Somali Cat

Somali Cat Photo of Siennaman © Helmi Flick

Introduction

I think that you'll agree that this is a very handsome cat and one that looks a little familiar. At first sight Siennaman (above) looks a bit like an Abyssinian with a gorgeous tail, which is not quite the case. Siennaman is
a longhaired Aby or a Somali Cat. I like the look of this cat because I like foxes and there is a distinct look of the fox about the cat breed.

Photo of Rebel © Helmi Flick

This cat breed arrived accidentally during the Abyssinian breeding programme. After a period of about ten or more years it was decided to turn an accident into a predictable event and deliberate breeding began.

History

Date	Event
1950	Long Haired Abyssinians began to appear naturally within the Abyssinian breeding programme.
1960s	Breeders' attitudes changed towards the long haired Abyssinian and they started to breed them deliberately
1965	Somali Cat shown in Australia
late 1970s	Accepted for Championship status (full) in major North American associations
1991	GCCF grant Championship Status (full) to the Somali

Photo - Somali Kittens © Helmi Flick - kittens may be darker and
less warm in color than when adult

Appearance and Character

Helmi Flick's photographs pretty well say all you need to know.

Here's the character in bullet form:

hardy - few health issues - (a) gingivitis (gum disease), not untypical in cats generally (b) may be prone to a form of anemia called AIHA
alert, intelligent and keen
even tempered
active and playful
apparently calmer and less active than the Abyssinian
quiet with a soft voice
like to lick the hair of their human companion

Photo of Mana © Helmi Flick

Here's the appearance in words and bullet form:

the coat as can be seen is "ticked". Ticking means that the coat has that broken salt and pepper appearance. This is due to the Agouti gene (A) causing banding on the hair, which also produces the tabby cat in tandem with the Tabby gene (T). The color of the ticking is naturally dependent on the color of the cat. For example, for a ruddy cat the ticking is black (see Siennaman at the top of the page)
magnificent plumed tail due to the long haired gene
"M" on the forehead (a tabby cat trait)
4 colors, ruddy, red, blue and fawn
Medium build
Medium weight at 10-12 lbs for males
gold or green eyes
white under chins and around mouths

Photo of Somali cat as a killer © lara68 under creative commons

Health

It has been reported (Tufts conference Sept. 2007) that this cat breed (and Bengals, Persians and Abyssinians) can suffer from a disease called Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA). It is inherited and due to mutated genes. It causes blindness. It affects other mammals including people. In Abyssinians it is late-onset.

Breeders

Top listed (first 3 pages) free standing cattery websites on a Google search produced this:

I am Cats Cattery
Located North Truro, Massachusetts, USA. Bengals, Abys and Somalis.

Windy City Somalis
Located, where else, in Chicago, USA. Occasional Abyssinian and Somali.

Photo Pollux © Helmi Flick

Sources:

Cat Fanciers
CFA
Wikipedia
Pictures of Cats

From Somali Cat to Abyssinian Cat