The Egyptian Mau Cat: A Noble History

LilLisa222 (5) 17 Mar 2007 08:45 PM

Dear Marjorie:

I just realized I am the proud owner of an Egyptian Mau. When I tell you how I became one, you will doubt that my Fiona is truely a Mau..but she is. There is not a criteria she lacks. Crazy thing is, she came to my back door in Baltimore City 2 summers ago. Yes, a stray. She was about 10 weeks old and feeding her outside was insufficient. This beautiful, silver, charcoal spotted cat wanted in and I relented. Got her shots and then shortly thereafter took her back to the vet to get her spayed. At this second visit I inquired as to what breed she might be because she looked so unusual. The vet said she indeed look exotic but did not know to what breed she belonged. At any rate, like I said, that was 2 years ago. 2 DAYS ago I was told about a genetically engineered Tiger like cat called a Toyger. While looking for information about these Toygers, I stumbled upon a site that dealth with cat breeds. Unbelievably, there was my Fiona looking right at me with the words "Egyptian Mau" right under her picture along with a description that *I* could have written about my own cat. How can I verify that I indeed have a Mau? In al reality, I don't care if she is nothing but a mutt - I adore this animal - but I'm telling you - this IS a Mau!

Marjorie Dorfman (2577) 18 Mar 2007 02:26 AM

Hi Lisa, I would suggest that you plug the words, "egyptian mau" into the search engines. You will see a reference to a page that answers all questions about the breed. You may have to check out more than one page, but you should find your answer there. I am no authotrity on this breed and all of my information came from differnt Internet sources. I hope this helps. Best, Marjorie

retic (5) 13 Oct 2007 02:13 PM

HI I just recently recieved 2 kittens that I did not think were tabby's. When looking up on types of cats i noticed that they kinda look like an egyptian mau. They have the long back legs the stripes on the legs, tail, head and a golden color darker on the top by the spine and lightening as it wraps around under it's belly, and are very playful. I was wondering if anyone could help me out with a website or some place to go to find out if my kittens have the egyptian mua in them.

Courtney Mroch (7323) 17 Oct 2007 08:55 AM

One option, if it's available, might be to get a DNA breed test done. I know they have Doggie DNA tests to determine breeds for dogs, but I don't know if they have it for cats.

Also, have you tried looking at the Cat Fancier's Assn? http://www.cfainc.org/breeds/profiles/egyptian.html Another description that might help you determine what your cat is.

Or maybe contacting someone at Egyptian Mau Rescue Org to see if they could identify by a pic you email them? http://www.emaurescue.org/

Same goes for the International Association of Egyptian Mau's http://www.aime.us/AIME_us.htm

Good luck! Let us know what you ultimately conclude your cat is. I'm curious to know.

charlottetd (5) 17 May 2008 11:59 AM

theres also an egyptian mau kitten in the film life is beautiful (1997), im almost 100% that its one of the old style mau's with the ears right on top of the head. I am a proud "mother" of a stunning silver mau whos just turned 1. Unfortunately mine didn't just wonder into my house, but instead cost a considerable amount. However now that i have her i can't imagine ever living without a mau, the house would be to quiet for one, and being able to get uninterrupted sleep would be unusual. I would definately recommend this breed over any of the the human bred species, such as bengals etc.