Size: Medium.
Coat Length(s): Short hair and long hair.
Body Type: Slender.
Grooming Requirement: Every few weeks (shorthair); twice a week (longhair).
Talkativeness: Vocal.
Activity Level: High.
Affection: Very affectionate.
Usually Good With: Adults, seniors, and children (6+).
Time Alone: 4 to 8 hours per day.
Attention: Needs lots of attention.
Handling: Moderately docile.

The origin of the Japanese Bobtail has been lost in the passage of time; when and where the mutation responsible for the short tail first arose we will likely never know. However, it’s safe to say the Japanese Bobtail is one of the oldest existing cat breeds and has a history as rich with legends and folklore as the country for which the breed is named.

It’s thought that the ancestors of today’s Japanese Bobtail arrived in Japan from Korea or China at the beginning of the sixth century. Cats were kept aboard ships transporting grain, documents, silk and other valuable goods that could be easily damaged by rodents. Whether these seafaring cats had bobbed tails is anyone’s guess, since it was their skill as mousers, not their cute pom-poms, that was prized. Today, bobtailed cats can be found in most parts of East Asia, indicating the mutation occurred long ago.

Bobtailed cats can be found in many Japanese woodcut prints and silkscreen paintings from the Edo period (1603-1867). These cats were prized for their cleanliness, grace and beauty. The Japanese considered them to be spiritual creatures capable of bestowing good luck. Bobtailed cats born with a particular pattern of red, black and white markings were called mi-ke (pronounced mee-kay, meaning "three fur" in Japanese), and were considered particularly lucky. Such cats were treasured and often lived in Buddhist temples and in the imperial palace.

The most famous story about the mi-ke is the legend of Maneki Neko, which means "beckoning cat" in Japanese. As the tale goes, a tri-colored Japanese Bobtail named Tama lived at the poor Kotoku temple in Setagaya, Tokyo. The monk often shared his meager food with his beloved cat to make sure she got enough to eat. One day, Lord Ii Natotaka was caught in a rain storm near the temple. While he sought shelter under a nearby tree, he noticed Tama beckoning to him from the temple gate. A moment after he left the tree in response to the cat’s welcoming gesture, the tree was struck by lightening. Since Tama had saved his life, Lord Ii Natotaka took the temple as his family’s own, bringing it great prosperity. The lord renamed the temple Gotokuji and built a large new temple building. Tama, revered for bringing such good fortune, lived out her life in comfort and was buried with honors in the temple cemetery.

Other legends about Maneki Neko abound, but all associate the cat with good luck and prosperity. In Japan today, figurines of Maneki Neko can be found in many shops and restaurants as charms to bring luck, prosperity and happiness. These small statues clearly show the tri-colored pattern, the bobbed tail and the raised, beckoning paw. Many of these statuettes can be found in the hall of the deity of mercy at Gotokuji Temple. (To Americans and Europeans, it appears Maneki Neko is waving rather than beckoning. Japanese people beckon by holding up the hand, palm out, and folding the fingers up and down repeatedly.)

Japanese Bobtails might have been temple cats forever if not for the Japanese silk industry. Some four centuries ago, Japanese authorities ordered all cats set free to protect the silkworms and their cocoons from the growing rodent populations. Afterward, the Japanese Bobtail became a street and farm cat instead of a pampered temple and house cat. Years of natural selection and survival on the streets and farms of Japan turned the Japanese Bobtail into a strong, intelligent, adaptable cat. Until recently in Japan, the Japanese Bobtail was considered a common working cat.

The Japanese Bobtail came to North America in 1967, when Elizabeth Freret saw a Japanese Bobtail at a Maryland pet show. Entranced by the cat’s beauty and personality, she started the year-long process of importing Japanese Bobtails into the United States so she could begin a breeding program. A year later, three Japanese Bobtails arrived courtesy of Judy Crawford, an American living in Japan at the time.

Around the same time, CFA judge Lynn Beck imported eight Japanese Bobtails through a connection in Tokyo. Freret and Beck wrote the first American breed standard and worked to get the breed recognized by CFA. Other fanciers joined the cause, and in 1969 CFA accepted Japanese Bobtails for registration and in 1976 granted the breed championship status. More cats were imported to widen the gene pool and keep the breed healthy, and more breeders signed on to advance the breed.

Although the longhaired Japanese Bobtail wasn’t officially accepted for championship by any North American cat association until 1991, longhaired Japanese Bobtails have been around for centuries. Longhaired mi-ke cats appear in 17th-century Japanese artwork alongside depictions of their shorthaired relatives. Although they were not as common as their shorthaired countrymates, longhaired cats have been seen in Japan’s street cat populations for many years, particularly in Japan’s northern islands where a long coat is valuable protection against the colder weather.

Until the late 1980s, Japanese Bobtail breeders sold as pets the longhaired kittens who occasionally occurred in their shorthaired litters, and made no effort to promote them. In 1988, however, breeder Gena Garton started the Japanese Bobtail Longhair on the road to acceptance by exhibiting a longhair kitten born in one of her otherwise shorthair litters. Other breeders soon followed and began seeking recognition for the Japanese Bobtail Longhair. In 1991 TICA recognized the longhair for championship. CFA followed two years later. Today, all the cat associations recognize the Japanese Bobtail Longhair except CFF.

These living works of art are not just for admiring, say fanciers. They also have personalities that make their people purr. Fierce and single-minded as samurai warriors when on the hunt for a rodent or whirling feathery toy, Japanese Bobtails nevertheless adore their human families and spend many of their waking hours by the sides of their favorite people, chirping intelligent queries and sticking curious noses into everything. They are always more than willing to lend a helping paw when you’re busy with household chores. Japanese Bobtails are ever-present companions who stop just short of being clingy. They bond with their favorite humans and are loving, loyal and devoted.

