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The breed of Egyptian cat Mau appeared almost 3 thousand years ago in Egypt. This is an ancient breed that was not artificially bred, but underwent natural selection. Mau is a short-haired cat, small in size. She has a silver color with dark spots, which are individual for each representative. The difference between them and ordinary spotted cats is that these spots are not only on the coat, but also on the skin of the animal. On their foreheads between the eyes they have a pattern resembling the letter “M”, and the eyes themselves are rather expressive, as if made up with a pencil. And, by the way, “Mau” in translation means “cat”.
Breed history
The real history of the appearance of cats of this breed occurred at least three thousand years ago. Egypt is considered the home country of the mau breed. But not just the native terrain, but also the cradle of all domesticated cats.Maw is believed to be descended from an African cat. The time interval, which is considered the time of the domestication of animals, dates from 4000-2000 years before the birth of Jesus Christ.
Ancient frescoes can tell a lot. On many of them, one can observe an image of cats holding birds in their mouths. Some researchers, who were engaged in the interpretation of cave paintings, suggested that the Egyptians used cats as hunters for prey. The oldest mural that was found was painted no less than 4 thousand years ago.
The farther, the more valuable the representatives of the cat. Over time, this animal began to play a significant role in religious life. The people of Egypt firmly believed that the sun god, namely the god Ra, was reincarnated into a cat. In this way, Ra went underground every night in order to fight with Apophis, the god of chaos and his constant enemy. And the sign that Ra won was that the sun rose every morning.
The rock paintings of the god Ra at that time showed him as a spotted cat that tore Apophis. And then, starting from 945, sacred representatives were associated with Bastet.This feminine deity, which is depicted as a cat or a woman with a cat's head. And then the cats were allowed to live in temples, because they were considered divine.
The cult of this goddess lasted at least one and a half thousand years, right up to the beginning of the reign of the Roman Empire. Since then, many statuettes-cats made of bronze have been preserved. They were depicted as an animal on long legs and a wide chest, which is very similar to the representative of the Mau from Egypt.
In case the cat was overtaken by death, it was embalmed and buried with all the traditions. The family in which this unpleasant incident occurred, declared real mourning, and in honor of this, all family members had to shave their eyebrows. If death did not occur naturally, and someone scoffed at the cat or even killed her, he was awaited the most severe punishment, which could result in the death of a person.
In the modern world, Egyptian Mau cats were talked about back in 1952. Natalya Trubetskaya, a Russian princess who moved to Italy, saw the beautiful cat there, which was the property of the Egyptian ambassador. Acquainted with him, she persuaded him to sell her a few kittens, because she liked them very much.After the princess began to engage in breeding and breeding kittens of this breed. Her goal was to maximize the similarity of cats on those that were drawn by ancient people on wall drawings. In 1956, Natalia with the cats moved to the United States. And it was in this country that she managed to achieve maximum similarity of kittens with the breed. Therefore, the name of the breed did not change, but left as is, because of their strong similarity.
In 1968, in America, this breed acquired the status of champion, and in 1977, representatives of the Egyptian Mau received recognition from the CFA.
The original homeland of cats Egyptian Mau believe Egypt. But one of the latest DNA results show that it found the blood of European and American representatives. And this is not at all strange, because since 1970, those who were actively involved in the selection of this species were specialists from the United States. To do this, they acquired cats with the parameters that were needed in Africa, as well as in India, and only then, in their own country, crossed them with local American species.
Breed description
Egyptian Mau is quite beautiful by nature, and also very active.It mainly grows to medium size, but at the same time remains quite elegant, with a developed musculature of the body.
- Its peculiarity of the body is that the hind legs are slightly longer than the front legs, which makes the cat tiptoe. Speaking of paws, it is worth noting the pads, which by nature are rather small, oval. The tail is not very long, thicker at the beginning, and narrow at the end, and the end is tapered.
- The weight of the breed of such a cat reaches 4-6 kg, and mature cats gain a mass of no more than 3-4.5 kg. With such weight and size the cat looks balanced, not massive. Therefore, it is not worth crossing it with another species to acquire a larger mass.
- The head of the cat is wedge-shaped, with roundings, of small size, but at the same time the breed has a broad nose.
- Mau's ears are large, rounded, and slightly pointed at the ends, set far away.
- The eyes are very intelligent, expressive, almond-shaped. Eye color is light green. With age, color may vary. For example, eyes with a greenish tinge are noted at about 8 months, and up to 18 a cat may have eyes of a saturated green color.Thus, the belonging of a cat to the breed is determined. If up to one and a half years the cat does not change the color of the eyes, then it is disqualified.
