Colours
Photos below curtesy of our Members ........................................
Tarkusha Birmans
Champion Tarkusha Helenoftroy (Seal Female)
Champion Tarkusha Allure (13c8 Blue Tortie point)
UK Grand. Champion. & UK Grand Premier Tarkusha Zinfandel (Blue Point) ........................................ Tarkushka kittens
.........................................
Beautiful Birman from Bylake Cats .....................................
CFA
Pictured: Second Best of Breed GC, RW BIRKIST'S DIESEL DOODLE, Seal Point Birman Male
Pictured: Third Best of Breed GC BOOTS CAMP EAGLE GIRL, Seal Lynx Point Birman Female
........................................
........................................ |
Welcome to the Abyssinian breed profile
The Birman cat is believed to have originated in Burma, where it was considered sacred, the companion cat of the Kittah priests. There is a legend as to how the Birmans developed the colors they are today: “Originally, the guardians of the Temple of LaoTsun were yellow-eyed white cats with long hair. The golden goddess of the temple, Tsun-Kyan-Kse, had deep blue eyes. The head priest, Mun-Ha, had as his companion a beautiful cat named Sinh. One day the temple was attacked and Mun-Ha was killed. At the moment of his death, Sinh placed his feet on his master and faced the goddess. The cat’s white fur took on a golden cast, his eyes turned as blue as the eyes of the goddess, and his face, legs and tail became the color of earth. However, his paws, where they touched the priest, remained white as a symbol of purity. All the other temple cats became similarly colored. Seven days later, Sinh died, taking the soul of Mun-Ha to paradise.” The modern history of the Birman is almost as shrouded in mystery as its legendary origin. What is known for certain is that, probably around 1919, a pair of Birman cats were clandestinely shipped from Burma to France. The male cat did not survive the arduous conditions of the long voyage, but the female, Sita, did survive, and happily, was pregnant.
From this small foundation the Birman was established in the western world. The French cat registry recognized the Birman as a separate breed in 1925. By the end of WW II, only two Birmans were left alive in Europe, and a program of outcrossing was necessary to reestablish the breed. Most cat registries require at least five generations of pure breeding after outcrossings to fully accredit a breed for championship competition. Birmans were recognized by England in 1966 and by The Cat Fanciers’ Association in 1967. The ideal Birman is a large, long stocky cat. It has long silky hair, not as thick as that of the Persian, and is of a texture that doesn’t mat. The color of the coat is light, preferably with a golden cast, as if misted with gold. The “points” - face, legs and tail - are darker, similar to the Siamese and colorpointed Persian color patterns of seal point, blue point, chocolate point and lilac point. The almost round eyes are blue, set in a strong face with heavy jaws, full chin and Roman nose with nostrils set low. The very distinctive white feet are ideally symmetrical. The gloves on the front feet, if perfect, go across in an even line, and on the back feet end in a point up the back of the leg, called laces. It is very difficult to breed a cat with four perfect white gloves. The Birman personality is marvelous - gentle, active, playful, but quiet and unobtrusive if you are busy with other things. Text: Sacred Cat of Burma Fanciers and Hildegard Schone. There are 20 colour variations, but all Birmans carry the characteristic blue eyes, coloured points (face, ears, legs and tail), paler body colour, white gloves and gauntlets (front and back feet). SOLID COLOURS: Seal Point – Blue Point – Chocolate Point – Lilac Point – Red Point – Cream Point TORTIE COLOURS: Seal Tortie Point – Blue Tortie Point – Chocolate Tortie Point – Lilac Tortie Point TABBY COLOURS: Seal Tabby Point – Blue Tabby Point – Chocolate Tabby Point – Lilac Tabby Point – Red Tabby Point – Cream Tabby Point TORTIE TABBY COLOURS: Seal Tortie Tabby Point – Blue Tortie Tabby Point – Chocolate Tortie Tabby Point – Lilac Tortie Tabby Point |
||||||||
GCCF Standard of Points
|
||||||||
Standard of Points for Birman, Breed Numbers 13c1 to 13c20 GENERAL TYPE STANDARD: Head ..... Skull strong, broad and rounded. Nose medium in length (no ‘stop’ but with slight dip in profile). Cheeks full and round. Chin full and well developed, slightly tapered but not receding. Ears ..... Medium in size and spaced well apart. Eyes ..... Almost round but not bold. Blue in colour, the deeper the blue the better. Body ..... Long and massive Legs and Paws ..... Legs of medium length and thick-set, paws short and strong. Tail ..... Bushy, medium in length and proportion to the body. Coat & Condition ..... Coat long, silken in texture, full ruff around the neck, slightly curled on stomach. The cat should be well grown, the frame (skeleton) should be strong, well covered and muscular. Eyes bright and temperament good. Colour ..... The distinguishing colours of the Birman are those of the Siamese. Mask, ears, legs and tail dense and clearly defined (except in kittens). On reaching maturity, the mask covers the entire face including whisker pads and is connected to the ears by tracings. Front Paws ..... Have pure white symmetrical gloves ending in an even line across the paw and not passing beyond the angle formed by the paw and leg, and not passing the stopper pad just behind the leg. Colour of the paw pads irrelevant. Back Paws ..... Have pure white socks covering the entire paw and gauntlets tapering up the back of the leg to finish just below the point of the hock. Colour of the paw pads irrelevant.
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
NONGCCF ENTRYFORM | C.O.T.Y.RESULTS 05/06 | C.O.T.Y.RESULTS 06/07 | C.O.T.Y.RESULTS 07/08 | C.O.T.Y.RESULTS 08/09|