If you don’t want an active cat, this is not the breed for you. They are sometimes compared to the Abyssinian in activity level, and that means very active. Highly intelligent and playful, Japanese Bobtails are vastly entertaining when you bring out their favorite toys. You’ll need no better excuse for neglecting the household chores than watching the antics of your Bobtail at play. Be sure to get interactive toys—Japanese Bobtails want you to join the fun. Several tall cat trees are recommended, since Japanese Bobtails love to climb and perch.

Japanese Bobtails are talkative and produce a wide range of tones. Their pleasant, chirping voices are often described as singing. No inscrutability and reserve here—their large, expressive ears and eyes, combined with flicks of their pom-pom tails and melodious chirps, get their feelings across perfectly.

Because they are headstrong and opinionated when the mood takes them, they are not particularly easy to train unless it’s something they already want to do, such as play fetch. Some will learn to walk on a leash, as long as they’re leading. Their intelligence can get them into mischief, since they are adept at opening cupboards and the doors to off-limits rooms. They tend to be more social than the average cat, and in multi-cat households they gather in groups, preferably with other Bobtails, and plan adorable mischief together.

Mi-ke Bobtails are almost always female because for male cats to possess the genes necessary to display both black and red coloration, they must have two X chromosomes (XXY instead of XY), and that is very rare. Females have two X chromosomes (XX), which is why calico and tortoiseshell are common patterns in female cats. The male counterparts of mi-ke Bobtails are either black and white or red and white.

Probably because of their years as street cats earning their livings catching rodents, Japanese Bobtails are usually strong, healthy cats with high resistance to diseases. Litters generally consist of three to four large and vigorous kittens with a low mortality rate. Compared to most other breeds, they begin to walk earlier and are active sooner. Unlike the Manx gene, which is much more difficult to control, the gene responsible for the Japanese Bobtail's short tail is not associated with defects of the spine or any other known health problems.

Japanese Bobtails are living works of art with their sculptured bodies, short pert tails, alert ears, and large window-on-the-soul eyes. The breed’s general balance is of utmost importance. Medium-sized with clean lines and bone structure, the Japanese Bobtail is well-muscled but straight and slender rather than massive in build. The body is long, lean and elegant, and shows well-developed muscular strength without coarseness. It’s not tubular like the Siamese nor cobby like the Persian. The legs are long and slender but not dainty or fragile in appearance, ending in oval paws. The hind legs are noticeably longer than the forelegs, but deeply angulated when the cat is standing relaxed so the torso remains nearly level. Adult males weigh 7 to 10 pounds; adult females weigh 5 to 7 pounds.

Although the head appears long and finely chiseled, it forms an almost perfect equilateral triangle with gentle curving lines, high cheekbones and a noticeable whisker break. The muzzle is fairly broad and neither pointed nor blunt, and the chin is full. The nose is long and well-defined, with a gentle dip at or just below eye level. The ears are large, upright, expressive, and set wide apart but at right angles to the head, rather than flaring outward. In repose, they give the impression of being tilted forward. The eyes are large, oval, wide and alert, and set into the skull at a pronounced slant when viewed in profile. The eyeball has a shallow curve and doesn’t bulge beyond the cheekbone or the forehead.

The Japanese Bobtail’s tail is not the only characteristic feature of this breed, but it is the defining one. Like lotus blossoms, each tail is unique—the length, shape and flexibility vary greatly from cat to cat. Therefore, the standard is more of a guideline rather than a strict description of the tail, and the standard doesn’t promote one type of tail over another, since so many types exist. The extension of the tail bone should be no longer than three inches from the body. The tail is composed of one or more curves, angles or kinks, or any combination of these. The tail may be flexible or rigid and the size and shape harmonizes with the cat’s appearance. The direction in which the tail is carried is not important. However, the tail must be clearly visible; the Japanese Bobtail is not a tailless cat.

While a short, curly tail can be considered a malformation, since it differs from the standard feline design, fanciers love the breed for just this trait, particularly since health is not affected. Because the tail length is governed by a recessive gene, a cat must inherit two copies of the gene—one from each parent—to have the characteristic tail. So when two Japanese Bobtails are bred together, all of the offspring have short tails because the dominant long-tail gene is absent. The Japanese Bobtail’s tail is always naturally short.

The Japanese Bobtail comes in both long and short hair lengths. The soft and silky fur of the longhair is medium-long to long with no noticeable undercoat. A ruff is desirable. Over the shoulders, the coat may be shorter and close-lying; the coat should lie in a way that accents the body’s lines. The fur becomes longer toward the rump and noticeably longer on the tail and britches. The tail is fluffy, and ear and toe tufts are desirable. The tail hair can puff out, making the tail look like a miniature pom-pom. The shorthair’s soft, silky fur is medium in length with no noticeable undercoat and no ruff.

In CFA, the Japanese Bobtail comes in any color, pattern or combination, except those showing evidence of hybridization resulting in the colors chocolate, lavender, the pointed pattern, un-patterned agouti (ticked tabby) or these combinations with white. In TICA, however, all colors and patterns are accepted. The mi-ke coat pattern is the most popular and numerous. Preference is given to bold, dramatic markings and rich, vivid colors. Nose leather, paw pads and eye color should harmonize with the coat color. Blue eyes and odd eyes are allowed. No outcrosses are permitted.