There is a widespread idea that the Abyssinian is the direct descendant of the Egyptian felines that, for their beauty and elegance combined with an exceptional ability in hunting, were raised to divinities and gave the face and body to the Egyptian goddess Bast. In 1890, in fact, in Egypt were discovered, in a cemetery of cats, about two hundred thousand mummies that, under examination, showed a marked resemblance to the current Abyssinian cat. This similarity is confirmed by the discovery, in the Egyptian tombs of the middle and late Empire, of frescoes and sculptures that represent it. The Abyssinian race arrived in Europe, and precisely in Great Britain, around 1860 at the end of the Anglo-Abyssinian war. The Ethiopian cat was paired with red cats and silver tabby and, through a selection program, the European lineage of the Abyssinians was obtained. The official recognition of the breed dates back to 1882. Above all, the uniqueness of the colour that characterized the fur of the Abyssinian was appreciated: a beautiful brown dotted with black, with apricot-coloured undercoat. In 1957 the red colour was officially admitted and recognized, and recently the blue and lilac tones are also appreciated.
The Abyssinian is a perky animal, particularly intelligent and clever, snappy, fast and always on the move like a true sportsman. He is always attentive, vigilant and interested in everything that moves: it is precisely these characteristics that make him dynamic and tireless. Even if it is a very independent cat, it is sensitive and in need of a lot of affection; this need manifests itself in a very accentuated and continuous way, so much to be insistent. He loves very much to be caressed and taken in the arms, and to obtain these attentions from the master he rubs against him by purring. Being caressed seems to be a necessity for him! At first he tends to be suspicious, but if he is treated with respect and serenity he shows his good temperament; generally he tends to become attached to only one person and does not seem to like the presence of strangers. The Abyssinian uses his mewing, in an expressive and insistent way, to communicate his needs and his state of mind: he emits different sounds according to different situations; despite his insistence, the mewing are never unpleasant and penetrating because they have a gentle tone and an almost musical sound. It is a bold cat that does not go unnoticed and you can certainly not say that it is accommodating, you need to understand it more than other cats. One of the most effective means of obtaining her esteem is through play. In the game he considers man as his fellow man, forgetting the great differences that characterize them. Contrary to what we normally think of cats, the Abyssinian has a good familiarity with water: on this occasion he proves to be a skilled swimmer.
The particular structure of the Abyssinian makes it agile, snappy and very elegant in its appearance. The head, whose contours are rounded, is longer than wide, of medium size, proportionate to the body; the snout is rounded and the intersection of the nose and the forehead is slightly marked. The profile, without flat sides, sees connected snout, eyebrow arch and front following a continuous curve; in the adult males it is possible that the cheeks are fuller. The chin, whose shape is rounded, appears full, strong and little protruding. The eyes, shaped like a rounded almond, are big, shiny, very expressive and particular because they are evidenced by the dark skin of the eyelids, surrounded by a paler zone. In the middle of this lighter area you can see a dark "stroke of pencil" that reaches up to the upper eyelid. The ears, open and deep at the base, are wide, cup-shaped, inclined forward and well spaced, so much so that it seems that the cat is always listening and alert. On the ears, the hair is short, adherent and usually ends in a tuft on the tips; it is preferable that on the back of the ears appears a drawing in the shape of an imprint of thumb. The body appears slender, of medium length, tapered and the musculature is robust and solid; the thoracic cage is rounded and the sides are straight. The legs are slender, long and supported by small oval feet which give them a light and graceful gait. In the gait, the neck and the back are slightly curved, as if the cat were about to jump. The tail is long, wide at the base and progressively things up to the tip. The hair, endowed with elastic resistance, is of fine texture and appears glossy and soft to the touch; of average length on the spine, it is shorter on the sides, on the scruff, on the head and on the legs.
WALL
What characterizes the Abyssinian is the predominantly red color of the hair, which is clear at the root and darker on the tip (ticking). All ticked tabby colours are allowed, with ticked pattern without traces of tigrature except on the head, and silver shaded and chinchilla colours. The variety ruddy (hare) is dark terracotta; it usually has a strong reddening and two or three bands, black or dark brown, on the tip of each hair. Short-haired parts of the body must have at least one ticking band. Subjects whose coat is characterized by a lot of ticking may have a darker backbone. The lower part of the body, the chest and the inside of the legs must have a light reddish colour without ticking and tigrature. On the body the colour can vary from apricot to dark terracotta, but it is preferable that the shade is as warm and intense as possible. The hair around the nose, lips, chin and upper throat may be white. The tail, without tigrature or grey tones, has black tipping; the fingertips can be black or dark brown; between the fingers there must be black and the truffle appears brick red, bordered with black or dark brown. The chocolate and sorrel varieties are diluted forms of the ruddy variety, with redder tones. Chocolate replaces black, fingertips are pink with chocolate between the fingers and the color of the truffle is pink. In the blue variety the coat is warm-tenue grey, with dark and intense grey ticking; the chest, belly and inside of the legs are pale cream, the fingertips are blue with pink tones, with darker blue between the fingers and the truffle is pink. The lilac variety is similar to blue, but the shades are lighter and more delicate and the fingertips are pink. The fawn variety is a cold cream-pink colour, with slightly darker ticking. The pale cream characterizes the color of the chest, belly and inside of the legs; the fingertips are light pink, with a darker pink between the fingers and the truffle is pink. For all these varieties the colour of the eyes, which must be very intense, can be: gold, copper, green or hazelnut; while in the silver variant the colour can be emerald or green-blue.
CARE
Those who choose the Abyssinian as their companion cannot fail to take into account his exuberance and desire for freedom. For these characteristics it is important to live in an open and spacious place, so the ideal would be a house with garden and trees. It can also be adapted to the apartment as long as you never make the mistake of releasing it into larger spaces: it would become sad and dissatisfied. The Abyssinian's diet deserves special attention. Compared to its peers, it consumes a large amount of food, because of the intense motor activity that it does during the day, so it is important to provide him with all the substances he needs but without exceeding in quantity, in fact, excessive consumption of food could weigh down his figure agile and long-limbed. It is also advisable to give him vitamin and mineral supplements.