Egyptian Mau

Egyptian Maus are a small-medium sized short-haired cat breed. The Egyptian Mau is the only naturally spotted breed of domesticated cat. The spots of the Mau occur only on the coat. There are no spots on the actual skin. The spotted Mau is an ancient breed from natural stock; its look has not changed significantly as is evidenced by artwork over 3,000 years old. Unlike other spotted cats such as the Ocicat or Bengal cat, the Egyptian Mau is a natural breed.Other breeds are created from domestic breed outcross or, in the case of the Bengal cat, domestic outcrosses with wildcats. The Mau is significantly smaller than these other breeds.

The Egyptian Mau is the fastest of the domestic cats,with its longer hind legs, and unique flap of skin extending from the flank to the back knee, providing for greater agility and length of stride. Maus have been clocked running over 36 mph (58 km/h).

Maus often possess very musical voices. They are known to chirp, chortle and emit other distinctly unusual vocalizations when stimulated.

Another behavior, quite common in happy Maus, has been described as “wiggle-tail.” The cat, male or female, wiggles and twitches its tail, and appears to be marking territory, also known as spraying, but it is not actually releasing urine. Even veteran Mau owners are known to check after a joyous Mau does this little dance.