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Typical Bombay Kittens
Typical Bombay Kittens
The Bombay and Asian Cat
The Bombays and other Asian cats are a remarkably intelligent, healthy, vigorous breed of cat with an average litter size of between four and six kittens. They are known to shadow "their" people in a dog-like manner, sometimes to the irritation of their owners. The Bombay demands attention and likes to be the centre of all family activities as they enjoy the interaction between themselves and their owners. They are reported to be even more vocal than their Burmese cousins are. They are one of the most easy breeds to care for and have temperaments that sometimes resemble delinquent teenagers!
Bombays are slow to develop the magnificent characteristics that engender their unique image. Until they are about four months old or more, when the first signs of the sleek, shiny black coats begin to evolve, making it difficult to fully assess show potential sometimes until they are more than six or seven months old. The Bombay will often only achieve full maturity after it is a year to eighteen months old.
However, the late development of desired breed qualities that make the Bombay special – the shiny black coat and brilliant gold to copper coloured eyes – does not preclude "premature" sexual maturity. Some prove to be extremely precocious and may show signs of maturity as young as five months. Generally, though, it is usually at seven or eight months that the young queen will first come into oestrus.
The Bombay and other Selfs share many of the behavioural characteristics of the Burmese. They are adaptable to living indoors and are quite dependent on human company. A Bombay will often accept dogs in the household more quickly than it will adapt to the other cats. The Bombay often wants to be the dominant cat in the household.
They are intelligent, actively seek interaction with humans and love to play games. Many retrieve and do tricks. Some have been successfully leash-trained. Like Burmese, Bombays are heat-seekers, and often like to sleep under the bedcovers.
Both Bombays and Burmese have a voice that is distinctive, but not as loud or harsh as the Siamese voice. Most individuals are quite talkative and some even have an affinity with water!
Bombays reach sexual maturity relatively quickly, so owners who will not be breeding should plan on spaying females and neutering males between 6 and 9 months of age. A few males have been known to sire litters at 5 months of age. Their physical development, however, is somewhat slower. A Bombay male may not reach his full muscular development until he is almost two years old. An adult Bombay male will typically weigh between 8 and 11 pounds (3.6 and 5 Kgms), with females between 6 and 9 pounds.(2.7 and 4 Kgms).