The Brazilian cat population is one of those rare cases when nature itself created the breed without the slightest human intervention. In appearance, these are ordinary animals with very beautiful eyes and a peaceful character. Consider their origin, appearance and character in order to understand what their individuality is.
Species history
For a long time, cats lived in the cities of Brazil, attracting neither the townspeople, nor the felinologists, because their appearance is the most unremarkable: average volume and weight, moderate paw length, tail and ears, and normal body. The color of animals can be any, there are no restrictions. And Brazilian cats would have walked to this day on their own, if the breeders had not paid attention to the persistent individual signs of the entire population that distinguish them from other cat breeds.
Interestingly, the signs were developed without the participation of people in the process of natural selection.
In the 80s of the last century, animals began to be studied, raised, choosing kittens with dominant features of the breed. After a fairly serious amount of work, in 1985, the Brazilian felinology applied for registration of a new breed of cats. By this year, standards have been developed for the Brazilian shorthair line.
Recognition did not come immediately, only in 1994, the world-famous organization WCF introduced the developed standards into the collection.
But at that time the independence of the breed was denied. Brazilian cats were combined with European cats to form the Celtic Shorthair.The country's felinology continued to point to the unique characteristics of the street population, and in 1999, WCF proposed separating the Brazilian Shorthair into a separate type of cat.
Description
The appearance of the animals is not outstanding, but pretty cute.
- The body is medium length with a wide chest, with well-developed muscles.
- The limbs are strong, standard sizes, with rounded pads on the legs.
- The head is slightly elongated, has a wedge-shaped shape. The face has a nice shape.
- Standard wide-set triangular ears rounded at the ends.
- Beautiful almond-shaped eyes with a clever piercing gaze, the color of which can be absolutely any.
- Wool without undercoat, short, close-fitting to the body, silky to the touch. A variety of colors is not limited.
- The tail is wide at the base and narrowed at the tip.
- Strong strong neck of normal length.
By standards, weight is allowed up to 4 kg, the cat looks noticeably larger than the cat.
Character
Until the end of the last century, when Brazilian cats were noted as a breed, they were considered ordinary yard animals. Long life on the street left its mark on their character. Cats are freedom-loving. Despite good nature, they can stand up for themselves. They are unsurpassed hunters and prey for their kittens.
Brazilian Shorthair cats - social animals. They feel good in a large and noisy human family, while not singling out anyone, but loving everyone from young to old. For them, an important aspect of family life is attention. A cat forgotten by all households may seem aggressive and irritable, but the behavior is easily corrected by attention and care.
The breed is endowed with good intelligence, is easily trained. Kittens and young individuals are active, playful, prefer long walks in the fresh air. These are livable, affectionate and loyal pets, good companions in fun for children. With responsible care, they can live up to 20 years, delighting with the positive of their owners.
Care
The animal requires minimal care, as:
- unpretentious in food;
- he has a short coat;
- possesses a peace-loving character.
The purebred cats are very clean, you do not need to bathe them. But due to the frequent licking of the skin in the stomach, wool can accumulate. In such cases, the cat is given a special paste, grass or food to help get rid of accumulations.
It is recommended to comb out the wool with a special brush 2-3 times a month.
For the purpose of hygiene and disease prevention, the eyes, ears and tips of the paws of the animal should be periodically examined. Sometimes they are wiped or cleaned using cotton swabs dipped in a decoction of herbs. A cat can brush its teeth once or twice a week. All devices for this are purchased at the pet store. Once a quarter they give drugs for helminths. The cat must have a claw-tip and several toys to satisfy the activity of the moving animal.
Feeding
Representatives of this breed are not picky in their diet; they eat everything that they are given. But you should not, taking advantage of the cat’s good appetite, offer it indiscriminately: such a diet can harm even good health. For animals developed special feed enriched with vitamins and minerals. They are designed for different age categories. When choosing feeds, the features of the condition of animals are taken into account:
- castration;
- pregnancy;
- period of feeding kittens.
In addition to industrial feed, the diet should contain natural products: meat, poultry, fish. The cat's stomach does not tolerate fatty foods and some vegetables.
It is necessary to monitor daily the freshness and quality of water, as well as the cleanliness in the feeding area.
Health
Former street animals earned excellent immunity over the years of wandering. But even they sometimes suffer from diseases of the skin and digestive system. Most often, problems are associated with malnutrition.
If the pet has disturbing symptoms or uncharacteristic behavior, it is better not to delay the visit to the veterinarian.
It is noted that representatives of the Brazilian shorthair breed easily pick up helminths, they can become infected with 82 types of worms and 32 of them can be transmitted to humans. Therefore, for their diet, fish and meat are pre-boiled. Every 3 months they give pills for worms, even if the animal is not on the street.
Good immunity, of course, is important, but nobody has yet canceled the prevention of diseases. This means that vaccinations must be done, especially if the animal is walking outside the house. Vaccines for 7 diseases caused by pathogens (viruses and bacteria) have been developed for cats:
- chlamydia
- calcivirosis;
- rabies;
- ringworm;
- rhinotracheitis;
- infectious peritonitis;
- panleukopenia.
Complex vaccines are created and, as a rule, a cat is inoculated with multicomponent preparations once a year with the help of 2 injections.
Breeding
Unlike street animals, in Brazilian cats, in addition to the spring mating season, there is a surge in sexual activity in the summer. The estrus lasts about a week. Kittens can appear several times a year. During estrus, a peaceful and tender animal can become irritable and even bite or scratch. Since cats are noisy during this period, many people prefer to keep cats. But they have their own peculiarities provoked by instincts: cats during sexual activity mark the territory with an unpleasant pungent odor.
Therefore, if it is not planned to continue the population, it is better to castrate the animal.
The reproductive period in females begins at the age of 1 year, in some individuals - from 8 months. Pregnancy lasts 62–68 days. Before giving birth, the owners should prepare a place: for example, a box with a litter. Kittens are born at intervals of approximately 30 minutes to an hour. The cat chews on the umbilical cord and licks the cubs. In Brazilian shorthair, the birth usually takes place without complications, the cat itself is able to take care of itself and the babies.
Newborn kittens are blind and deaf, they begin to see in 15–20 twenty days, and to hear - a little earlier. At the age of 3 weeks, babies can be fed. In addition to cereals in milk, it is gradually allowed to introduce boiled finely chopped meat and vegetables into the diet.
By 1.5 months, fully formed teeth allow kittens to eat more solid foods.
An animal with beautiful smart eyes and a good-natured character can become a wonderful pet, but, unfortunately, a purebred shorthair cat can only be found in Brazil, domestic breeders do not breed it. Those wishing to purchase a kitten of this breed can contact the clubs, where they will tell you how to organize the delivery of the pet from overseas.
For a detailed description of the Brazilian Shorthair, see the next video.
