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THE MANX CAT
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The Manx cat is a stocky, solid cat with a dense double coat (long or short), a compact body, very short
back, hind legs that are visibly longer than the front legs, big bones, a wide chest, and greater depth of
flank (sides of the cat nearest the rear) than other cats. The standard weight for males is 10-12 lbs.
and for females is 8-10 lbs. The Manx head is broad-jowled with round eyes, and the ear-set is distinct
to the breed--when viewed from the back, the ears and the top of the head form a "cradle" or "rocker"
shape.
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The ears themselves are broad at the base and taper to a narrower, rounded tip. This is the general
appearance of all Manx cats, regardless of whether they are show-quality or not.
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Although the completely tailless, or "rumpy," Manx is the desired show type, Manx may also have tails.
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skin, that may be felt when the cat is happy), a "stumpy" (any tail length not long, but visibly a tail),
and a "longy," and all are Manx's. Only rumpy and riser Manx may be shown in American competition,
and the riser's cartilage must not stop the judge's hand when the back is stroked.
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THE MYTH
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There are a number of mythical tales surrounding the origins of the Manx, such as that Noah cut off its
tail with the door of the Ark as the rain began to fall. In actuality, Manx cats originated on the
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Isle of Man, off the coast of Great Britain, among a population of cats whose common ancestry sprang
from the same roots as the British Shorthair. A spontaneous mutation occurred at some point several
hundred years ago, which created kittens born without the vertebrae that form the tail of normal cats.
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With the passage of centuries and due to the isolation of the cats from outside breeding, the tailless
ness eventually became a common characteristic among the Isle of Man cats, because the mutated gene
is a dominant trait.
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Webster's dictionary :
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Manx 7ma%ks8
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 adj.
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5by metathesis obs. Maniske ON *manskr Man3, inflectional base of M_n, Isle of Man Celt
name, as in Welsh Manau, OIr Manu6 of the Isle of Man, its people, or their language
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n.
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