What are Bobtails... A bobtail is a cat born with a very short tail, often caused by genetics (In Moose's case). Generally, with messy or curly fur. Bobtails are often found having longer back legs than other cats :) This affects the way they move. From personal experience of observing a cat with a bobtail, they move in a more bounding stance, and are generally more bouncy, to help their balance. While bobtails don't have balance issues, they do have trouble climbing as well due to the lack of a tail. Symtoms + Risks... • Bobtails are more at risk for spine diseases because of their shorter spine, which can cause mobility issues, breathing issues, digestion issues, and many other issues. This can also cause large amounts of pain for the cat • Bobtails are also more likely to have hip issues, like arthritis and hip dysplasia. Which both effect how the cat moves around. • Bobtails generally have a more bouncy stance, like a lynx would have, which helps their balance. (Their balance isn't really affected because of that, which is a common misconception I see all the time) How will this affect Moosekit... • When Moose is older, she will develop arthritis (Which would be around 50-70 moons, so like around 6 years old, which is around the time cats develop arthritis). She'll have more trouble getting around, and hunting will become a more difficult task; she'll also have a lot of pain in her joints. (I'll do the actual research when she is that age) • Moosekit will make her own strategies to catch prey and techniques because of her differences. This won't affect her hunting much, but she will get more sore from this method of hunting • Moose won't be ashamed of being a bobtail, and will think it's cool and unique. While she isn't happy about the downsides, she'll try to make the most of it. She will also think it's cool to meet other cats that share her struggle • Moose will generally stand and walk with a more upward stance (If you click on the art of moose, it'll show an example of what I mean on a lynx) • Because of her long legs, she'll generally stand with her back legs stretched out a bit (Like in the lynx picture). This'll help her balance better. Roleplay example... I find roleplaying this really hard, so I'll actually describe how I'll do it. In hunting roleplay, I'll make sure to describe the bounding movement she does, and the special ways she hunts, while in roleplays where she generally is just moving, I'll make sure to describe her stance End notes + Sources... I hope I did proper research. I noticed a /big/ lack of sources on bobtails, and how it affects the cat. I got so desperate for sources I actually searched my local library, which actually did help. • https://www.purina.com/cats/cat-breeds/american-bobtail • A book from my library called "American Bobtail Cats. American Bobtail Cat Owners Manual. American Bobtail Cats" which did have tons of helpful info though it was a bit outdated T-T • I found sprinkles of information here, though it took some digging https://www.britannica.com/search?query=bobtail+cats
