What is a pixie-bob?

Pixie-bob - Photo copyright Helmi Flick

The Pixie-bob is a purebred, domestic companion cat with a deliberately wild appearance. It is quite a rare breed.

I have a page on this cat: Pixie-bob. The second part of the hyphenated word "bob" refers to the bobbed tail - a shortened tail.

The first part of the word "Pixie" refers to the founding cat of this breed. That was her name. Carol Ann Brewer founded the breed.

Interestingly "Pixie" was a cat with a normal length tail. She was mated with a Manx cat, the famous tailless purebred cat from the Isle of Man to produce the shortened tailed cat. The Pixie-bob looks similar to the American bobtail.

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What is a bobtail cat?

American Bobtail
Photo copyright Helmi Flick

A bobtail cat is a cat with a short tail. "Bob" refers to "bobbed" meaning shortened. The origin of the word "bob" in relation to tail length is interesting. It is a shortened version of the old Middle English word "bobbe" which meant a knob or cluster (1). When a tail is sufficiently shortened as in the Japanese Bobtail it looks like a cluster or knob of fur. Another American short tailed purebred, domestic cat is the Pixie-bob.

"Bobtail cat" usually refers to the American Bobtail, a purebred short tailed cat. The American bobcat is a species of lynx wild cat found in the USA. It too has a short tail. There is no connection between these two cats. The shortened tail is due to a natural genetic mutation. Sometimes breeders dock tails (shorten them surgically). You will see feral moggie cats with bobtails.

(1) Word Origins by Dhirendra Verma

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