Editing American Bobtail (section)

== History ==
Urban legend says that Bobtails are the result of a cross breeding between a domestic tabby cat and a wild bobcat.  The unusual tail is actually the result of a random spontaneous genetic mutation within the domestic cat population, and may be related to the Manx gene, which is also dominant. Yodie, a short-tailed brown tabby male, was mated with a seal-point Siamese female to create the American Bobtail's original bloodline. Most of the early bloodlines have died out.

This cat's original appearance genetics were modified in the breed to form a new and improved strain which comes in essentially all colors and coat types.  The breed was first recognized by The International Cat Association (TICA, US-based), in 1989.  The breed has been accepted for championship competition by TICA, the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA, also US-based) and the American Cat Fanciers Association (ACFA). The breed is technically also sanctioned in the Cat Aficionado Association (CAA) of China, by virtue of the CAA having adopted all of ACFA's breed standards; it is unknown if any specimens are actually in China.  The breed is "recognized" (as existing), as both American Bobtail Longhair and American Bobtail Shorthair, in the Germany-based World Cat Federation (WCF), but is not "accepted" for competition and has no WCF breed standard.