Himalayan Cat

The Himalayan cat breed, also commonly known as the colourpoint Persian cat, is a domestic cat breed that has colouring similar to a Siamese cat, while, has a build and coat similar to that of the longhair or Persian cats. Therefore, these exotic Himalayan cat breeds are produced by the matings of Siamese and longhair breeds. The process is again followed by selected breeding of the offspring to get a better colouring, coat, and build. The Himalayan Siamese cats are often found to be cobby (of stocky build) and short-legged having long and soft fur throughout their bodies. They have a broad, rounded head, and blue round eyes.

This breed of cats are initially cream-coloured during their birth, and later obtain the darker points of the Siamese around the ears, face, legs, and tail. These darker points, i.e., the Siamese, maybe deep brown (seal point), lighter brown (chocolate point), blue-grey (blue point), pinkish-grey (lilac point), or reddish-orange (red point) in colour.

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Himalayan Siamese Cat Breed

History of Himalayan Breed of Cats

Very little or no information has been found for the early pictorial representations to help us understand how ancient the four main groups of cats are. The two most common varieties of cats are the single coloured black or white breed and the sex-linked orange breed (marmalade or tortoiseshell cats). Additionally, there are also some other cat breeds that are mostly seen as a pet and are controlled by the humans, such as the Manx, the Persian, the Siamese, the Abyssinian and to name a few. 

As per the Cat Fanciers' Association, the Himalayan Persian is considered simply to be a colour variation of the Persian breed rather than that of a separate breed, although these breeds of cats also do compete in their own colour division. They were named “Himalayan” based on their colour which was found similar to the colouration of the Himalayan animals, in particular, the Himalayan rabbit. It has also been stated that the long-haired Persian cats are the descendants of Pallas's cat as well as the Felis manul (a wild cat that inhabits central Asia and which is unmarked with spots or stripes and has very long soft fur). There is, however, no osteological or other evidence for this and it is more likely that the long-haired domestic cats are the result of artificial selection for this characteristic by humans.

Several works and studies have been done for establishing a breed with combined Persian and Siamese traits. These works were first started in the 1930s at Harvard University, the United States under the term Siamese–Persian. Although the results were published in the Journal of Heredity in 1936, these breeds of cats were not considered as a recognized breed by any major fancier groups at the time. A cross-breed was developed independently by Brian Sterling-Webb over a period of ten years in the UK, and it was recognized as the Long-haired Colourpoint by the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (GCCF) in the year 1955.

Around 1950, separate US-based breeding efforts were done for the Himalayan breed of cats, which received breed recognition from the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) near the end of 1957. Many early breeders were found to be interested in adding Siamese colouration to long-haired cats. As a result, they reinforced the stock in order to retain the Persian trait dominance by outbreeding to Persians only. But it was in the 1960s when the Siamese breed was re-introduced by some breeders and thus produced fewer Persian-style cats.

Physical Characteristics of Himalayan Cat Breed

Given below are some of the physical characteristics of the Himalayan cat breed that are considered similar to the Persian cat breed.

1. Like most Persian cats, the Himalayan breed too has a round or cobby body with short legs, which makes it difficult for them to jump high as compared to the other cat breeds. 

2. Similar to other Persian cats, the Himalayan cat breeds also have two types; the traditional or doll-face Himalayan, and the peke-faced or ultra-typed Himalayan. The ultra-type breed is found to have more extreme squashed-looking facial features. 

3. Some Himalayans also show a nose break quite similar to the peke-faced Persians. They have large and round eyes with the nose leather directly between the eyes.

4. The pet Himalayan cat breeds are commonly seen to have longer noses as compared to the other show cats and might have a longer muzzle and smaller eyes as well.

5. They have white or cream coloured body fur consisting of several darker points. These points can be found in different colours such as Seal (or Black), Blue, Lilac, Chocolate, Red (Flame), and Cream. The darker points on the Himalayan cats can also be found in several patterns such as Tabby, Lynx or Tortoise shell-patterned.

6. The Chocolate and Lilac point Himalayans are the most difficult breeds to produce and require both the parents to carry the gene for Chocolate/Lilac as the trait is autosomal recessive.
   
   

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Chocolate Lynx Point Himalayan Cat

Himalayan Siamese Cat - Health and Care

The Himalayan Cat Breeds are in general considered to be a healthy breed but can flare up with certain diseases such as polycystic kidney disease (PKD), progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) and some breathing issues as well. As the Himalayan cats have a Persian ancestry, their gene might have a chance to develop Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD). But this disease can be detected by a genetic test so that the breeds can be spayed or neutered.

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Colourpoint Longhair Himalayan Cat Breed

Due to the presence of long coats, there is also a chance for these cats to develop hairballs. Therefore, it is advisable to ask a veterinarian for early prevention while keeping them as a pet. Along with this, the Himalayan Cat Breeds also require regular dental checkups, nail care and vaccinations.

Similar to many long-haired cats, the Himalayans breed also need proper care of their fur coats in order to look best and remain healthy. In addition, the regular bathing of these Himalayan cats is also recommended by some breeders. This as a result will help them reduce the amount of oil on their fur and skin.

The Persian, as well as the Himalayan breeds, are known to have a flat face (brachycephalics) that prohibits the tears from draining properly. The tear ducts form reddish-brown staining beneath their eyes and this overflow of tears is known as epiphora. Therefore, special care should be taken for their eyes.

Himalayan Cats - Their Behaviour With Humans

Himalayan cats are known to be good indoor companions. They are often seen to remain sweet-tempered, intelligent and very social but can also be very moody at times. As they are historically related to Siamese cats, they tend to remain more active than the Persian cats and possess a playful side as well. Similar to the Siamese breeds, this breed of cats love to play and even a scrap of crumpled paper or a kitty toy can entertain these cats for hours together. If we consider their relationship with humans, the Himalayan cats are very devoted and dependent upon their humans. They look for companionship and protection in their masters. These cats love affection and grooming and thus, often crave affection.

In spite of their regal looks, these Himalayans don’t really care about their living area. It can be either a tiny room or a big spacious place, they will just remain happy to be around you.  Himalayans are not big jumpers and are also not athletic, but they always enjoy a good cat tree as well as a padded window shelf to get a vertical view or to take in the sights outdoors. They are also found enjoying the company of other cats and thus, are also known as “go along-get-along” kind of kitties. 

Himalayans are also known to be great lap cats, which is right because you do need to spend time every day or so combing out their long coats. Also, the Himalayan breeds are susceptible to warm temperatures because of their thick fur and so it is advisable to keep them in an air-conditioned space. 

Fun Facts About Himalayan Cats

Given below are some of the popular and interesting facts about the Himalayan Cats:

1. In 2009, a Himalayan cat named Goma and his blog was featured in a show named Cats 101 in Animal Planet.

2. Luna The Fashion Kitty, is a Himalayan cat that became a social media phenomenon in 2011. It also has a popular Facebook page, a website and several media references.

3. In 2012, a Himalayan-Persian cat named Colonel Meow became viral on the internet and entered into the Guinness World Records 2014 for having the longest fur.

4. A Himalayan named Tinkertoy is known to be the world’s smallest cat which is 2.75 inches tall and 7.5 inches long

5. In the film, Meet the Parents trilogy, Mr. Jinx, also known as Jinxy is a seal-point peke-faced Himalayan with an all-black tail.