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The Persian cat is one of the oldest breeds
of cat. In Britain,
it is called the "Longhair" or "Persian Longhair" (tipped varieties are known as
"Chinchilla Longhair").
The Persian cat is reputed to originate from
Iran (Persia), but interbreeding of Angoras with native British domestic
longhairs in the 19th Century makes the true origin of the breed unclear . A
show-quality Persian has an extremely long thick coat, short legs, a wide head
with the ears set far apart, large eyes, and an extremely foreshortened muzzle.
The breed was originally established with a short (but not non-existent) muzzle,
but over time this feature has become extremely exaggerated, particularly in
North America, and Persians are prone to a number of health problems
(specifically affecting their sinuses and
breathing) caused by it. However, conscientious breeders eliminate this by
careful choice of breeding stock, as the goal is first and always healthy cats.
Persian cats can
have any colour or markings including
points,
tortoiseshell, blue, and tabby.
Persian cats with point are refered to as Colourpoint Persian in Europe and
Himalayan (cat) in United States.
In the USA, there was an attempt to establish the silver Persian as a
separate breed called the
Sterling, but it was not accepted and silver and gold longhaired cats are
judged in the Persian category of cat shows.
In South Africa, the attempt to separate the breed was more successful: the SA
Cat Council (SACC) registers cats with 5 generations of pure bred Chinchilla as Chinchilla Longhair. The Chinchilla Longhair has a slightly longer nose than
the Persian, resulting in healthy breathing and no tearing of the eyes. Its hair
is translucent with only the tips carrying black pigment: a feature that gets
lost when out-crossed to other colored Persians. Out-crossing also may result in
loosing nose and lip liner, which is a fault in the Chinchilla Longhair breed
standard.
Because their fur is too long and dense for them to maintain themselves,
Persian cats need extensive and regular
grooming.
To keep their fur in its best condition, they must be bathed regularly, dried
carefully afterwards, and brushed thoroughly every day. Their eyes need to be
checked for problems on a regular basis because some animals have trouble
keeping them clean.
A Persian cat without an established and registered pedigree is
classed as a
domestic longhair cat.
Silver Chinchilla Persian
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Blue Colourpoint Persian
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Persian silver shaded
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Blue Tabby Persian
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