat is medium-length, dense, and silky to the touch. The Abyssinian, and a similar long-hair cat breed called the Somali, have coats that are unusual enough to catch attention. These felines owe their special coat to one dominant mutant gene known as Ta. Each hair has a base color with three or four darker-colored bands; the hair is the lighter color at the root, and the darker "ticking" color at the tip. This ticking is found only in the Somali, Abyssinian and Singapura.



The first cat to have its entire genome published was an Abyssinian named Cinnamon.



The original Abyssinian coat color is known as 'Usual' in the United Kingdom and as 'Ruddy' elsewhere. The coat has a warm reddish-brown base, with black ticking. The feet and the backs of the hind legs are always black.



Over the years, various other colours have been developed from this original form, but the markings on the coat have remained the same. The back of the hind legs and the pads of the paws are always darker than the rest of the coat. A popular color is Sorrel, which has a cinnamon (yellowish-brown) base, with chocolate brown ticking, paw pads and backs of the legs. Blue Abyssinians, which have become increasingly popular in recent years, have a light beige base color with blue ticking, paw pads and backs of the legs. The relatively rare Fawn Abyssinians have a light-cream base color, with darker cream ticking and warm dark cream pads and backs of the legs.



Silver Abyssinians are a separate group among the breed. Although this color has been in existence for decades, it is not recognized by the Cat Fanciers' Association, the world's largest registry of pedigreed cats. In Silvers, the undercoat is always a pure silvery white. The markings include black, blue, warm dark cream and cinnamon. Purely Silver Abyssinians are difficult to breed because they sometimes have undesirable tan patches in the coat. In addition to this, any spots in the coat show up more clearly on a silver coat.



Rare colors include the Tortoiseshell, Red, Cream, Chocolate and Lilac, which are all bred on a small scale in Holland and the UK.



Abyssinian kittens are born with dark coats that gradually lighten as they mature. It usually takes several months for the final coat color to be established.



Temperament

Abyssinians temperament are extroverted, extremely active, playful, willful and intelligent. They are arguably the most active breed of cats. They are usually not "lap cats", being too preoccupied with exploring and playing. They are popular among breeders and owners, and can be very successful show cats. Not all Abyssinians are shown, however, because the color and type standards are very exacting, and because some are shy towards strangers and timid in public. They have quiet, engaging voices.



"Abys", as they are affectionately referred to by their fans, need a great deal of interaction with the family to keep them happy and can get depressed without daily activity and attention. They generally get along well with other cats, although they need their space and the females can sometimes be irritable around other cats. Abyssinians are known for their curiosity and enjoy exploring their surroundings, including heights. They are sensible cats that do not take unnecessary risks. As one might expect from such an intelligent and physically capable breed, Abyssinians are known to be formidable hunters. They adore toys and can play for hours with a favorite ball. Some play fetch.

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List of Cat Breeds

The following list of cat breeds includes domestic cat breeds and domestic/wild hybrids. The list of cat breeds includes established breeds recognized by various cat registries, new and experimental breeds, distinct domestic population not being actively developed and lapsed breeds.

Cat Breeds Country Coat Pattern Image
Abyssinian Egypt Short Ticked Gustav chocolate.jpg
Australian Mist Australia Short Spotted and Classic tabby Blue Spotted Australian Mist.jpg
American Polydactyl


Polydactylcat.jpg
American Curl United States Short/Long All American curl 2.jpg
American Shorthair United States Short
American shorthair cat.jpg
Balinese Cat United States Long Colorpoint Oskar.jpg
Bengal Cat United States Short Spotted/Marbled BengalCat Stella.jpg
Birman Burma Long Colorpoint Birman2.jpg
Bombay cat United States Short Solid Bombay cat.jpg
Brazilian Shorthair Brazil Short All Gato pelo curto brasileiro.JPG
British Shorthair United Kingdom Short All Britishblue.jpg
British Longhair United Kingdom