The most important feature of the Egyptian Mau cat is its coat color. It should be silky and shiny, and also quite dense. Also ticking rings are noted at each end of the hair. There should be several on each. It is believed that the spots that are on the fur of a cat, there is also on the skin of the animal. The real representative of the Mau has a pattern on the forehead in the form of “M”, and in the form of “W” between the ears or almost on the back of the head. This pattern is also called scarab.
Color
This breed has three colors - silver and bronze, and also smoky. When breeding, there are babies of marble color and black. But such options are inferior representatives of the species, so they do not participate in exhibitions, as well as in breeding. All three types of color are representatives of the Egyptian Mau, and they take part in championship shows. But besides the listed species, sometimes there are also cats of blue coloring. And in 1997 they were allowed to register them.Black Mau is bred, but, unfortunately, they are not taken to exhibitions.
The body of a cat can be of different size and shape of spots, and each representative has an individual ratio. It may be that there are only a few spots on the side of the animal, but the only thing that should distinguish them is the strong contrast between the color itself and the spots.
Such a cat lives about 12-15 years. Still, this breed is not so common. For example, in the USA in 2007 only two hundred kittens of this breed were recorded.
Cat character
Representatives of this breed are not only beautiful, but also pleasant in character. They love to play like small children, and purr in the arms of their beloved master. Those who breed this species, note that the Egyptian Mau are quite loyal and devoted cats that are attached to their owners for the rest of their lives.
Most of all they like to spend time with a host who plays with them. After all, these cats love to play, they are quite energetic and inquisitive.
Despite the artificial crossing of the species, these cats have kept their hunting instinct. Their favorite activity is snooping and catching prey.For such cats it is necessary to prepare a large number of toys, as well as places where you can sharpen claws. And if this nuance is ignored, the cat will make toys for itself from things that it will fall into. Also, do not hide your favorite cat toys, because it will meow incessantly, demanding the return of the thing.
It is believed that the long-time ancestors of this cat were engaged in hunting for birds, and today's representatives are no exception. They follow and hunt for everything that moves. At home it can be different candy wrappers, toys. And if you let the cat out on the street, then she can realize herself as a real hunter. But in order for the cat to be healthy, and the birds flying in the yard are alive, representatives of the Egyptian breed are best kept at home.
These cats are not capricious and silent. The only reason the Mau will mew is the desire to eat. To communicate with the beloved owner, the cat will not meow, but only rub against his feet and purr. This happens mostly, but there are exceptions. Indeed, despite the breed, each cat is individual.
Egyptian cats love heights, so at home they always try to climb higher to watch what happens from there.But, at the same time, they do not like closed spaces: the closed doors of a room or closet, if their favorite toys are hidden there. These cats are happy clever, and will be able to overcome obstacles, and get things on their own, which is interesting to them.
Despite the fear of water cats, representatives of this breed love to buy. But this also does not apply to all, because it depends solely on the nature of the animal. There are Egyptian cats who will swim with pleasure. And others only wet their paws, and this is where their interest in water ends.
Egyptian Mau are very friendly to other cats, as well as dogs. And what is already here to talk about children. These cats become good friends for them. The only ones who can suffer from the paws of a cat are poultry and rodents.
Mau care
Cats of this breed love to eat very much. Therefore, it is sometimes necessary to impose restrictions, and to monitor the food of the Mau, because they can quickly gain weight and suffer from obesity, which reduces the life expectancy of the animal.
From birth, kittens require increased attention. It is necessary to gradually accustom their noise and new faces.For this, for example, you can leave the TV on. They should also be taken carefully, with both hands, because they do not like a careless attitude.
So that the kitten is used to clipping claws and combing, you should start doing it early. Once a week you should check the kitten's ears, and wipe them if necessary. Also do not forget to watch the eyes of the cat. They should not water. Rare and scanty discharges are considered normal. You can bathe them only when necessary. Their wool stays clean for a long time and does not grow fat.
Animal health
Today, many problems are over, but the only thing that remains is an allergic reaction to certain types of feed. Also worth noting is that not all genetic diseases have been eliminated.Therefore, when purchasing an animal, it is necessary to discuss its heredity with the breeder.
Egyptian Mau is a rather expensive breed, but if the decision to buy a cat is made, you can buy black Mau. As already noted, such a color in a breed is considered a rejection. And such species do not participate in exhibitions. If participation in them is not planned, then we can safely acquire this representative. They are the same in nature, only on their wool is very difficult to see the spots.
Video: cat breed Egyptian Mau
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