Pixie bob cat

Pixie bob cat breed bred in the US resembling a miniature lynx.

Nature

Pixie bob cat is an active and sociable cat. In his attachment to the family, he resembles a dog and is a great companion for children. He also gets along with other cats and dogs at home. He is strongly attached to his family, he easily teaches how to fetch and walk on a leash. He is inquisitive, willingly stays close to his guardian and accompanies him in everyday activities, but at the same time he is calm and does not impose himself, he is just next to him. He often expresses his feelings by doing “lambs”. Pixie-bob cats are quite talkative; they make various sounds: chirping, cooing, sometimes growling. In turn, most rarely meow, and some individuals do not do it at all.

Pixie bob cat. Advantages and disadvantages

Disadvantages

• a rare breed, hard to get

Advantages

• nice family companion
• moderately active, unobtrusive, balanced
• easy to learn
• accepts other animals
• healthy
• not requiring care

Pixie bob cat. Health

In general, this breed is very healthy and resistant, because breeders took care of a wide genetic basis. Fresh blood is still being poured from time to time. So far, there are no reports of any special predispositions to genetic diseases. Probably some pixie-bobs may have problems related to spinal shortening, but since they don’t promote maximum tail reduction (such as manx), these problems are likely to be much less common with them. It is known that some pixie-bobs are sensitive for certain drugs and vaccines.

Feeding

Like any cat, it should be fed with good quality food or balanced food prepared at home. Remember to adapt the food to the age, health and activity of the individual.

Care

This breed is easy to care for (it is enough to comb the fur once a week, periodically clean the ears and corners of the eyes). For non-emerging cats, it is recommended to trim the nails every 2-3 weeks – similar to other cat breeds. Long-haired cats should be given laxative preparations.

History

The pixie-bob breed is from the United States. It is a muscular, sturdy house cat, which in appearance is supposed to resemble lynx (American species of lynx found in the USA). The lynx is called bobcat in English (bob – short tail, cat – cat). Although these cats actually look a bit like miniature lynxes, they have typical domestic purr character. The breed has two lengths of coat. In 1985, Carol Ann Brewer (kennel Stoneisland) purchased a spotted tomcat with a short tail and extra fingers from a couple living at the foot of the Cascade Mountains in Washington State. In 1986, she adopted a classically colored tomcat, which she called Keba. Despite the malnutrition, it was very high – in those areas it was believed that such cats are the result of a cross between a domestic cat with a lynx (today we know that this is not possible). Keba covered a neighbor’s house cat named Maggie, the kittens were born in April 1986. From this litter, Carol Ann took one of the wild-colored cats with fuzzy spots on a red-fawn background. She named her Pixie. 

Soon Carol Ann noticed that these short-tailed cats have a very distinctive appearance and began to look for similar specimens in the area to create a new breed. She joined 23 cats from the Kaskadowe Mountains. They were considered the effect of crosswords with lynx. Carol Ann coined the term “Legend cat”. Soon other breeders joined the program. that these short-tailed cats have a very distinctive appearance and began looking for similar specimens around to create a new breed. She joined 23 cats from the Kaskadowe Mountains. They were considered the effect of crosswords with lynx. Carol Ann coined the term “Legend cat”. Soon other breeders joined the program. that these short-tailed cats have a very distinctive appearance and began looking for similar specimens around to create a new breed. She joined 23 cats from the Kaskadowe Mountains. They were considered the effect of crosswords with lynx. Carol Ann coined the term “Legend cat”. Soon other breeders joined the program.

In 1989, Carol Ann developed a pattern and called the pixie-bob breed she created. In 1993 she applied to TICA for recognition of the breed, which was initially in 1994. Since 1998 the breed has already been entitled to championships. It is also recognized by ACFA and CCA. The breed is quite popular in the US and is also becoming more common in the UK.

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Pixie-Bob – a race not recognized by FIFe

• Origin:  United States
• Character:  balanced, active, friendly, closely connected with the guardian
• Size:  medium to large
• Weight:  males 5.5-8 kg, females 3.5-5.5 kg
• General appearance:  muscular and massive with a rectangular body shape
• Head: Large to medium, inverted pear-shaped. The hair on the cheeks growing down creates sideburns similar to those of a lynx.
• Ears: Medium-large, broad and deep at the base. Pretty wide apart. Rounded at the ends. Brushes desirable, more pronounced for the long-haired variety. “Thumbprint” on the back.
• Eyes: Medium-sized, deep set, triangular. Golden, brown or gooseberry green.
• Nose: Broad, with slightly converging lines. Big mirror.
• Body:  Muscular, sturdy, back slightly rising towards the rump, deep sides, broad chest.
• Limbs: long and muscular, hind longer than the forelegs. Large, round paws.
• Tail:  min. 2 inches long (about 5 cm) and maximum reaching to the hocks. A tail shorter than 1 inch or full is a disqualifying defect. It can be bent, but it should be flexible and move freely.
• Coat:  Short-haired variety: short, slightly protruding; long-haired variety: medium long hair, no longer than 5 cm, slightly softer and more close-fitting than the short-haired variety.
• Ointment:  all shades of spotted ointment, where the spots are slightly blurred by ticking, the ideal color is from fawn to red-brown with small spots, but the type is more important than ointment
• Activity:  average
• Resistance/susceptibility to diseases:  very resistant; perfectly tolerates low temperatures

Interesting facts

There are still rumors that these cats are the result of a cross between a domestic cat with a lynx. However, genetic studies have confirmed that both the pixie-bob breed and the American lynx are 100% domestic cats. Lynx is too genetically distant for such a crossword to be possible.

In 2013, four different mutations in the T gene were found in Manx cats, including for tail development. They all cause tail shortening. The presence of one of these mutations was also found in the American bobtail and pixie-bob breeds. Pixie-bob is the only breed in which polydactyly is allowed, i.e. the presence of additional fingers. The maximum number of fingers allowed on one paw is 7.