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Bahraini
Dilmun Cat
Bahrain is a small island just off the east coast of
Saudi
Arabia in the Arabian
Gulf.
The local cats
of Bahrain have a very distinctive 'look' about them - they are slender,
elegant, street smart spotted tabbies.
These spotted tabbies have beautiful
short hair coats that are extremely sleek, I compare their coats to the feel
of a beautiful silk Persian carpet.
The spotted Bahraini cats occur in all
different colors from dark brown, bronze, cinnamon, lilac, ginger, silver,
etc. and the cats occur in solid colors also. Recently the typical Bahraini
cat has been called the 'Dilmun Cat' after the name of ancient Bahrain.
These cats have managed to adapt to the harsh climatic conditions of
Bahrain.
Due to the extreme summer temperatures in Bahrain the cats have
large ears and short fur.
In the summer they sleep all day and come out in
the evening, and in the cooler months they are more active at day time.
Generally these lovely cats are not much appreciated in their home land.
Most of the cats in Bahrain live as street wise cats in areas where there is
a sufficient supply of food and enough shelter (fortunately for the cats
people throw out a lot of food in Bahrain!).
Apart from their good looks,
the cats of Bahrain are particularly endearing creatures because of their
great personalities. Even people that normally don't like cats end up with a
soft spot for the cats of Bahrain.
The cats of Bahrain are very adaptable creatures, and that has been the
key to their survival.
Unfortunately, nowadays there is so much development
going on in Bahrain with shopping malls and high rise offices popping up,
that the traditional home areas of the cats are being demolished.
The next
test of their survival is to see how they will survive in the modern towns
and cities of Bahrain.
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