The names of many breeds describe certain features of the structure of the animal's body, its color or the length of the coat. The American Curl did not become an exception. A visiting card of the representatives of the breed are ears with a characteristic curl. The pet will become the favorite of the family, because his complaisant nature captivates the heart.
American curl - description of the breed
Curl is not just to be present, so that a cat is recognized as a worthy representative, there are certain parameters, external manifestations of this feature. The American Curl cat, regardless of the length of the coat, will be noticeably different from the cat's muzzle: its forehead is much wider, there is a very clear outline of the cheeks. Lovely recognizable ears for now, we will put aside the second plan and turn to the second feature - the proportionality of the animal's body.
The main advantage is weight balancing - the body is slim, but not lean. There are a number of characteristics in the standard:
- the weight of the cat is in the range of 5-7 kg (cats not more than 5 kg), but at the exhibition they will notice not the largest but gracefully and proportionally folded representative (this parameter is an order of magnitude greater than the size of the cat);
- by standard the body of a medium-sized cat with a rectangular shape, its length is equal to two heights at the withers;
- the head passes into the neck without changes due to the massive occiput, in the anterior part of the muzzle smooth lines are visible, the correct bite is visible;
- the chest of the cat is very developed, the body itself, for all its massiveness, remains graceful;
- tail and body of the same length, the tip of the tail narrows.
American Curw breed - species
If the color of cats Curls can be any, then the length of the coat is short and semi-long. But in many sources they preferred to use the name long-haired, with some reservations. The American Curl, like any other breed of cat, was bifurcated into species by selection. The first appeared long-haired cats with curled ears, and only after a short-haired look was formed.
Shorthair American curl
This species appeared and was recognized much later. Short-haired cats Curls are carriers of the gene responsible for long-haired, but the gene is hidden. Later, from a cat with a short coat, kittens with length may appear. The Cat of the American Curl breed will necessarily be the owner of a soft wool without a thick undercoat. The peculiarity of the wool cover is that its length is the same throughout the body and on the tail. The fur itself is silky and palpably thin, snug against the animal's body.
Long-haired American curl
Long wool can be painted in any of the existing shades. But its length in no way looks fluffy, it adjoins to the body. There is no thick undercoat, the hairs are thin and soft, they are almost never sharp to the touch. The breed of cats Curl in the standard suggests a collar, but it with a tail only delineate the contours of the body, the fur is lowered down and does not stick out. A characteristic jabot of wool, which is present in many longhaired representatives of other breeds, is absent in the curl.
American curl - character
After the breed was officially recognized, many breeders became jealous of the possibility of exporting cats outside the places where the curls were removed. His original appearance from the first seconds of dating creates the impression of a cute and intelligent creature, not devoid of intelligence. In fact, so it turned out, the breed can boast of an uncommon and sociable character:
- By its nature, the cat will be the real companion and friend. This feature is expressed in the desire to be at arm's length from his person permanently. Whether you work at a monitor or clean potatoes, your pet will certainly settle back somewhere near.
- The animal is balanced in any situation. Aggressive attacks of curls are not inherent. They perfectly get on with other domestic pets, not entering into conflicts, but also on close friendship are not adjusted.
- The character of the Curl cat allows you to train and teach many techniques. Games, with the kids to a greater extent, the cat's favorite pastime. His pet will remain light and cheerful until old age, sometimes the expression of the muzzle remains playful, like that of a kitten.
American curl - colors
Breeders claim that the curl cat can have any of the existing colors. The only difference is that some shades of wool are more common, and some are considered rare. Often the color of the eyes and the coat for the rocks have a certain dependence. In this case, the breed standard provides exceptionally blue eyes for colorpoint, otherwise there are no restrictions.
White American Curl
The cat of the Curl breed with white wool throughout the body is classified as solid, or solid color. This included black, blue and chocolate. White-fleece kittens can have a shade of eyes from light blue to dark tea color. If you decide to get just a pet, the purity of white is unimportant. When it comes to international exhibitions, this parameter is given great value, because smoky white and tabby point are not allowed by the breed standard.
Gray American curl
Under the name of the shade "gray", you can mean several categories at once. In the category of silvery colors, they are also called silver, there are blue smoky and silver tabby. In the tabby category, there is a gray interpretation of the classic, marble and mottled pattern on the wool. There are no restrictions on the color of the eyes in these categories. If your cat is an American curl in the colorpoint category, its fur is of a dark gray color, according to the standard, the eyes should be blue.
Red American Curl
In its purest form red refers to the category of colorpoints, which dictates the corresponding shade of the animal's eyes. By "red" sometimes mean a solid color throughout the body, when it comes to the color of the solid. In red shades there are also color tabby, this is a classic and marble drawings. There are very rare colors and patterns on the coat among the colors that will not be considered a deviation and the breed of cats is registered at the exhibition.
American Curw breed of cats - content and care
Any breed always has its own characteristic features in terms of care. When the American Curl kittens appear in your house, painstaking work will begin, because the beautiful ears of the pet need care. It is important to understand that buying a kitten up to three months old is always a risk. So much time is needed to form a curl on the ear of the animal, and even the pedigree of parents is not a guarantee of its presence until three months of age.
The cat will live in the house until 18-20 years, if the owner will provide proper care. This breed does not have genetically determined diseases, which greatly simplifies the task. Of the important points, one should not forget about the following:
- Ears must be cleaned extremely carefully, not straightening the curl. Do this with clean cotton buds. Every two weeks, a clean cotton swab dipped in warm boiled water, rubs the ears. This part of the body of the American Curl is vulnerable, so you need to look after the game of the child and the cat.
- A rare undercoat is another reason to write curls on the list of cats that do not need special care. A couple of times a week, wool should be combed, during the moult there is no change.
- The breed is not prone to overeating, but needs a quality balanced diet. It is preferable to feed the pet with a balanced balanced premium food . It is permissible to give preference to natural food. But you have to choose one thing, you can not mix two types of feeding.
- Another important point in the content - the American Curl is not able to independently claw its claws. The presence of a claw in the apartment will save furniture, but will not solve the problem. Cutting claws will have to, otherwise with ingrownion the animal will experience pain.