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Breed Profile

Size: Medium
Origin: Australia
Colour: Spotted and Tabby: Brown, Blue, Chocolate, Lilac, Gold, and Peach.

An experimental breed from Australia developed in the late 1970s from crosses between Burmese and Abyssinian, with the addition of domestic tabby. The result is a cat with a short, fine, spotted coat.

Owner's Guide

Domestic Breed. An experimental breed from Australia developed in the late 1970s from crosses between Burmese and Abyssinian, with the addition of domestic tabby. The result is a cat with a short, fine, spotted coat. This is Australia's first important home-grown pedigree cat breed and has recently been included in a CD-ROM listing 'Australian Innovations'.

Appearance: The short coat is described as glossy, dense and resilient. The spots occur over the sides, flanks and belly, and are seen against a misty ground colour, which gives the breed its name. The legs and tail are marked with dark rings and the face shows a typical tabby pattern. The rounded head has large, green eyes.

History: In 1976 a Sydney ecologist, Dr Truda Straede, began a ten year breeding programme to create a spotted Australian breed. In order to avoid a narrow gene pool, no fewer than thirty foundation cats were involved. Half of these were Burmese, a quarter were Abyssinian and a quarter were domestic tabbies. The Burmese were used to provide temperament, size, conformation and colour dilution; the Abyssinians provided intelligence, colours and ticking; and the domestic tabbies provided vigour, health and reproductive qualities. All three types contributed to the creation of the spotted coat.

The result is a well-balanced cat, lacking in extremes and with a friendly temperament. It is claimed that Spotted Mists suffer little distress at being kept indoors. This is a significant feature in a new breed that is being developed in a country where Government rules often demand a 'feline curfew', in order to protect the native wildlife.

In 1986 the breed was accepted for registration by the Royal Agricultural Society Cat Control of New South Wales. 1988 saw the first Spotted Mist Champion, and 1989 the first Grand Champion.

Colour Forms: Already five colour forms are recognized:

Brown (Seal brown markings on silvery fawn); Blue (bluish-grey markings on silvery cream) ; Chocolate (chocolate markings on creamy-fawn) ; Lilac (dove grey markings on pinkish-grey) ; Gold (old gold markings on rich cream) ; Peach (salmon pink markings on pinkish-cream).

Breed Club:

The Spotted Mist Breeder's Association. Publishes a quarterly newsletter: 'On the Spot'. Address: P.O. BOX 384, Epping, New South Wales 2121, Australia.