Manx Cat
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The Manx (Kayt Manninagh or Stubbin in Manx) is a breed of cat with a naturally occurring mutation of the spine. This mutation shortens the tail, resulting in a range of tail lengths from normal to tailless. Many Manx have a small 'stub' of a tail, but Manx cats are best known as being entirely tailless; the distinguishing characteristic of the breed and a cat body type genetic mutation. Some Manx cats resemble rabbits because of their long hind legs and often short tail, which has resulted in many being called Cabbits, a portmanteau of rabbit and cat.
The Manx are said to be skilled hunters, known to take down larger prey even when they are young. It is not uncommon to find a Manx with a squirrel or an opossum which are much larger than itself. They are often sought by farmers with rodent problems.
The Manx breed originated before the 1700s on the Isle of Man (hence the name), where they are common. They are called stubbin in the Manx language. Tail-less cats were common on the island as long as three hundred years ago. The tail-lessness arises from a genetic mutation that became common on the island (an example of the Founder effect)
The hind legs of a Manx are longer than the front legs, creating a continuous arch from shoulders to rump giving the cat a rounded appearance.
Manx cats exhibit two coat lengths. The short-haired Manx has a double coat with a thick, short under-layer and a longer, coarse outer-layer with guard hairs. The long-haired Manx, known to some cat registries as the Cymric, has a silky-textured double coat of medium length, with britches, belly and neck ruff, tufts of fur between the toes and full ear furnishings. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) considers the Cymric to be a variety of Manx and judges it in the short-hair division, while The International Cat Association (TICA) judges it in the long-hair division. Short- or long-haired, all Manx have a thick double-layered coat.
Manx kittens are classified according to tail length:
· Dimple rumpy or rumpy - no tail whatsoever
· Riser or rumpy riser - stub of cartilage or several vertebrae under the fur, most noticeable when kitten is happy and raising its 'tail'
· Stumpy - partial tail, more than a 'riser' but less than 'tailed' (in rare cases kittens are born with kinked tails because of incomplete growth of the tail during development)
· Tailed or longy - complete or near complete tail
-Tail length is random throughout litter.
The ideal show Manx is the rumpy; the stumpy and tailed Manx do not qualify to be shown. In the past, kittens with stumpy or full tails have been docked at birth as a preventative measure due to some partial tails being very prone to a form of arthritis that causes the cat severe pain.
