Cat Breed of the Month--Egyptian Mau

The Egyptian Mau is believed to be the oldest cat breed in the world! The first recordings of the breed were ancient Egyptian drawings of spotted cats that date back as early as 1550 BC.

History

No one knows the breed's origins, except that they most likely originated in Egypt.

Prior to WWII, an Egyptian Mau was spotted in England. Unfortunately, several cats including this breed were killed during the war, leaving the Egyptian Mau nearly extinct.

Later, a Russian princess named Natalie Troubetzkoy was given a few Egyptian Mau cats during her visit to Rome.

In 1956, the princess moved to the US and brought the cats with her.

Troubetskoy later founded the Fatima Egyptian Mau cattery.

In 1968, the CFF accepted the breed for championship status. Later in 77, the CFA accepted the breed.

Appearance & Physical Traits

Egyptian Maus have a short coat of spotted fur. Colors can be silver, smoke, blue, caramel, black, or bronze.

They have a long and lean athletic body with a wedge-shaped head and almond-shaped eyes. Their hind legs are slightly longer than their front legs. This enables the cat to jump higher and longer than other cats.

All Egyptian Maus have green eyes.

Male Egyptian Maus weigh between 10 and 14 pounds (5-6 kg) and females weigh around 6-10 pounds (3-5 kg), making this breed medium-sized compared to other cats.

Behavior & Personality

The Egyptian Mau is intelligent, affectionate, and sociable.

The breed often will build a strong bond with one particular person but will love the whole family.

They have quite playful and active.

Egyptian Maus are very talkative, not as much so as Asian breeds like the Siamese, but vocal nonetheless.

The breed is typically good with dogs and other cats.

Surprisingly, Egyptian Maus actually don’t mind water and may even enjoy swimming!

Health & Care

Egyptian Maus are a generally healthy breed, but they are still prone to specific health issues such as periodontal diseases, patellar luxation, and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Be sure to keep up with annual vet check-ups to ensure that your cat is healthy.

The breed sheds moderately and should be groomed weekly to promote fur health and prevent hairballs.

Giving your Egyptian Mau an occasional bath is beneficial to his or her fur and overall health.

You should brush your cat’s teeth daily and trim their nails every 2-3 weeks.

Fun Facts:

The Egyptian Mau is the only natural spotted cat breed.
They are the second fastest domestic cat breed in the world (the first if you don’t count the Savannah cat as domestic), reaching speeds of 30 MPH.
Thousands of years ago, the breed was worshipped by Egyptians.
They love water!
“Mau” is cat in Egyptian.
Egyptian Mau queens typically have a longer gestational period than other cats.
They have an expected life span of 12-15 years.