|
The
Egyptian Mau is the oldest of the spotted domestic cats, a group which includes the ocicat
and the Bengal. The lean, dappled cats were first brought to the United States in 1956 by
Nathalie Troubetskoy, a Russian princess with a past as fascinating as that of her
Egyptian cats. While living in Rome, Troubetskoy was given a speckled kitten in a shoebox.
Through investigation she learned the kitten was an Egyptian Mau. Intrigued by the unique
young cat, the princess worked to save the breed from extinction.
Spotted Cats
The Egyptian mau -- along with the
Bengal and the ocicat -- is one of a great speckled trio of pedigreed cats vying for the
spotlight in cat circles today. Like candidates in a crowded primary field, the advocates
of each spotted breed extol its me-only virtues. The ocicat is the most plentiful wildcat
look-alike. The Bengal actually has a dash of wild blood in its veins. The Egyptian mau is
the oldest spotted breed, the sole naturally occurring one and the first spotted breed to
achieve champion status in this country. What's more, the mau is the only spotted breed
whose name means cat in Egyptian, and the only spotted cat whose patron saint was a White
Russian princess. (A fourth spotted contestant, the California spangle cat, is the only
spotted breed introduced to the world via the Neiman-Marcus Catalog; yet despite its
seismic debut, the spangle has yet to earn the stamp of championship status in any North
American cat registry.)
Egyptian maus were first brought to
the United States in December 1956 by Princess Nathalie Troubetskoy, who had been living
in exile in Italy. Arriving with the princess were three Egyptian maus. The eldest was
Baba, a tall, elegant, tempestuous, 4-year-old, silver-spotted female. She was accompanied
by her 3-year-old son Giorgio, also known as Jo-Jo, who was a larger, bronze-colored cat.
Also along for the 35-hour ride was their daughter Liza, an 11-month-old, ocher-color
female. The princess had tried to book passage on the Andrea Doria, the 700-foot,
11-story, unsinkable luxury ship that sank in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of New
England on July 25, 1956, after being rammed by the Swedish liner Stockholm. Had the
princess been on board, the mau might not have been the first spotted breed established in
the United States.
Troubetskoy, who was 59 when she
arrived in this country, has been called "one of the most accomplished and
extraordinary persons ever associated with the cat fancy." That's no exaggeration.
A&E biographies should be so interesting.
Born in 1897 in Lublin, Poland,
where her father was governor of the province, the princess was a member of one of the
oldest, most influential Russian families. After studying art and medicine in Moscow, she
served as a registered nurse on Russian battle fronts toward the end of World War I. She
was then transferred to England, where she was a member of the British Imperial Nursing
Service. She lived in England for 20 years, busying herself with welfare work, lecturing
and broadcasting. Shortly before World War II she moved to Rome. There she served as chief
nurse to the U.S. 2675th Regiment upon its arrival in Italy. When in Rome she was also
secretary-librarian of the American Church of Santa Susanna, in addition to contributing
articles, including a number of children's stories, to American and English publications.
While Princess Troubetskoy was
living in Rome, a youngster of her acquaintance presented her with a spotted-silver female
kitten, whom the young boy had been keeping in a shoebox. The kitten had been given to the
lad by a member of the diplomatic corps of one of the Mideast embassies for a reason that
has been lost to posterity. The princess named the kitten Baba. Intrigued by the kitten's
unique appearance, the princess sought to learn more about her background. After
discussing the tiny feline with a veterinarian and several professors, the princess
concluded that the shoebox kitten was an Egyptian mau, a breed whose tenure on the show
bench in Europe predated World War II. Maus, like most other breeds, had been trampled
underfoot by the jackboots of that war, which had culled the mau population considerably.
When the princess received her kitten, the majority of the surviving members of the breed
were concentrated in Italy. The princess was so taken with the kitten that she determined
to do what she could to save the breed from extinction -- or worse yet -- hybridization.
She was ultimately successful in the first regard only.
After settling in the United States,
Princess Troubetskoy registered a cattery name, Fatima, drew up a standard for her breed,
and enlisted recruits in her campaign to have the mau recognized for championship
competition. To publicize that campaign she placed Liza on display at the Empire Cat Club
show in New York City in 1957. Because the Egyptian mau population in the United States
was limited, persons working to establish the breed in this country were obliged to employ
some outcrosses to domestic cats -- and some subsequent inbreeding -- in order to secure
the breed's survival. This strategy was hardly unique among "purebred" cats
during the postwar and other lean years.
The Egyptian mau was first accepted
by the Cat Fanciers' Federation in 1968. The Canadian Cat Association (CCA) marked the
spots not long afterward, and in 1972 a silver Egyptian mau female bred by Princess
Troubetskoy, Fatima's Ula of Trillium, became the first mau to win a grand championship in
CCA, not to mention North America.
Copyright 1999 by Cats & Kittens
magazine.
|
|
GENERAL: the
Egyptian Mau is the only natural domesticated breed of spotted cat. The Egyptian's
impression should be one of an active, colorful cat of medium size with well developed
muscles. Perfect physical condition with an alert appearance. Well balanced physically and
temperamentally. Males tend to be larger than females.
