Cat College

SHOWS 311B: Breed Standards

Chapter 1: Abyssinians
CFA Standard
POINT SCORE


HEAD (25)
Muzzle .......... 6
Skull ........... 6
Ears ............ 7
Eye Shape ....... 6

BODY (30)
Torso .......... 15
Legs and Feet .. 10 
Tail ........... 5

COAT (10)
Texture ........ 10

COLOR (35)
Color........... 15
Ticking ........ 15
Eye Color ...... 5


GENERAL: the overall impression of the ideal Abyssinian would be a colorful cat with a distinctly ticked coat, medium in size and regal in appearance. The Abyssinian is lithe, hard and muscular, showing eager activity and a lively interest in all surroundings. Well balanced temperamentally and physically with all elements of the cat in proportion. 

HEAD: a modified, slightly rounded wedge without flat planes; the brow, cheek, and profile lines all showing a gentle contour. A slight rise from the bridge of the nose to the forehead, which should be of good size, with width between the ears and flowing into the arched neck without a break.
 
MUZZLE: not sharply pointed or square. The chin should be neither receding nor protruding. Allowance should be made for jowls in adult males. 

EARS: alert, large, and moderately pointed; broad, and cupped at base and set as though listening. Hair on ears very short and close lying, preferably tipped with black or dark brown on a ruddy Abyssinian, chocolate-brown on a red Abyssinian, slate blue on the blue Abyssinian, or light cocoa brown on a fawn Abyssinian. 

EYES: almond shaped, large, brilliant, and expressive. Neither round nor oriental. Eyes accentuated by fine dark line, encircled by light colored area. 

BODY: medium long, lithe and graceful, but showing well developed muscular strength without coarseness. Abyssinian conformation strikes a medium between the extremes of the cobby and the svelte lengthy type. Proportion and general balance more to be desired than mere size. 

LEGS and FEET: proportionately slim, fine boned. The Abyssinian stands well off the ground giving the impression of being on tip toe. Paws small, oval, and compact. Toes: five in front and four behind.
 
TAIL: thick at base, fairly long and tapering. 

COAT: soft, silky, fine in texture, but dense and resilient to the touch with a lustrous sheen. Medium in length but long enough to accommodate two or three dark bands of ticking. 

PENALIZE: off-color pads. Long narrow head, short round head. Barring on legs, dark broken necklace markings, rings on tail. Coldness or grey tones in the coat. White undercoat on blue or fawn Abyssinians. 

DISQUALIFY: white locket, or white anywhere other than nostril, chin, and upper throat area. Kinked or abnormal tail. Dark unbroken necklace. Grey undercoat close to the skin extending throughout a major portion of the body. Any black hair on red Abyssinian. Incorrect number of toes. Any color other than the four accepted colors. 

ABYSSINIAN COLORS

Coat color: warm and glowing. Ticking: distinct and even, with dark colored bands contrasting with lighter colored bands on the hair shafts. Undercoat color clear and bright to the skin. Deeper color shades desired, however intensity of ticking not to be sacrificed for depth of color. Darker shading along spine allowed if fully ticked. Preference given to cats UNMARKED on the undersides, chest, and legs; tail without rings. Facial Markings: dark lines extending from eyes and brows, cheekbone shading, dots and shading on whisker pads are all desirable enhancements. Eyes accentuated by fine dark line, encircled by light colored area. Eye color: gold or green, the more richness and depth of color the better. 

RUDDY: coat ruddy brown (burnt-sienna), ticked with various shades of darker brown or black; the extreme outer tip to be the darkest, with orange-brown undercoat. Tail tipped with black. The underside and inside of legs to be a tint to harmonize with the main color. Nose leather: tile red. Paw pads: black or brown, with black between toes, extending slightly beyond the paws. 

RED: coat rich, warm glowing red, ticked with chocolate-brown, the extreme outer tip to be dark, with red undercoat. Tail tipped with chocolate-brown. The underside and inside of legs to be a tint to harmonize with the main color. Nose leather: rosy pink. Paw pads: pink, with chocolate-brown between toes, extending slightly beyond the paws. 

BLUE: coat warm beige, ticked with various shades of slate blue, the extreme outer tip to be the darkest, with blush beige undercoat. Tail tipped with slate blue. The underside and inside of legs to be a tint to harmonize with the main color. Nose leather: old rose. Paw pads: mauve, with slate blue between toes, extending slightly beyond the paws. 

FAWN: coat warm rose-beige, ticked with light cocoa brown, the extreme outer tip to be the darkest, with blush beige undercoat. Tail tipped with light cocoa brown. The underside and inside of legs to be a tint to harmonize with the main color. Nose leather: salmon. Paw pads: pink with light cocoa brown between the toes, extending slightly beyond the paws. 

The following information is for reference purposes only, and not an official part of the CFA Show Standard. 

ABYSSINIAN COLOR CLASS NUMBERS 

Ruddy ......................... 0380 0381
Red ........................... 0382 0383
Blue .......................... 0384 0385
Fawn .......................... 0386 0387
AOV ........................... None None

* Abyssinian allowable outcross breeds: none.


TICA Standard

 
HEAD   30 points
  Profile 5 points
  Muzzle 5 points
  Skull 5 points
  Ears 5 points
  Eye Shape 5 points
  Neck 5 points
COAT & TEXTURE   10 points
BODY   35 points
  Torso 10 points
  Legs and Feet 10 points
  Tail 5 points
  Boning 5 points
  Muscle Tone 5 points
COLOR & PATTERN   25 points
  Color 10  
  Ticking 10  
  Eye Color 5  

RECOGNIZED CATEGORIES/DIVISIONS/COLORS:
Traditional Category. Tabby Division, limited to the eumelantistic colors and agouti pattern only.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:
The overall impression of the ideal Abyssinian is a medium cat, regal in appearance. The Abyssinian is foreign shorthair in type. Males proportionately larger than females, the female being finer boned and usually more active than the male. The Abyssinian shows firm muscular development and is lithe and panther-like in activity showing a lively interest in all surroundings. The coat of the Abyssinian has an iridescent quality reflecting warmth of color giving the impression of a colorful cat. Coat pattern is genetically a form of agouti ticking with even, dark-colored ticking contrasted with lighter bands giving a translucent effect. The Abyssinian is of sound health and vigor, well-balanced physically and temperamentally gentle and amenable to handling.

