The Persian longhaired cat is said to have arrived in Western Europe from what’s now Iran in the sixteenth century. In fact, altho-ugh there are cats from further north with long fur, such as the Norwegian and Russian cats, it is not certain that these Persian cats were originally very different from the Angora and they may already have owed their differences to human selection rather than accidental development. It would be difficult, if not impossible, for cats with their fine, very long fur to survive except as pets helped in their grooming.
Their popularity in the early days of the Cat Fancy quite eclipsed the Angora, and the Persian itself began to be selected for ever longer fur and the flatter face which breeders found attractive. The trend continued, reaching its extreme in the Peek-faced Persian, a breed recognized only in North America, created to emulate the flat-faced look of the Pekingese dog. The changed bone structure and extreme fore-shortening of the muzzle can bring problems in respiration, dentition and in the working of the tear ducts. The normal Persian breed should never be so flat nosed.
The modern Persian, or Longhair, as many of its color varieties are known in Britain under the GCCF, is a medium to large cat of very stocky build, having rather massive head with the characteristic short snub nose and big round eyes. It has a thick undercoat and a long topcoat which is very fine and of equal length allover the body except for the immense ruff which frames the face. The long hair on the tail forms a full brush and there are tufts on the ears and between the toes
Persian cats are recognized in the whole range of cat colors and patterns. The Cargoes them all as one breed, while the GCCF divides them into several separate classes according to the type of coat pattern, with the pointed cats known asColorpoints, a group which some American bodies class separately as Himalayans, while solid color lilac and chocolate have been classed separately by some American bodies as Kashmir’s. American taste is for a more extreme type thanes considered acceptable in Britain.
Most Persian cats are gentle, placid pets that make few demands upon their owners but they do need regular and thorough grooming to keep their coats in condition and free of tangles.
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Large or medium size, of cobby type, well-muscled with a broad deep chest, massive across shoulders and rump, set on short thick legs with large round paws; the tail is short and bushy.
Round and massive with broad skull, small round-tipped ears set low and wide apart, round forehead, full cheeks and a short broad nose of even width and with a definite stop, all on a short thick neck.
Large, round and set wide apart. Color copper or deep orange for most coat colors -except for Whites which maybe blue, orange or odd-eyed, Chinchillas, Shaded Silvers and Golden Persians which should be emerald green or blue-green, Silver Tabbies green or hazel, Chocolate Tabbies hazel or copper andColorpoints blue.
Long, thick, fine and soft but not excessively woolly, standing out from the body and with a full frill covering the shoulders and continuing in a deep frill between the front legs.
All recognized cat colors and patterns including self’s, different levels of tipping, tri- bi- and Van bi-colors and pointed patterns in white, black, blue, red, cream, chocolate, silver, gold, brown, seal, and lilac. See Himalayan.
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