She's part Himalayan, and what else?

[sietch]

This is Snuggles. She's an 18-year-old Himalayan-something mix. Her parents were purebreeds. Any observations are very much appreciated. Thanks!

Helpful(?) info:

Overall length: 29"

Tail length: 10"

Weight: ~11 lbs.

- She has a long, thick coat. It is cut short in some of the photos.

- She has pronounced tufts on her arms, about where they join her body.

- Her pronounced dark marks on the front start at her forehead and continue between her ears, and up the back of each ear.

Behavior:

- She's a lap junkie. She chases attention and will follow me around the house. She isn't shy, and in fact especially loves new people.

- Even when she was young she wasn't much of a jumper, and could only master distances of ~4 ft.

- She has a peculiar way of sometimes curling her tail between her legs and all the way to her face when she sleeps. It's very fluffy.

Rest of photos here: http://photobucket.com/snugglecat

 

[Willowy]

Do you have any choices as to which breed her daddy might be? If you know he's purebred, I'm guessing that she's from a breeder that had a lot of different breeds, not from a free-roaming background. So that will narrow it down somewhat.

The way her muzzle is and the crossed eyes makes me think lynx-point Siamese/colorpoint.

 

[missymotus]

Really quite impossible to guess. I would have thought if you know the parents are purebreds, the 'breeder' would have said which breeds.

 

[StefanZ]

Really quite impossible to guess. I would have thought if you know the parents are purebreds, the 'breeder' would have said which breeds.

Agree on both!

If you are enough conspicious, the parents didnt need to be masqued/ points at all.  Nor longhaired. If there happen to be a good combinations of genes - voilá!

So for example there happens now and then among a litter of pure bred russian blue, there is one or two beautiful   completely look alikes "old type siameses"....

So your beautiful and very handsome boy may be almost anything. 

Including a real, absolutely pure bred, old type pointed persian.  Ie old type himalayan.  

(I presume there is such a thing as long type himalayan, exactly as there are/was old type persians.).

And because he was not the new, modern, desirable short nosed type - he was sold off as a pet.

Welcome to the TCS site and our Forums!

Good luck!

 

[sietch]

Thank you!

We got Snuggs when my Mom passed, and don't have her paperwork handy; it may be in the colossal boxes of things and stuff. The breeder sold Himalayans, Abyssinians among others.

 

[StefanZ]

We got Snuggs when my Mom passed, and don't have her paperwork handy; it may be in the colossal boxes of things and stuff. The breeder sold Himalayans, Abyssinians among others.

There may be another possibility for her old type. Not only the possiblility she wasnt according to the programme and thus sold as pet.  It is  She have been bred by a oldfashioend breeder, perhaps a BYB.

A main stream breeder, who participates often to show as a matter of fact, tries to follow the mainstream in development of hers breed.

But back yard breeders usually dont care to participate in shows, or even if they do, dont care to fight for the prizes. They are entirely contented with participating and getting their Excellent.

So many BYB do have still the old type, when they are not feasible among shows nor breeders any longer.

I have known such examples in Siameses.  There are surely such examples in Persian / Himalaya...

And there are also serious breeders who too try to follow the old types, if they think they are more healthy or more handsome... Showing, but not bothering about  winning the competition.

So unless somebody reliable DID sayed she was a mix (or it is "just" your own words?)

Snuggles may be a pure breed of the old type. Even with correct papers and everything.

I think.   

Good luck!
 

 

[orientalslave]

Himalayans are a type of Persian cat, they just seem to have a different name in the US.

Your beautiful cat doesn't look much like a very old-fashioned Persian, her nose looks far too long and she looks to have Siamese / Oriental shape eyes and very large ears, neither of which are anything like a Persian of any era.  I'm not sure if she has crossed eyes or is simply looking at something close to her.  Old-fashioned Persians look rather like modern British shorthairs except of course for the coat.  The photo doesn't show what shape her body and legs are.

However if you have papers for her that will tell you exactly what her parents are.

BTW she looks very well for 18!

 

[northernglow]

I can't see any Persian in her, no matter how much I stare at the pic. Some oriental type breed would be more likely. Doesn't look like purebred anything IMO, not old or new type.

Colorpoint Persians didn't have the 'old type' nose, it's fairly new pattern in Persians and they were bred just around the time when they started to go with the shorter nose.

 

[northernglow]

 Old-fashioned Persians look rather like modern British shorthairs except of course for the coat.  The photo doesn't show what shape her body and legs are.

They look like British Longhairs. I have hard time telling them apart, so I find it ridiculous that some people actually breed the pet quality Persians on purpose when there is another breed existing which looks almost identical and has been around for over 100 years (although not recognized until lately).

 

[StefanZ]

I can't see any Persian in her, no matter how much I stare at the pic. Some oriental type breed would be more likely. Doesn't look like purebred anything IMO, not old or new type.

Colorpoint Persians didn't have the 'old type' nose, it's fairly new pattern in Persians and they were bred just around the time when they started to go with the shorter nose.

OK, tx NorthernGlow and OrientalSlave.  So I stand corrected!  

So the only left from what I said is, with our hypothethical BYB you cant never  know.  It can be anything, perhaps even  a VERY not standard something of perhaps even decent ancestry, sold a little cheaper just because it was entirely non standard. Or something....

It may even be from a real moggie cross they did saw in the street and took in, hoping they can be sold as some sort of pure bred...   Such happens with the BYBs.

Whatever it is, this cat on picture is a beauty, and being a healthy oldie - also very admirable...