Somali

Somali cats are also known as long haired Abyssinians or fox tails due to their long bushy tails. Somali cats are an interesting and distinctive breed. It is thought that they may first have appeared as a result of natural mutation in Abyssinia but it has also been argued that they originated in England at around 1900 when English breeders used long haired cats to breed with Abyssinian cats. http://catlifespan.myblog.net/index.php/2008/09/17/dog-diseases
Long haired breeds may have been mixed with Abyssinian cats in order to carry on the breeding when stock was low after the world wars, but it was not until the sixties that long haired Abyssinians became popular and were bred on purpose for shows and championships. By the end of the seventies Somali cats where accepted in all North American championships, but the cat was less popular in Europe and it was not until 1991 that the British Cat association allowed the Somali to compete in Great Britain.
A male Abyssinian named Raby Chuffa who came to Britain from the united states in 1953 is considered the father of the breed in Europe. Since then many long haired Abyssinians appeared in Britain. This was because of the fact that whenever two Abyssinian's with recessive long haired genes where bread a long haired kitten was possible. These long haired cats were given away for use as pets and not considered competition material. Some breeders began to nurture the long haired cats while others wanted to discourage the use of such cats for competion and saw them as polluting the Abyssinian breed. A group of breeders decided to rename the cat so that it would be more acceptable as its own breed and decided on the name Somali. The reason this name was chosen was because Somalia is the country next to Ethiopia – which used to be called Abyssinia . Somali clubs which brought enthusiasts together helped the popularity of the cat to grow in America and Europe and now the breed has full championship
Somalis are well-proportioned, medium to large cats with firm muscular development. Their body is medium long and graceful, with a medium-length soft and silky coat that requires little grooming. The coat is usually one to three inches long, with shorter fur across the shoulders. The tail is fluffy and full; their feet have tufts between the toes. Their large, almond shaped eyes range in color from intense green to rich copper. The Somali has an agouti, or ticked, coat with four to twenty bands of color on each hair. The ticked fur mantles the cat with harmonizing solid color on its underside. They come in four recognized colors: ruddy, red, blue and fawn.
Somalis have small litters of three to four kittens, which develop slowly. They reach their full size at about eighteen months of age.