BRITISH SHORTHAIR / BRITISH LONGHAIR
History of the breed
The breed was developed in Europe going back as far as Roman times where they
used them to guard their food stores and keep out vermin, as well as being
domestic companions.
The British Shorthair breed itself became recognized in the 1950`s with the
British blue cat as that was the only color then, but they now come in a variety
of colors as diverse as: white, black, blue, red, cream, chocolate, lilac,
tortoiseshell, blue-cream and the latest cinnamon & fawn, with white added they
become bi & tri colors. Patterned cats include the tortie, tabby, spotted,
colorpointed and tipped. Eye color varies from gold to copper in the self's (one
colored coat) and the bi & tri colors to green in the tipped, hazel in the
tabby's and spotted, and blue in the colorpointed.
British Breed Profile
British shorthair breed is the largest and the oldest breed amongst Shorthair
cats. British cats are very sturdy, powerful cats with a crisp, short, “plush”
kind of coat. Their head is very round and big, however needs to be in
proportion with the body size. Round chubby cheeks create on open and sweet
expression. They got the looks of a little bears. Ears are set apart medium to
small. The biggest accent in the British appearance is large round shape eyes.
Bright copper color is proffered. However, for silvers green color is also
acceptable. Heavily muscled neck should be blending with massive torso creating
the look of “ no neck”. Torso is wide, rounded, and muscular with broad wide
chest. Legs are short to medium length, slightly less that body length. Tail is
thick and straight in length (2/3 of the body).
At this time we only have breed blue color, but in the future we would be
planning to add lilacs and silvers.
Temperament
No one can resist charm of quite and even-tempered “teddy-bears”. The Cheshire
smile on their face gives them unique and unforgettable look. British Shorthairs
will make ideal family pets. Their territorial “desires” somewhat represented.
However, from my personal experience, fixed British males just do not spray. For
example, my Barsi knows that litter box is the only place in the house where he
can get a little “dirty”. There is certainly an explanation to that. British
shorthair cats has been domesticate a long time ago and a lot of wild instincts
are starting to faint. One of it is territorial behavior.
Their coats require low maintenance. Just groom it weekly with a brush. I
usually give them a bath just before the show. My female cats are extremely
clean. What can I add more to it – they are British “true” British “ladies”.
This breed is loyal to their owners, intelligent and playful as kittens. However,
they are also called slow “bloomers”. Cats are fully matures by the age of five.
The life expectancy for Brits is 18-20 years. This breed is known as healthiest
breed with fewer health problems.
As all the other breeds Brits are not an exception – they are independent, but
they do need your company. They will follow you everywhere you go and would
watch you for hours. Some "go" for a cup of coffe in in the morning, some like to go in "bed" with you.
Here you can find Breeding profile BSH / BLH of the TICA: (pdf file)
Please let me say a few words about the special British
Longhair Kitten we have from time to time.
The longhair gene came into the British Breed with outcross with Persians, to get
new colours in BSH, which was allowed for a long time. Now it
is not longer necessary to breed BSH/Persians, but the longhair gen was in
British Blood-Lines.
The longhair gen is a recessive gene and can be carried by a British Shorthair
Cat until you can't see it.
So two Shorthairs can become longhaired kittens, and yes, they're pure, and also
getting a normal pedigree in TICA,
named on British Longhair (BLH). Our Barsi, Arjella and Ksusha carry the longhair
gene. And we love to have
these little cuddle monsters in their litters! Look at Grady, he is becomming a great big round Longhaired Cat. His owner Jo Ann is veru proud of him!
The BLH are very special, they're so affectionate and always purring, they love
their people, follow them everywhere,
if you'd ever had a BLH you'd never change this cat with a BSH ;-) because of
their very special temperament. Especially children love it, when a cat loves to
be carried around - and BLH love it!
Julia