Dragon Li (Li Hua)

The lihua mao is the tabby that has lived for centuries in the homes, fields and streets of China, and in the early 2000s a group of Chinese breeders set out to turn it into a breed. It debuted as an experimental breed in January 2004 at a show in Beijing, and the Chinese association CAA recognised it. In February 2010 the American CFA admitted it to its Miscellaneous class, the first step towards recognition, but in May 2015 it withdrew it: in five years only about fifty cats had been shown and there was just one active breeder in the United States. Today only the CAA recognises it. Its standard requires a brown mackerel tabby, with no other colour or pattern, a sturdy, muscular body and large, almond-shaped eyes, ideally green. It matures slowly, up to three years, and has always been valued as a great hunter. In character it is calm, loyal to its people and independent.

Its coat is kept in order with a weekly brush. It is a practical cat that adapts to almost any home, but it needs hunting play every day to channel its instinct, plus scratching posts and high places. Indoor life or safe outdoor access: it hunts very efficiently and wildlife should be protected. Outside China it is almost impossible to find one with papers; if you like its temperament, a tabby adopted from a shelter is very similar.

It is a natural population with a broad genetic base and no known inherited diseases of its own, although there are no specific studies. Its risks are those of cats in general: tartar, excess weight after neutering, cystitis and kidney disease with age. Annual check-up and blood tests from the age of seven.