The Felidae family members include felids or felines. The family can be further categorised into Pantherine and Felinae. The Pantherine family comprises tigers, lions and jaguars among others. The Felinae family consists of domestic cat species that many pet parents bring home.
Felidae are highly developed carnivorous hunters of all mammal species. Cats are territorial, they are known to hunt and mark their territories mainly through scent. They come together mainly for mating.
Our domestic furry ones are further divided into long hair breeds and short hair breeds, some of the short hair breeds are:
Abyssinian: They are known for their regal appearance with a supple body and slender legs. It displays a resemblance to the sacred cat of Egypt.
American shorthair: This breed has muscular bodies with thick dense fur, they are known to be natural hunters.
American wirehair: This feline is medium to large in size and most often has a curly coat.
Bengal: This breed features a spotted coat and its hind legs are shorter than its forelegs.
Bombay: The feline’s elegant appearance resembles that of an Indian black leopard.
British Shorthair: It is the oldest natural English breed. This breed has a number of varieties that range from broad bodies, short legs and short thick tails.
Some of the long hair breeds include:
Birman: A sacred cat of ‘Burma’, it is characterised by deep-blue eyes, a bushy tail and white-gloved paws.
Cymric: This breed is usually a stout tailless breed.
Himalayan: A cobby body, short fluffy tail and sapphire-blue eyes make up the Himalayan long hair feline breed.
Norwegian Forest: These felines are robust and have muscular bodies along with a double coat.
Persian: This is among the oldest and most popular breeds of cats and is known for their cobby bodies and massive heads.
Ragdoll: These species of felines relax their muscles when picked up. They have strong built and powerful blue eyes.
Felines are considered low maintenance as compared to canines. Although they may not seek your attention and affection as much as canines do, they care about you equally. They may not interact with you every now and then but they sure do have expectations from you.