HEAD:
Modified wedge with rounded contours as viewed from the front.  In profile without flat planes showing gently curved transition between brow, nose, and muzzle. A rise front the bridge of the nose to the forehead without evidence of a sharp break. The head should be of ample length in general balance with the rest of the cat and gently curved from the forehead over the skull flowing into an arched neck.

MUZZLE:
The muzzle shall follow gentle contours in conformity with the head as viewed from the front and in profile. Chin shall be full and neither protruding nor receding, having a rounded appearance. Allowance to be made for jowls in adult males. The muzzle shall not be sharply pointed and there shall be no evidence of snippiness, foxy appearance or whisker pinch.

EARS:
Large, alert, and moderately pointed, broad and cupped at base and arched forward, set as though listening. Hair on ears short and close-lying, preferably tipped in conformity with the color requirements. A "thumb-print" marking is desirable on the back of the ear.

EYES:
Almond shaped, large, brilliant and expressive. Skull aperture follows almond shape of eyes, being neither round nor oriental. Eyes accentuated by darker lid skin, encircled by a light colored area. Above each eye appears a short vertical darker pencil stroke amidst the light area. At the sides of each eye appears a curved darker pencil line as if a continuation of the upper eyelid.

BODY:
Medium long, lithe and graceful, showing well-developed muscular strength without coarseness and is solid to the feel. The rib cage is rounded with no evidence of flat sides. The back is slightly arched giving the appearance of a cat about to spring. The flank shall be reasonably level without tuck-up. Proportion and general balance to be desired more than mere size.

LEGS:
Proportionately slim, long and well-muscled. The Abyssinian stands well off the ground.

FEET:
Oval and compact. When standing, giving the impression of being on tip-toe.

TAIL:
Long and tapering.

COAT & TEXTURE:
Coat resilient to the touch, with a lustrous sheen, fine in texture. Medium length, long enough to accommodate four out of six alternating light and dark colored bands. The coat lies fairly close to the body; however, the undercoat should be adequate enough to avoid any evidence of slickness. Woolliness undesirable. Coat is longest at the spine, gradually shortening over the saddle, flank, legs and head.

WITHHOLD ALL AWARDS:
White locket or white anywhere on the body other than around nostril, chin and upper throat areas. Unbroken necklace.
Reversed ticking (outermost tip of hair light instead of dark).

PENALIZE:
Color faults: Cold, gray or sandy tone to coat color in ruddies or sorrels or gray hair next to skin with absence of correct undercoat color. Broken necklaces, leg bars, mottling or speckling in unticked area (underside of body, chest, and inside legs), tabby stripes or bars. Slick coat or excessive plushness.
Wrong color or patching in pads.

Ticking & Pattern Faults: Unevenness of ticking over body, lack of desired markings on head and tail.

Condition: Flabbiness of body, lack of coat luster, eye color, evidence of illness, emaciation and lack of muscle tone are faults and points shall be deducted.

See Show Rules for rules governing penalties/disqualifications applying to all cats.

COLORS:
RUDDY:
Orange-brown (burnt sienna), ticked with two or three bands of either black or dark brown, the extreme outer tip to be darkest with orange-brown to the skin. Outer parts of the body covered by shorter hair shall have not less than one band of ticking. Darker shadings along spine allowed if fully ticked. The underside of the body, chest and inside of legs to be an even orange-brown without ticking, barring, necklaces or belly marks. Color varies from warm apricot to deeper burnt sienna, deeper tones preferred. White or off-white to be confined only to the upper throat area, lips and around nostrils.
Tail to be tipped with black, without rings or gray tones. Paw pads: black or dark brown with black between toes and extending slightly beyond paws.
Eye color: Gold, copper, green or hazel, the more richness and depth of color the better.
Nose leather: Brick tile red.

SORREL (CINNAMON):
A dilution of the ruddy, being a warm sorrel red ticked with chocolate brown. Tail tipped with chocolate brown. Preference given to deeper shades of sorrel and good even ticking.
Paw pads: Pink with chocolate brown between toes, extending slightly beyond paws.
Eye color: Gold, copper, green or hazel, the more richness and depth of color the better.
Nose leather: Rosy pink.

BLUE:
A warm soft blue-gray ticked with deeper blue. Base hair and undersides of the body, chest, and inside of the legs to be a pale cream color. Spine shading to be a darker shade of body color. Tail tipped with a deep shade of blue. Preference to be given to good even ticking.
Paw pads: Blue-mauve with a deep shade of blue between the toes extending slightly beyond paws.
Eye color: Gold, copper, green or hazel, the more richness and depth of color the better.
Nose leather: Dark pink.

FAWN:
A warm pinkish buff with powdered effect ticked with a deeper shade of pinkish buff. Base hair, undersides of the body, chest and inside legs to be a pale oatmeal. Spine shading to be a darker shade of body color. Tail tipped with a deep shade of pinkish buff. Preference to be given to good even ticking.
Paw pads: Pink-mauve with a deep pinkish buff between the toes extending slightly beyond paws.
Eye color: Gold, copper, green or hazel, the more richness and depth of color the better.
Nose leather: Pink-mauve.