Pixie-Bob Cat Names, Names For Pixie-Bob Kittens, Page 2

The Pixie-Bob looks like it should have wild bobcat in its lineage. Carol Ann Brewer thought it did. In spring 1985 she bought a polydactyl, short-tailed male tabby near Mount Baker, Washington; in January 1986 she rescued a second male, named Keba, who was unusually large, bobtailed, and rumored to have been sired by a wild bobcat (*Lynx rufus*). Keba mated with a neighbor's female. The resulting litter included a kitten Brewer named Pixie, who became the foundation of the breed.

DNA testing has not supported the bobcat-ancestry story. Genetic markers from *Lynx rufus* have not been detected in Pixie-Bob populations, and the breed is now classified as wholly domestic (*Felis catus*) for registration, ownership, and import purposes. The romantic origin myth still circulates in marketing copy; honest breed coverage states the truth — these are domestic cats with a striking wild appearance, not hybrids.

TICA accepted the Pixie-Bob for Exhibition Status in 1994, advanced to New Breed in 1996, and granted full Championship for the 1998 show season. CFA and GCCF do not recognize the breed. The Pixie-Bob is one of very few breeds where polydactyl paws are explicitly permitted by standard — up to seven toes per paw. Tails range from 2 to 6 inches; some kittens are born tailless. Coat is brown spotted tabby with heavy ticking, and short- and long-haired variants are both registered.

Temperament is the surprise. Pixie-Bobs are dog-like — fetch, leash, follow, chirp more than meow. They suit owners who want an athletic, large-boned cat with the *look* of a wild lynx and none of the legal paperwork.

If you bring one home, the right choice is to honor the breed for what it actually is rather than what it was once marketed as.