The History of the Abyssinian Cat
For those who are looking for a breed to bring into their homes and love, let me tell you a bit about the Abyssinian.
The Abyssinian is a lithe and very muscular foreign type cat of Medium build. The Aby is an alert, very active cat that when standing it should appear to be balancing on tiptoes. The Aby coat is a stunning rich colour which should appear obviously ticked.
They say the Aby originated from Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia), the cat and her descendants naturally acquired the name "Abyssinian", and for many decades the breed was touted as the direct descendants of the sacred cat of ancient Egypt.
The first Aby to reach Australian shores were imported from the UK in 1959. According to one source, they differed markedly from those we see today, with paler, colder coats.
Later imports from the USA, the first of which arrived in 1982, were smaller cats with deeper and richer colour, to their coats. Australian Breeders, able to draw bloodlines from both sides of the Atlantic, have worked hard over the years to produce cats which meet with a favorable response from overseas judges, and which adhere to the Breed Standard, the key note of which is Moderation...