About The Breed
"There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats."
What are Pixie-Bob Cats?
Large & In Charge
Pixie Bobs are a large breed, reaching around 15-18 lbs. Males are usually larger than females. Similarly, the average domestic cat weighs about 8-10 lbs.
Pixie-Bob cats are slow maturing. Most males reach full maturity at the age of 5 years. Females will reach maturity at 4 years of age. In comparison, domestic cats are mature when they reach 1 year of age, and occasionally not until they are 2 years old.
Those Paws!!
Some Pixie-Bob kittens are polydactyl, like the famous Hemmingway cats. TICA allows up to seven toes on each foot. ACFA allows polydactyl Pixie Bobs to be registered only. Pixie Bob tails range from non-existing to full length. Approximately 50% of all kittens are born with a naturally short tail. Ethical breeders will not dock the tails; however, this practice, unfortunately, is still employed by some breeders today.
Looks like a Bobcat
The Pixie Bob Cat is bred to resemble the North American Red Coastal Bobcat featuring a strong face with hooded eyes and a prominent muzzle.
Buckshot spots are the preferred pattern as it most closely resembles the pattern of the bobcat. Broken mackerel is allowed.
Acts like a Dog
Intelligent & People Oriented
The only look wild
Pixie Bob cats are sweet-natured, outgoing, and social. They love people!
The Origination Story
In 1985, Carol Ann Brewer (breed founder) purchased a male cat with a spotted coat, a short tail, and polydactyl paws. Its looks reminded her of a bobcat.
A year later, she obtained another male cat, which she named Keba. This cat reportedly was huge, had a bobbed tail, and most importantly – allegedly was sired by a bobcat. This male mated with the neighbor’s female – a brown spotted tabby cat of domestic origin. Two months later, the litter arrived. Brewer kept a female kitten she named “Pixie” – the namesake and foundation cat of this breed.
Over the next several years, 23 found cats around the foothills of the Cascade Mountains were introduced into her program. Brewer believed that these cats were born from naturally occurring matings between domestic cats and bobcats. She started referring to them as “Legend Cat” and even trademarked the term. “Legend Cat” is still used by some Pixie Bob breeders to this day to describe permitted outcrosses used in breeding programs.
More and more breeders in the U.S. joined Brewer, establishing the distinct look the Pixie Bob is famous for. They registered the new breed with TICA and eventually also with ACFA. In 1998, TICA was the first registry to allow Pixie Bobs to be shown in the championship class. ACFA followed suit just a few years later.
We want to be clear that the Pixie Bob does not have an ounce of bobcat blood in it. Albeit alluring and captivating, the origination story of this breed remains just that – a story.