HEAD: a slightly rounded wedge
without flat planes, medium in length. Not full-cheeked. Profile showing a gentle contour
with slight rise from the bridge of the nose to the forehead. Entire length of nose even
in width when viewed from the front. Allowance must be made for jowls in adult males.
MUZZLE: should flow into existing
wedge of the head. It should be neither short nor pointed. The chin should be firm, not
receding or protruding.
EARS: medium to large, alert and
moderately pointed, continuing the planes of the head. Broad at base. Slightly flared with
ample width between the ears. Hair on ears short and close lying. Inner ear a delicate,
almost transparent, shell pink. May be tufted.
EYES: large and alert, almond
shaped, with a slight slant towards the ears. Skull apertures neither round nor oriental.
BODY: medium long and graceful,
showing well developed muscular strength. Loose skin flap extending from flank to hind leg
knee. General balance is more to be desired than size alone. Allowance to be made for
muscular necks and shoulders in adult males.
LEGS and FEET: in proportion to
body. Hind legs proportionately longer, giving the appearance of being on tip-toe when
standing upright. Feet small and dainty, slightly oval, almost round in shape. Toes: five
in front and four behind.
TAIL: medium long, thick at base,
with slight taper.
COAT: hair is medium in length with
a lustrous sheen. In the smoke color the hair is silky and fine in texture. In the silver
and bronze colors, the hair is dense and resilient in texture and accommodates two or more
bands of ticking separated by lighter bands
PENALIZE: short or round head.
Pointed muzzle. Small, round or oriental eyes. Cobby or oriental body. Short or whip tail.
If no broken necklaces. Pencillings in spotting pattern on torso. Solid stripes on
underside of body instead of "vest button" spots. Poor condition. Amber cast in
eye color in cats over the age of 1 1/2 years.
DISQUALIFY: lack of spots. Blue
eyes. Kinked or abnormal tail. Incorrect number of toes. White locket or button
distinctive from other acceptable white-colored areas in color sections of standard.
EGYPTIAN MAU PATTERN
(Common to all colors)
PATTERN: markings on torso are to be randomly spotted with variance in
size and shape. The spots can be small or large, round, oblong, or irregular shaped. Any
of these are of equal merit but the spots, however shaped or whatever size, shall be
distinct. Good contrast between pale ground color and deeper markings. Forehead barred
with characteristic OMO and frown marks, forming lines between the ears which continue
down the back of the neck, ideally breaking into elongated spots, along the spine. As the
spinal lines reach the rear haunches, they meld together to form a dorsal stripe which
continues along the top of the tail to its tip. The tail is heavily banded and has a dark
tip. The cheeks are barred with "mascara" lines; the first starts at the outer
corner of the eye and continues along the contour of the cheek, with a second line, which
starts at the center of the cheek and curves upwards, almost meeting below the base of the
ear. On the upper chest there are one or more broken necklaces. The shoulder markings are
a transition between stripes and spots. The upper front legs are heavily barred but do not
necessarily match. Spotting pattern on each side of the torso need not match. Haunches and
upper hind legs to be a transition between stripes and spots, breaking into bars on the
lower leg. Underside of body to have "vest buttons" spots; dark in color against
the correspondingly pale ground color.
EGYPTIAN MAU COLORS
EYE COLOR: light green
"gooseberry green". Amber cast is acceptable only in young adults up to 11/2
years of age.
SILVER: pale silver ground color
across the head, shoulders, outer legs, back, and tail. Underside fades to a brilliant
pale silver. All markings charcoal color with a white to pale silver undercoat, showing
good contrast against lighter ground colors. Back of ears grayish-pink and tipped in
black. Nose, lips, and eyes outlined in black. Upper throat area, chin, and around
nostrils pale clear silver, appearing white. Nose leather: brick red. Paw
pads: black with black between the toes and extending beyond the paws of the hind
legs.
BRONZE: warm bronze ground color
across head, shoulders, outer legs, back, and tail, being darkest on the saddle and
lightening to a tawny-buff on the sides. Underside fades to a creamy ivory. All markings
dark brown-black with a warm brown undercoat, showing good contrast against the lighter
ground color. Back of ears tawny-pink and tipped in dark brown-black. Nose, lips, and eyes
outlined in dark brown, with bridge of nose brown. Upper throat area, chin, and around
nostrils pale creamy white. Nose leather: brick red. Paw pads: black
or dark brown, with same color between toes and extending beyond the paws of the hind
legs.
SMOKE: pale silver ground color
across head, shoulders, legs, tail, and underside, with all hairs to be tipped in black.
All markings jet black with a white to pale silver undercoat, with sufficient contrast
against ground color for pattern to be plainly visible. Nose, lips, and eyes outlined in
jet black. Upper throat area, chin, and around nostrils lightest in color. Nose
leather: black. Paw pads: black with black between the toes and
extending beyond the paws of the hind legs. Whiskers: black.
The following information
is for reference purposes only, and not an official part of the CFA Show Standard.
EGYPTIAN MAU COLOR CLASS
NUMBERS
Silver ....... 0842 0843
Bronze ........ 0844 0845
Smoke ......... 0846 0847
AOV ........... 0848 0849
* Egyptian Mau allowable outcross breeds: none
|
