Arabian Mau - this is a photograph from the WCF website which I have taken the liberty of using as there was no photo credit or copyright notice - wrong? Please tell me and I'll take immediate action, guaranteed.
The Arabian Mau is a current cat breed located in the UAE (United Arab Emirates). Is this a cat breed - yes - see comment below. This cat was essentially a feral cat of the area, with a very long indeed ancient history, however. And lets remember that both the purebred British and American Shorthair cats started off as moggies in England before the creation of the cat fancy. There are many examples of moggies becoming purebred cats.
This cat has been acknowledged thanks to the Middle East Cat Society (MECATS). MECATS is affiliated to the World Cat Federation (WCF). Neither MECATS nor WCF have this cat currently as a listed as a cat breed - i.e. formally recognized by these associations. This is probably destined to change judging by the comments made on the MECATS website in which they state that the Arabian Mau will be recognized by the WCF.
Studies carried out on the Arabian Mau by the head of MECATS indicates that this cat has characteristics different to other breeds. The research has been presented to the WCF and it was planned that the WCF would announce recognition of this breed in Nov. 2007. That I presume has happened but formal recognition in the form of a listing as an accepted breed is yet to take place unless I am missing something.
A search on the WCF website did not produce a result - but see below, please.
The objective of MECATS is full acceptance of the Arabian Mau as a cat of full championship status and I wish them well in this task. This will mean meeting the requirements of the WCF in establishing a pedigree (a family history from a breeding pair for several years) and a standard plus meet the other requirements laid down by the registry.
Perhaps it is far to say that before the Arabian Mau became a recognized purebred cat it was probably defacto purebred as it only mates amongst like cats. There are three color types, mackerel tabby, black and white and white. This cat has been effectively promoted by the Middle East Cat Society.
Update 9-9-08: A comment (see below) helpfully states that this cat has been accepted by the WCF. When I visited the website the English version (of the German website) wasn't working and the Russian office of the WCF had no record of the Arabian Mau (as at 9th Sept.2008).
However, on visiting again after reading the comment, the English version of the German WCF is now working and the Arabian Mau is listed as the newest shorthair breed - well done I'm pleased.
Arabian Mau to Mixed cat breed (Household pets)
Yes the World Cat Federation General Assembly has accepted the 'Arabian Mau' as an official breed and are alowed to participate in the International competitions. Pl check the announcement and standards at the website www.wcf-online.de
ردحذفMy "Dubai" cat, I am told, is an Arabian Mau now resident here in the UK, but he is white, with light brown patches, which is in common with many othere in the UAE. No big issue but I saw his colouring doesn't feature in the article above.
ردحذفLovely cat and big personality plus wide variety of "speech", many different sounds !
It was wonderful meeting Petra.Muller(President of Middle East Cat Federation[MECATA]),the founder of the "Arabian Mau" breed at the "Whiskas 2nd International cat show" in Mumbai city.What was more surprising was the fact that she lived with 325 cats in her villa in Dubai ! Is this a "Guinness book of World Records" for a person officially owning these many cat ? There is now a scheme by the "World Cat Federation" along with the Bombay veterinary college to get the Mumbai street cat develop into a new breed and naming it "BILLI(Cat in Hindi language)".
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