Siamese Cat

A gift fit for a king, the Siamese cat is a true aristocrat, with elegant lines and beautiful coloring. It can, however, be rowdy and boisterous, and it is perhaps this contradiction that makes the breed universally popular. Did you know that all Siamese are pure white at birth. The colorpoints on the face, ears, tail, feet and legs appear as the kittens mature.

History

The original Siamese cats, which are still to be found in Thailand, bear little or no resemblance to today’s show types. They have stocky bodies, rounded heads, crossed eyes and kinked tails, all of which would disqualify them from competition today. In its native land, the Siamese was nurtured and protected within the temple and palace walls for centuries, and featured prominently in art and literature. The breed became known to the rest of the world when the royal family of Siam (now Thailand) presented then as gifts to visiting dignitaries. This was considered a great honor because the cats belonged exclusively to royalty.

The Siamese began appearing in British cat shows in the late nineteenth century and in America in the early part of this century. The only accepted color was seal point, and when blue points were introduced in 1934, some judges were so opposed to this new color that they refused to judge them as a separate class, which caused great consternation. The next color to be recognized, in 1946, was the chocolate point. This color resulted from a daughter of Wong Mau, the original Burmese imported in the USA, being mated to a Siamese. In 1955, the lilac point (also known as the frost point) was recognized. These four colors prevailed for a number of years until the breeders of red points, tortie points and lynx points began to clamor for recognition of their color. The cat fancy was divided about whether to accept these latest colors. Debate raged, sometimes quite heatedly. As a result, some associations accepted red, tortie and lynx points as Siamese. Others accepted them as a separate breed called colorpoint shorthairs.

Description

The ideal Siamese is sleek, slender and refined in every respect. Its medium sized body is graceful, long and svelte, combining fine bones and firm muscles. The shoulders and hips continue the tubular lines and the hips are never wider than the shoulders. The abdomen is tight and firm. The head is a long, tapering wedge, starting at the nose and flaring out in straight lines to the tips of the ears to form a triangle, with no break at the whiskers. The muzzle is fine and wedge shaped. The tip of the chin lines up with the tip of the nose in the same vertical plane, neither receding nor excessively massive.

The almond shaped eyes are medium sized and slant upward from the nose, following the line of the head and ears. They should not be crossed and any hint of a crossed eye is grounds for disqualification on the show bench. They are always brilliant sapphire blue, with deeper and more vivid shades being preferred. The ears are large, pointed and open at the base. The legs are long and slim with dainty, small, oval paws. The long, thin tail tapers to a fine point and has no kinks.

All Siamese are shorthaired, but some associations now refer to the Balinese as a longhaired Siamese. The Siamese coat is short, fine textured and glossy, and lies close to the body. It can look as if it is painted on. Grooming is minimal. Combing and brushing twice a week to remove dead hair will be quite sufficient. To make the coat gleam, wipe it over with a damp chamois.

Varieties

Siamese are colorpoint cats and come in seal point, blue point, chocolate point, lilac point, red point, tortie point and lynx point. The last three are called colorpoint shorthairs in the cat fanciers’ association. The tortie and lynx points also come in lilac, blue, chocolate and seal.

Seal point : the body is an even warm cream, darker on the back and lighter on the stomach and chest, the points are seal brown, the nose leather and paw pads are seal brown.

Blue point : the body is an even bluish white with a warmer tone on the stomach and chest, the points, nose leather and paw pads are slate blue.

Chocolate point : the body is an even warm ivory all over, the points are warm milk chocolate, the nose leather and paw pads are cinnamon pink.

Lilac point : the body is glacial white (USA) or magnolia (Britain) all over, points are frosty gray with a pink pr lilac tone, the nose leather and paw pads are lavender pink.

Red point : the body is pure white, shaded with the color of the points, the points are apricot to deep red, with the deeper shades preferred, the nose leather and paw pads are flesh or coral pink.

Tortie point : the colors of the coat, nose leather and paw pads are as above for seal, blue, chocolate and lilac points, but within the color is a tabby pattern. Irregular patches of red and/or cream on the points; red and/or cream mottling on the ears and tail is permitted.

Lynx point : the colors of the coat, nose leather and paw pads are as above for seal, blue, chocolate and lilac points, but within the color is a striped pattern.

Temperament

The Siamese is intelligent and lovable. It will continually amuse you with its antics while occasionally frustrating you with its ability to open seemingly locked cupboards and doors. It is a people cat and demands attention, the Siamese hates to be ignored or left by itself, and can be mischievous if bored or lonely. These cats communicate like no other. The voice of the Siamese is legendary, a female in season sounds exactly like a baby wailing for its mother and can be easily heard a block away. One of the more highly strung breeds, agile and active and seeming to be in perpetual motion, it is not the cat for everyone. But for those who take this boisterous cat into their home, the reward is boundless affection and hours of entertainment.

The distinctive masked features, dark paws and tail of the Seal Point Siamese cat were described in a 15th century manuscript of cat poems discovered in Siam (modern Thailand) – which suggests that the cats were already deeply established in the national consciousness.

