Are Somali Cats Rare?

Somali Cats are not rare. However they are slightly more rare than the mainstream purebred cats. I have a page on how rare the cat breeds are and I rated this cat 6/10 where 10 is the most rare. That gives you an idea about this cat’s rarity.

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Somali cat. Photo copyright Helmi Flick.

The important point to make about this cat breed is that it is a very beautiful breed. The Somali is a semi-longhaired Abyssinian and I believe that the longer hair makes this cat breed more attractive than the Abyssinian. I remember seeing an absolutely stunning Somali cat at a cat show in America. The cat was the most beautiful cat at the show and it was a very big cat show.

Gloria Stephens in her book Legacy of the Cat supports my thoughts about this cat breed. Under the heading of appearance she states, “The Somali is a beautiful cat to behold….”.

Visitors to the Internet also ask whether Somali cats are hypoallergenic. They are not. They also asked whether Somali cats make good pets and the answer to that is absolutely yes.

Finally, they ask whether Somali cats are affectionate and the answer to that is also a firm yes. I’ve just written an article about whether Abyssinian cats are friendly and the conclusion is that they are friendly. The Somali cat will have a similar character to the Abyssinian. But please note that cat personality characteristics and traits are really about individual cats rather than cat breeds and whether they have been socialised properly.