Her official show status is Premier . The picture above was taken by professional animal photographer Channan . This means she competes with altered Somali cats who are dark red with black ticking. They are judged against the Somali Breed Standard , which says what qualities and appearance a Somali should have. Somalis are long-haired Abyssinians .
Legend has it that after World War II, the Aby breed in Great Britain was reduced to a few cats.
To save the breed, the Brits had to resort to domestic cats. Eventually, these long-haired mutants were recognized as the Somali breed. Today's Somalis can trace their ancestry back to the Abys of post-WWII Great Britain. This legend is from an article in a recent CFA Yearbook. For more information about Somali cats in general, check out the Fancier's Breeds List .