Egyptian Mau (Cat)

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.

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. The spotting pattern of the Egyptian Mau is best viewed by stretching the cat and looking from back to front; against the ticking. These cats do not like to be held in the air, they prefer support at all times.

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.

Muzzle: Neither short nor pointed. Allowance to be made for jowls in adult males.

Ears: Medium, alert and moderately pointed, continuing the planes of the head. Ample width between ears. Hair on ears short and close lying. Inner ear a delicate, almost transparent, shell pink. May be tufted.

Eye Shape: Large and alert, almond shaped with a slight slant toward the ears. Skull aperture neither round nor Oriental.

Body: Medium long and graceful, showing well developed muscular strength. 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 slightly longer than front legs, giving the appearance of being on tip-toe when standing upright. Feet small and dainty almost round in shape. Toes, five in front and four behind.

Tail: Medium long, thick at base, with slight taper.

Coat Texture and Length: Silky and fine in texture but dense and resilient to the touch with a lustrous sheen. Hair medium in length but long enough to accommodate two or more bands of ticking, separated by lighter bands.

Coat Pattern: Good contrast between pale ground color and deeper marking. Forehead barred with characteristic "M" 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 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 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. Markings on torso are to be randomly spotted with variance in size and shape. Spotting pattern on each side of the torso need not match. Haunches and upper hind legs to be a transition of spots and stripes, breaking into bars on the lower leg. Underside of body to have "vest button" spots; dark in color against the correspondingly pale ground color.

Eye Color: Light green "Gooseberry green". Amber cast is acceptable only in young adults up to 1 1/2 years of age.

Penalize: Short or round head. Pointed muzzle. Small, round or oriental eyes. Cobby or Oriental body. Short or whip tail. No broken necklaces. Penciling in spotting pattern on torso. Poor condition. Amber eye color in cats over the age of 1 1/2 years.

NFA: Lack of spots, Blue eyes. Kinked or abnormal tail.

Accepted Colors:
Silver
Bronze
Smoke

Source: AACE >>>