European Shorthair: Cat Food and a Description of the Breed
The European Shorthair is a medium sized cat breed. The European Shorthair is balanced and robust. They have a headstrong temperament and prefer to go on adventures on their own.
History of the European Shorthair
The European Shorthair is a targeted breeding, which has emerged from ordinary domestic cats. It is partly also called European or Celtic shorthair cat. Their ancestors, however, were not wild cats native to Europe, but rather the African Falcate cats.
The ancestors of today's European Shorthair were appreciated in Europe mainly as rat and mouse hunters on farms. They have always been especially popular in Scandinavia, where their breeding began and where there are still comparatively many breeders of the European Shorthair.
Although the European Shorthair was already mentioned in the 1920s, at least in Finland, it was not until 1982 that it was given its own breed standard and only then was it recognized by the FiFé as an independent cat breed. Before that she was still counted as British Shorthair.
Appearance of the European Shorthair
The European Shorthair is a medium sized and strong cat. Females usually weigh four to six kilos and males reach a weight of five to seven kilos.
The European Shorthair has a muscular body, but it does not look as stocky as for example the British Shorthair or the Persian. Its chest is broad, its medium long legs are strong and its paws are round.
The European Shorthair has a large head with a medium long nose and round, slightly sloping eyes. Their ears are set wide apart and are medium in size. They are almost upright and occasionally have small tufts of hair.
The coat of the European Shorthair
The shiny coat of the European Shorthair is short and dense. In principle it may have all natural colours and may occur both with and without white. Accordingly there are among others mackerel, brindle, white or also cream and black animals.
Character of the European Shorthair
The European Shorthair is considered a friendly and lovable cat. She is intelligent and people-oriented. In contact with children it proves to be patient and gentle, so that nothing stands in the way of a family cat.
Nevertheless the European Shorthair still has a strong hunting instinct, which she regularly shows when playing and romping around together. For a well-balanced quadruped, sufficient employment opportunities are therefore indispensable.
Keeping and care of the European Shorthair
If she gets enough attention, it’s quite possible to keep the European Shorthair as a pure indoor cat. A second cat in the household is in this case a welcome playmate, which helps to avoid boredom.
However, the European Shorthair feels much more comfortable as an outdoor cat. Because it possesses a distinctive urge to move and prefers it despite all love to its human roommates to be able to go regularly independently on discovery tours.
The coat of the European Shorthair is generally very easy to groom. Occasional brushing is useful during shedding.
It’s also important to check the cat’s coat for skin parasites at regular intervals. An infestation with ticks or grass mites is not uncommon in cats during the warm months of the year.
Diseases
The European Shorthair is a cat breed that has been spared from an increased tendency to breed typical diseases.
Nevertheless, the European Shorthair can have different health problems. Besides common cat parasites, these include various common cat diseases from diabetes to cat cold.
Therefore you should always pay attention to good keeping conditions for your European Shorthair and regular preventive measures like vaccinations which are important for cats, should be part of your everyday life as a cat owner.
The life expectancy of the European Shorthair
The European Shorthair usually reaches an age of 15-20 years. Owners of outdoor cats should be aware that the life expectancy of outdoor cats is often significantly lower due to the higher risks.
The right food for the European Shorthair
The nutrition of the European Shorthair is quite undemanding. Nevertheless, you should of course pay attention to their feeding according to their needs. The right amount of food for the cat depends on different factors like age, weight and the activity level of the respective quadruped.
However, health problems can also play a role in the choice of a suitable food. For example, a cat with a food allergy needs a hypoallergenic cat food, the ingredients of which its organism does not react allergically to.
Regardless of this, you should always remember that your European Shorthair is a carnivore. A cat food that meets your needs must therefore necessarily have a sufficiently high proportion of animal proteins, while poorly tolerated ingredients such as wheat should be avoided.
In the assortment of I love my cat you will find high-quality dry and wet food for cats, with which you can reliably supply your European Shorthair with all important nutrients in the right amount.
Additionally you can support the well-being of your European Shorthair with the following products if required:
- Shiimun Immune, to supply your cat with valuable nutrients for strong defences
- Dental Powder, to enable a thorough and time-saving dental care for your European Shorthair
- Ear mite drops for cats, to counteract an infestation with ear mites in your quadruped
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