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Breed Profile

Size: Medium
Origin: The Indian Ocean coast & southeast Asia
Colour: Ruddy, Red, Blue & Fawn

Abyssinians are loyal and lively. They love to be around people, but are not lap cats.

Owner's Guide

Domestic Breed. At the turn of the century sometimes called the 'Ticked', 'British Tick', 'Bunny Cat', 'Rabbit Cat', 'Hare Cat' or 'Cunny'. Often referred to today as the 'Aby'. In France it is known as the Abyssin; in Germany as the Abessinier; and in Holland the Abessijn.

Appearance: Medium-sized, muscular, slender-bodied, short-haired cat with characteristically ticked coat. Each of the orange-brown hairs is marked with two or three dark bands; the darkest of the bands is the one nearest the tip of the hair. Head slightly wedged-shaped, with large ears and almond-shaped eyes. Soft, dense fur. Long, tapering tail. There is a long-haired variant of this breed, recently developed from it, called the Somali.

History: We probably owe the existence of the modern Abyssinian breed to a bizarre historical incident. In the 1860s, the Emperor of Ethiopia wrote a letter to Queen Victoria in which, among other things, he asked for her hand in marriage. Not surprisingly, the letter was ignored. Her failure to respond so incensed the Emperor that he proceeded to arrest a number of Europeans, including the British Consul.

Over-reacting in a spectacular fashion, the British government sent a force of 32,000 to ensure their release. This so panicked the Emperor that, as the troops approached, he blew his brains out with a pistol that had, ironically, been an earlier gift from Queen Victoria.

The British troops, having no need to fight, offered gifts to a local chief and set off for home. Along the way, some of the soldiers appear to have acquired pet kittens from the now friendly locals, and brought these back with them to Britain.

Gordon Stables, writing in 1874, reports that the first Abyssinian Cat to be identified as an individual was called 'Zula' (not 'Zulu' as some books say) and was brought into to England by the wife of Captain Barrett-Lennard in 1868. This date coincides with the end of the Abyssinian confrontation and it seems likely that she obtained the animal from one of the returning soldiers. This idea is reinforced by the fact that Zula is the name of the northern Abyssinian port at which the British military force established its first base, in 1867.

Early writers on this breed, noting the proximity of Abyssinian to Egypt, suggested that it might be the direct descendant of the sacred cat of the ancient Egyptians. Although the Abyssinian Cat does, indeed, have the correct body proportions when compared with the many small bronze statuettes of the cat goddess Bastet, there is no hard evidence to support this theory.

A less romantic version of the Abyssinian's origin sees it as a cat 'more at home on the Thames than the Nile' - created by careful selective breeding in England at the end of the 19th century. This view holds that individual cats with ticked coats were brought together repeatedly to fix the 'ticked' quality and create the breed out of existing British shorthairs.

The truth about the origin of the breed probably lies in a combination of these theories. It seems quite likely that a few unusual cats with ticked coats, distantly related to those of nearby Egypt, were brought back to England after the brief 'war' with Abyssinia. These were probably then mated with carefully chosen British shorthairs to develop the new breed of 'ticked' cats.

According to several authors, the Abyssinian was first listed as a distinct breed in 1882, but its status was strongly contested by certain authorities of the day. The first Standard of Points for the breed was published in 1889, by Harrison Weir, and the first Abyssinians to be registered in the National Cat Club Stud Book had their names entered there in 1896. In 1907 the first specimens were sent to the USA.

In the inter-war period, in 1929, the Abyssinian Cat Club was formed in England by Major E.S.Woodiwiss. After a dormant period during World War II, it was re-activated in 1947. Barely a dozen pure-bred Abyssinians had survived the austerity and destruction of the war years, but serious breeding was soon started again and the Club went from strength to strength until it was eventually able to celebrate sixty years of existence with a special Jubilee Show in 1989.

Personality: Terms that have been used to describe this breed include: intelligent, affectionate, gentle, graceful, sinuous, energetic, companionable, friendly, fearless, quiet, active, playful, alert, fast, sun-worshipping. Lithe and pantherine in its movements. Requires considerable freedom and dislikes close confinement.

A critic of the breed has commented that it is difficult to handle, undisciplined, introverted, shy and cautious, but against this, an eminent cat judge has declared: 'The quiet unassuming Abyssinian combines all the good points and none of the failings of his more widely advertized relations.' .

Colour forms: The original colour form of this species was described as 'ruddy'. It stood alone as the sole acceptable colour until, in 1963, it was joined by a 'sorrel' or 'red'. Blue was not added as a championship colour until 1984. Today a number of further colours have been added, and the recognised lists read as follows:

GCCF: Usual (=Ruddy/ Ruddy Brown/ Burnt Sienna); Sorrel (= Red/ Cinnamon/ Russet); Chocolate; Blue; Lilac (chocolate dilute);Fawn (sorrel dilute); Red (sex-linked red); Cream (sex-linked cream); Tortie; Sorrel Tortie; Chocolate Tortie; Blue Tortie; Lilac Tortie; Fawn Tortie; Silver; Sorrel Silver; Chocolate Silver; Blue Silver; Lilac Silver; Fawn Silver; Red Silver; Cream Silver; Tortie Silver; Sorrel Tortie Silver; Chocolate Tortie Silver; Blue Tortie Silver; Lilac Tortie Silver; Fawn Tortie Silver.

CFA: Ruddy (= Usual/ Ruddy Brown/ Burnt Sienna) ; Red (= Sorrel/ Cinnamon/ Russet); Blue; Fawn.

Bibliography:

1929. Brooke, H.C. The Abyssinian Cat. (Pamphlet)

1951. Denham, H. and Denham, S. Child of the Gods; Notes on the Abyssinian Cat Today and Yesterday. Denham, London.

1963. Zanetti, A.B. Journey from the Blue Nile. A History of the Abyssinian Cat. The United Abyssinian Club, New York.

1973. Ashford A.E. and Pond, G. Rex, Abyssinian and Turkish Cats. Gifford, London.

1973. Peltz, R. The Abyssinian Cat. TEX-ABY Club, Houston, Texas.

1983. Faler, K. This is the Abyssinian Cat. TFH, New Jersey.

1991. Cooke-Zimmermann, R. Abyssinians. TFH, New Jersey.

1995. Helgren, J.A. Abyssinian Cats. Barron's Educational Services. Hauppauge, New York.

Breed Clubs:

Abyssinian Cat Association. Address: Danum, Fields Road, Chedworth, Glos., GL54 4NQ, England.

Abyssinian Cat Club. Publishes a twice-yearly journal called Papyrus. Address: Alwyne, 15 Cramhurst Lane, Whitley, Surrey, GU8 5RA, England.

Abyssinian Cat Club of America. Address: 4060 Croaker Ln., Woodbridge, VA 22193, USA.