British Longhair - Black Silver Shaded.jpg
Burmese cat Burma Short Solid Blissandlucky11.jpg
Burmilla Cat United Kingdom Short/Long
Male Burmilla cat.jpeg
California Spangled Cat United States Short Spotted Star Spangled Cat.jpg
Chartreux France Short Solid Abbaye fev2006 003.jpg
Chausie Cat France Short Ticked Chausiecatexample.jpg
Colorpoint Shorthair
Short
Jake117.jpg
Cornish Rex England Rex All BebopsLilacPrince.JPG
Devon Rex England Rex All Devon Rex Izzy.jpg
Donskoy cat Russia Hairless
Cat don sphinx.JPG
Dragon Li China Short Striped tabby Dragon Li - Li Hua Mau1.jpg
Egyptian Mau Egypt Short Spotted Egy mau.jpg
European Shorthair Sweden Short
European shorthair procumbent Quincy.jpg
Exotic Shorthair United States Short All Cream tabby exotic cat.jpg
German Rex East Germany Rex
German Rex Emi.jpg
Havana Brown United Kingdom Short Solid Havana Brown.jpg
Himalayan Cat United Kingdom Long Colorpoint Chocolate Himlayan.jpg
Japanese Bobtail Japan Short/Long All but colorpoint and ticked JapaneseBobtailBlueEyedMi-ke.JPG
Javanese Cat
Long Colorpoint Javanese cat.jpg
Korat Cat Thailand Short Solid Veda,chat-adulte-mâle-race-korat.JPG
Kurilian Bobtail Russia Short/Long
Kurilian bobtail.JPG
LaPerm United States Rex All Laperm LH red tabby.jpg
Maine Coon United States Long All but colorpoint and ticked Maine Coon female.jpg
Manx Cat Isle of Man Short/Long All but colorpoint Manx breed cat named Inkku.jpg
Munchkin cat United States

Munchkin cat grooming.jpg
Nebelung Germany Semi-long Solid Aleksandr van Song de Chine 2 zijkant klein majesteit.JPG
Norwegian Forest Cat Norway Long All but colorpoint Norskskogkatt Evita 3.JPG
Ocicat United States Short Spotted Ocicat-Charan.jpg
Oriental Bicolour


Oriental shorthair 20070130 caroline.jpg
Oriental Shorthair
Short All but colorpoint Mite 030604.jpg
Persian Greater Iran Long All Persialainen.jpg
Peterbald Russia Hairless All Tamila.jpg
Pixie-Bob United States Short Spotted Jarnac Bepacific feb07.jpg
Ragamuffin United States Long All Ragamuffin.jpg
Ragdoll United States Long Colorpoint/Mitted/Bicolor Ragdoll from Gatil Ragbelas.jpg
Russian Blue Russia Short Solid Russian Blue 001.gif
Savannah Cat United States Short Spotted Savannah Cat portrait.jpg
Scottish Fold Scotland Short/Long All Scottishfold.jpg
Selkirk Rex United States Rex (Short/Long) All PolloSelkirkRex.jpg
Serengeti Cat United States Short Spotted Serengetimalecat.jpg
Siamese Thailand Short Colorpoint Siam lilacpoint.jpg
Siberian Cat Russia Semi-long All Qgcfillimor.jpg
Singapura Singapore Short Ticked Raffles singapura cat.jpg
Snowshoe United States Short Colorpoint Snowshoe (cat).JPG
Sokoke Kenya Short Classic tabby with ticking Sokoke dalili.jpg
Somali United States Long Ticked Blue Somali kitten age 3 months.jpg
Sphynx Canada Hairless All Sphinx2 July 2006.jpg
Tonkinese Canada Short Colourpoint/Mink/Solid Tonkinese.gif
Turkish Angora Turkey Semi-long All but colorpoint Angora.jpg
Turkish Van Turkey Semi-long Van Turkish Van Example2.jpg
Turkish Vankedisi Turkey Semi-long All white Turkish Van Cat.jpg
Twisty Cat/Squitten


Squitten2.jpg
Ukrainian Levkoy Ukraine Hairless
Ukrainian Levkoy cat.jpg
York Chocolate Cat United States

Adult Kittie (s).jpg

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