The Seal Point became the Royal Cat of Siam. It could only be obtained from the royal palace in Bangkok by special favor of the King. When members of the royal family died, the cats were thought to aid transmigration of their souls. A cat was placed in the tomb with the deceased. Evidence of its escape through holes in the ceiling of the chamber confirmed that the soul had successfully travelled to the afterlife.

The first breeding pair of Siamese reached Britain in 1884. The required standard then, for what are known as Traditional Siamese (also known as Apple Heads, Opals or Thai Siamese) – called for much stockier cats, rounder in the head than later lines. Their ears were quite small, and their coats as dense and plushy as moleskin. The cats also had a pronounced squint and a kink in the end of their tails, typical of the genetic inheritance of cats throughout south east asia, and which are considered defects in the modern pedigree. The traditional Siamese is still popular among those people who seek a cat less extreme in type than those approved of today by show judges.

The modern Siamese is long bodied and long limbed with dainty oval paws. Face on, its head from the tip of the large, triangular ears to the muzzle is a pronouced wedge shape.

Siamese Cat breed information (All variations)

Coat – very short, fine, glossy and close lying

Eyes – almong shaped, slanted, alert, intelligent expression, clear brilliant blue

Other features – loud voice, large ears, big personality

Grooming – easy, must be done regularly

Temperament – intelligent, lively, playful, loyal affectionate but can be aloof

Seal Point

The original siamese cat, as described in a 15th century  Thai manuscript, was clearly already well known at that time. The coat is fawn and the points darken to almost black on the nose and ears. The strong contrast in color between the points and the pale, even cream of the main area of the coat is important. The dark brown seal points should be restricted to a triangle on the face, the ears, legs and tail. Nose and paw pads are matching dark drown.

Illustrations of a cat with dark points like this modern seal point siamese have been found in a centuries old manuscript from Thailand.

A seal point shows off the perfectly balanced lines of the pedigree Siamese, with long neck, long legs and long body following through to the tip of the tail.

Chocolate Point

Some seal points were naturally lighter than others. This characteristic was eventually developed into Chocolate Point. The brown extremities are a milk chocolate brown rather than the rich plain chocolate of the Seal Point. The body color is ivory.

An alert and enquiring mind if suggested by the attitude of this American Chocolate Point.

Blue Point

The essence of the blue point is a main body color of icy white with mere hints of the pale bluish brown of the points. The blue was one of the early variations of the breed to gain acceptance. It is a dilute form of the Seal.

The long, straight Roman nose and startling blue eye color of the breed are finely demonstrated by this Blue Point.

Lilac (Frost) Point

As its alternative American name suggests, a main body color with just a hint of off white moves into the frosted blue grey of the points. There is a touch of lavender in the point color, meeting its match in complementary lavender pink nose and paw pads. This is the dilute form of the Chocolate.

A Lilac Point is carrying on a conversation even while it is being photographed. Siamese are the most vocal and extrovert of cats.

Red Point

The introduction of the sex linked orange gene contributed to the Red Point. The points should be reddish gold with pink nose leather and paw pads, all set off against an ivory coat.

In a Red Point Siamese, the deeper and more intense the eye color the better – it makes a dramatic contrast against the red gold points.

Cream Point

Cream on cream brings an extremely subtle tonal difference. The slightly richer buttermilk points are barely discernible against an ivory coat. Nose and paw pads are pink. The cream point is a dilute version of the Red.

The fur of a Cream Point Siamese shows dense cream points which the eyes are a deep sapphire blue.

Tabby Point (Lynx Point)

There are now many variations of Tabby Pointed Siamese. In the United States only the traditional Seal, Blue, Chocolate and Lilac pointed varieties are recognized, so the Tabby joins all other variations under the category of colorpointed shorthairs.

In the United Kingdom, Tabby and Tortoiseshell variations are accepted, even in the new colors such as Fawn, Cinnamon and Caramel.

This is a Chocolate Tabby Point, showing clearly defined rings on the tail, and a lovely pale, creamy main body color to contrast with the points.

Patched Orientals

Yet another group linked with the Siamese are the Patched Orientals. These are in essense white Siamese cats with distinct patches of color or tortoiseshell. Such bi-color and tortoiseshell and white combinations were previously seen before only in Persians and British Shorthairs. Sia,ese were mated to patched Cornix Red Cats. Constant back crossing to Siamese and appropriate Orientals slowly eliminated the Cornish Rex type and increased the amount of white, so that the required balance of white to color was achieved. These are not recognized by the British cat fancy or by many overseas organization.

Tortie Point

In the United States, the Tortie Point Siamese is bracketed under the more general Colorpointed classification. In the United Kingdom, there are very specific standards. The main requirement is that, as with any of the Siamese, the points are in contrast to the body color. They should be randomly mottled with various shades of red and cream on whatever the base color might be. There are Tortie Points in the newer colors, such as Cinnamon, as well as the traditional Seal, Blue and Chocolate.

A lactating chocolate tortie point queen has all the essential Siamese type characteristics, including a tendency to thrash its tail when bored with the photo session.