Breed: A cat classification based on it's heritage. For example: Angora, Siamese, Persian, etc..

Calling: The howling and yowling made by a female cat in heat.

Coat: The cat's fur (hair) covering.

Crate: A portable cage made of plastic or metal used to transport the cat and/or as a place for the cat to spend the night.

Dam: The female parent of a litter.

Electronic collar: A collar that provides a warning sound and/or an electric stimulation upon receipt of an electronic signal given by the user.

Genealogy: Record of a cat's family descent. Syn: Pedigree.

Groom: Brushing, trimming, and other actions to make a cat's coat neat.

Heat: A time when the queen is fertile and receptive to the advances of a tom.

Kitten: A young cat. Male or female. Less than seven months old, as a standard.

Lame: A problem moving a leg due to injury, disease or being born lame.

Litter: The offspring of one birth. An average litter is 3 to 4 kittens.

Mane: Long, thick hair on top and sides of neck.

Markings: Contrasting color or pattern in a cat's coat.

Mate: To breed a queen and a tom.

Neuter: To castrate or spay.

Pads: Tough, shock-absorbing projections on the underside of the feet. Usually black.

Pedigree: The record of a cat's genealogy for at least three generations.

Queen: A female cat.

Register: To record a cat's breeding details with the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) or the Cat Fanciers' Federation (CFF).

Scent: The odor left by an animal or bird on the ground or carried through the air.

Sire: The male parent (tom) of a litter.

Spay: To remove a queen's ovaries to prevent conception.

Tom: A male cat.

Trot: A rhythmic two-beat running/jogging in which the feet at diagonal opposite ends of the body strike the ground together. For example: right hind with left front then left hind with right front.

Whole: Not neutered or spayed. Able to mate and produce a litter.

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