Japanese Bobtail
Japanese Bobtail ~ Da Smug.
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Japanese Bobtail
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Japanese Bobtail ~ Da Smug.
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| A pompom tail and a tricolor coat These worshipped cats might have originated in China, then Japan, as they appear on many artifacts and prints from as early as the 11th century from several far eastern countries. In that long-ago era, only the royal family and the aristocracy owned cats of this breed. Highly honored and even venerated (especially the tricolor or "Mi-ke" variety), a symbol of luck and happiness, these cats are depicted with the front right paw raised (Maneki-neko means "waving cat") in art found in Japanese homes and temples. The breed's bobbed tail is a characteristic determined by a recessive autosomal gene. In 1968, the first Japanese Bobtails were imported to the United States by the breeder E. Freret, who started a breeding program. The C.F.A. published a standard in 1971. The F.I.Fe. recognized the breed in 1990. In 1981, the female Sirikit and the male Aikido became the first Japanese Bobtails imported to France. Highly popular in the United States, the breed remains very rare in France. |
| Affectionate and generally sweet-tempered. Enjoys supervising household chores and baby-sitting. Well-defined sense of family life. Agile. Not particularly vocal. |
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Head
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Although the head appears long and finely chiseled, it forms almost a perfect equilateral triangle (the triangle does not include the ears) with gentle curving lines, high cheekbones, and a noticeable whisker break, the nose long and well-defined by two parallel lines from tip to brow with a gentle dip at, or just below, eye level. Allowance must be made for jowls in the stud cat. |
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Eyes
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Large, oval rather than round, but wide and alert; set into the skull at a rather pronounced slant when viewed in profile. The eyeball shows a shallow curvature and should not bulge out beyond the cheekbone or the forehead. |
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Ears
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Large, upright, and expressive, set wide apart but at right angles to the head rather than flaring outward, and giving the impression of being tilted forward in repose. |
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Neck
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Neither too long nor too short, in proportion to the length of the body. |
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Body
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Medium in size, males proportionately larger than females. Torso long, lean and elegant, not tubular, showing well developed muscular strength without coarseness. No inclination toward flabbiness or cobbiness. General balance of utmost importance. |
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Paw
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Long and thin but not delicate or fragile. The hind legs are clearly longer than the forelegs. Oval paws. |
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Tail
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Maximum tail length is 5 to 8 cm, although when fully extended it can reach 10 to 13 cm. The bones are large, rigid, virtually fused (except at the base). The tail may consist of one or more sections; if it has several sections, it is curled and angled. Hair longer and thicker than that on the body give the tail a pompom appearance. |
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Coat
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Medium length, soft and silky ,with no noticeable undercoat in the mature adult. Frontal ruff desirable. Coat may be shorter and close lying over the shoulders, gradually lengthening toward the rump, with noticeable longer hair on the tail and rear britches. Ear and toe tufts desirable. Coat should lie so as to accent the lines of the body. |
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Fault
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Short, round head. Stout, massive body. Absence of bones in the tail; tail too straight, standing out too much from the body. Absence of pompom. |
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Disqualify
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Tail bone absent or extending too far beyond body. Tail lacking in pom-pom or fluffy appearance. Delayed bobtail effect (i.e., the pom-pom being preceded by an inch or two of normal tail with close-lying hair rather than appearing to commence at the base of the spine). |
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Character
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The lively, extraverted, independent, and curious Japanese Bobtail has a strong personality, like all Oriental-type cats. Not always friendly toward other cats, he usually ignores dogs. The very playful Japanese Bobtail gets along well with children. He is talkative and "sings" in a soft voice. Very affectionate, he is highly attached to his owner. Well-balanced thanks to an excellent character, Japanese Bobtails adapt well to both apartment and outdoor life. Athletic hunters, they are crazy about water. In terms of grooming, they require only weekly brushing. They shed very little. |
| Sensitive tail easily injured; structure is rigid bone. Generally healthy. |
Japanese Bobtail