Egyptian Mau
About This Breed
The home of Egyptian Mau is Egypt. In Arabic "Mau" means a cat. Images of these beauties are found in ancient Egyptian pictures (aged more than thirty centuries) where they represent the gods of Bast and the god of the sun Ra. During the time of the Pharaohs these cats were valued and even deified. Mummies have been found of these amazing animals.
In the middle of XX century, a couple of kittens was taken from Cairo in the United States, and there the breeding of these unusual cats began.
The body of Mau is medium-sized and muscular. Hind feet are slightly longer than the fore feet.The tail is of medium length. The head of a medium size ad round, cheeks aren't allocated. Ears are of medium or large size and pointed. The eyes are large, almond-shaped, light - green. Up to 4.5 months amber color of eyes is possible. Hair texture is thin, silky, soft to the touch, thick and of medium length. The color can be silver, smoky, pewter or bronze. A special feature is the skin fold between the hind feet like a cheetah's allowing to develop speed up to 58km/h.
A characteristic feature of the Egyptian Mau is maculation. Spots' size can be varied from small to relatively large. The shape may be long or irregular. But dark spots should stand out clearly against light background. The pattern isn't only on its hair, but also on the skin. On the forehead of the Egyptian clearly stands out the letter "M".
Mau care is easy, like all cats it must be periodically combed out and from time to time to examine eyes and ears.
The nature of a cat is balanced and gentle. Mau loves people and care, so do not get a cat, if you don't have enough time for it. The cat loves freedom, keep it in a small apartment is simply impossible, but don't let it walk alone on the street, because its unusual beauty can attract anyone. On the contrary to all rules Mau walks perfectly walks on a leash, so it will always be able to accompany you on a walk!
There are usually four kittens in the brood. The period of gestation of babies is longer than of other cats (up to 73 days). Kittens are born with highly visible spots. From the first day its kittens are characterized by their activity and playfulness.