THE SIAMESE

The Siamese originated from the local pointed cats in Thailand, formerly known as Siam. Loyal companions and guardians of royalty, these cats have been revered for centuries. The breed was first recorded in the Western world in the late 1800s and in the early 1900s, the first Siamese Cat Club was founded in England and subsequently in the US, where the first Siamese Breed Standard was developed.

Since the 1960s, the breed has changed enormously from the more heavy built, 'apple-head' traditional look, to the modern Siamese that we know and love today. The Siamese of today, is the epitome of elegance and balance and has many endearing traits. The Siamese is a great conversationalist, a singer and a clown. They are affectionate, active, vocal, moody and demanding. Despite the many changes in shape they have taken since their regal Thai ancestors were exported to the West, their beautiful, sleek, pointed coats and stunning deep blue eyes are the distinctive characteristics that have intoxicated cat fanciers from the very start.

Siamese come in many different colours, namely the traditional seal point, blue point, chocolate point and lilac point. Cream, and red points were developed much later but are just as popular today as the other colours. The tortie and tabby points and very special pointed bicolours are a newer development, yet equally as beautiful. Their coats are tight, close lying and shiny and should show adequate contrast to the colour points to complete the look. Other colours such as caramel, cinnamon, fawn and apricot are also widely accepted worldwide but are rare.

Most will say that the crowning glory of the modern Siamese are their large ears, set low on a broad, domed head, wide at the base and flaring outwards. A Siamese's eyes should always be the deepest blue possible for its coat colour, and they are almond shaped, slanting up towards the middle of the ear. The profile is straight and the chin strong. The body of the siamese has changed quite a bit as well since the mid 1900s. Siamese today are svelte, tubular, long and tall on their legs with a long, tapering, whippy tail to emphasize length and elegance.

As pets, the Siamese are a joy to have around! They are hopeless romantics, totally devoted to their owners and loyal to their friends. These cats are generally friendly, social and love people! They want to be involved in every aspect of your life from cooking to cleaning to reading a book and when they want attention, they will stop at nothing to get it.

Siamese cannot be left alone for long periods of time, as they are very sensitive souls and tend to get destructive and very vocal if they are bored or lonely.

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THE ORIENTAL

The Oriental was originally developed in the 1950s and 60s, in the UK, by a group of breeders who were interested in developing a cat breed, much like the Siamese that has a full coat of colour and a variety of patterns, and very soon these cats became huge in popularity! Siamese were bred to other breeds of cats such as Russians and Abyssinians to introduce certain patterns and colours and hybrid offspring of these combinations where bred back to the Siamese to preserve the type.

Since then, the breed has developed enormously and over 300 colour and pattern combinations are accepted today, by our Governing Body in South Africa (SACC) and around the world.

The type of the Oriental is the same as the Siamese, characterised by a distinctive head shape (the tips of the ears and the chin forming an equilateral triangle). Their breed standards are identical except for the colours and patterns. These cats are widely bred together by many breeders around the world to improve the gene pool and offspring of these cats are pure bred.

Colours include all of those in the Siamese and patterns range from Self, Tortie and Tabby to Bicolours, Calicoes, the silver varieties and combinations of these (e.g calico smoke, tortie tabby, silver tabby, etc).

Orientals are very loyal creatures, much like their Siamese cousins and are very similar in temperament. They are as vocal, active, affectionate and demanding as the Siamese, if not more, and they make wonderful companions.

Their language is a combination of 'words', head butts and deep purrs and they are extremely sensitive to how their humans are feeling, often deciding to sit atop your head and purr like a tractor in a confident attempt to cure a migraine.

Both Orientals and Siamese live harmoniously with other breeds, that can tolerate their rambunctious natures, however they do tend to be quite dominant and the green monster occasionally rears its head.

These breeds are highly strung in nature and therefore are prone to stress, so it is important that should you wish to be owned by a Siamese or an Oriental, that you take this into account to ensure that your cat leads a happy, stress free life with lots of stimulation and attention.