About Us

SHERADA CATS – THE STORY SO FAR


Sherada Abyssinians, situated in the beautiful scenic Cape Town - South Africa, was born in the early 1970's. The very first Abyssinian female I had was a cat called Wang Bun Mi Terraii Bobini, a ruddy bred by Mrs. Elizabeth Botha of Knysna. Grateful thanks is given to Mrs. Edith Sealy who introduced me (and others) to the joys of owning an Abyssinian. Like any other breeder I have had many ups and downs in the years since then but have survived anything nature and anyone else can throw at me. I am still going strong today... Many cats and kittens have passed through my doors during the ensuing years and I remember them all with a good deal of love.
Read More...
About Abyssinians

KirangaThe History and character of the Abyssinian
It is apparent that the African Wildcat had been domesticated by humans by 1600 BC and the burial sites of the ancient Egyptians has yielded many mummified remains of this species of cat. The Egyptians worshipped their cats as messengers of the gods and honoured and revered them.

The true origins of the Abyssinian cat is a little hazy but it is a fact that they do resemble the African wildcat to some extent. The first known  Abyssinian to be taken from Africa to England was a cat named Zulu. This cat came from Abyssinia now named Ethiopia. He arrived in England in 1868. It also appears that recent feline genetic studies have placed the forebears of the Abyssinian in the coastal area of the Bay of Bengal in India. Interesting too that there is a stuffed cat, which remarkably resembles an Abyssinian in the Leyden Museum in Holland. This cat dates from something like 1838 and comes from Asia.  The first Abyssinians to be imported into the USA came in the early 1900’s but the serious breeding of this breed did not take off until the 1930s. Today the Abyssinian is the fourth most popular breed in the United States and second only to the Siamese in popularity of shorthaired breeds.  The United States has  to a large extent perfected the breed and arguably remains the leader in the breeding of Abyssinians.
Read more...