American Bobtail (Longhair) Cats

American Longhaired Bobtail kitten against a white background

American Longhaired Bobtail cat sitting in forest

Red American Longhaired Bobtail cat sitting looking up

History

The history of the American Bobtail cat breed starts in Arizona in the late 1960s. A male tabby kitten with a short, upright tail was discovered by the side of the road in an Indian Reservation site. The people who discovered the kitten were American couple, John and Brenda Sanders who took a liking to the kitten and decided to take him home. They named him ‘Yodi’ and decided to breed him with their other pet cat ‘Mishi’.

The kittens produced from this mating had short bobtails and would form the foundation of the American Bobtail breed with Yodi being the founding father of the whole breed. These kittens were outcrossed to longhair colour points and the kittens from these matings were considered the first true American Bobtails.

These longhaired American Bobtails gained a reputation for the breed and in 1989 TICA (The International Cat Association) officially recognised the American Bobtail as a breed in its own right.

Although it is still possible to find feral cats with bobtails, modern breeders tend to stick to pedigree American Bobtail stock for their breeding programs. American Bobtails are an uncommon breed in America and very rarely seen in the United Kingdom.

Behaviour

American Bobtails are sociable cats who loves to be around their whole family. They are not ‘one person’ cats and will enjoy the affection of anyone who wants to give it to them. They are great with children and other pets but won’t fawn after you for attention.

American Bobtails enjoy lounging on the sofa just as much as they love to be out and about. Some owners have reported that their American Bobtail has learnt to walk on the leash.