Glossary

Anemia—Reduction of red blood cells that carry oxygen.

Bicolor—Solid hair coat of one color with patches of white.

Breeding True—Offspring of pedigreed cats that match size, color, hair coat and body style of parents.

Calico—Tri-color cat, usually with black, white and orange patches of color.

CFA—The Cat Fanciers' Association (www.cfa.org) is the largest cat registry organization in the world.

Chinchilla—Contrasting color tips of hair coat. Lightly tipped hair coats are termed “chinchillas.”

Classic Tabby—“M” on forehead with body markings in shape of a bull’s eye that is darker than rest of hair coat. Visible rings on tail and bars on legs.

Ectoparasite—Parasite that lives on or within the skin surface.

Endoparasite—Parasite that lives within the internal organs or parts of the body.

Feral—Unsocial and intolerant of handling or petting.

Hairballs—Hair that is swallowed during self grooming that mats together in the stomach or intestines and may be vomited up.

Mackerel Tabby—Thin vertical stripes within hair coat on body. Mackerel tabby cats all have stripes resembling an “M” on their foreheads.

Mange—Parasitic infestation of mites that burrow under and into hair follicles (note there are two types, Demodectic and Sarcoptic).

Parasite—An organism that lives in or on another organism.

Parti-Colored—Hair coat pattern with two separate colors.

Patched—Tabby with red patches of hair.

Pointed—Coloration where the “points” (face, legs and tail) are darker than the body as in Siamese and Persian cats.

Prolapse—Falling down or slipping of a body part from its usual position.

Pustule—Eruption containing pus, such as boils or pimples.

Quarantine—Placing animals with contagious diseases in isolation from other animals to prevent spreading of the disease.

Queen—Female cat.

Rex—Wavy or curly coat.

Shaded—Contrasting color at tips of hair coat.

Smoke—Solid color with white undercoat next to skin.

Ticked—Bands of color on hair coat shaft.

Tom—Male cats.

Tortoiseshell—Black and orange mixed hair coat.

Van—Cream to white hair coat with color patches on head, tail and/or legs.

Wirehair—Bent, wavy hair coat, springy to the touch, resembling short wire.