of Breed British blue cat seen almost everyone who has at least one eye but looks advertising on TV."Face" feed "Sheba" was graceful gray, short plush fur, cat with big expressive eyes.However, there were times when they almost did not notice, and times when the breed was crossed with the other carelessly.During the two world wars of this type of animal is almost extinct, and it took a long and painstaking work to restore the species.So where did this powerful, like a tiger, chubby like an English bulldog, cat with a short and thick fur, resembling an otter skins in various shades of blue - from light gray to the color of wet asphalt?
British Blue was bred in England by crossing the British Shorthair and Persian cats blue color, which was brought from Khorasan province.Breeders working on the liquidation of the "stop", a flat nose, over the length of wool, as well as the backbone of the seal and the development of the cheeks to give the Briton a vague resemblance to the English bulldog.At the same time, long before the work of the British Isles, in a monastery near Paris, Chartres monks took a similar breed shorthair cats blue forefathers which they brought from Africa.In the north of Russia (Arkhangelsk) and Siberia (Tobolsk) has long been known for "sable" sub-species with characteristic long reddish fur.However, Russian beauties differed from the British and chartreuse its fragile physique.
This breed was so popular in France that even a certain shade of blue and there is called - "shartre" - in color coats.The monks did not have to eliminate the "stop" the Persians, they just worked on sealing the animal's body.As a result, shartre came very similar to an entirely different breed of origin - British blue.Representatives of both species were stocky, with powerful and large-chested (cat weighs 5 kg, males reach 8-10 kg), with broad shoulders and well-developed chest.The head of their round, large, with prominent cheeks, big round amber-yellow or golden eyes.The only difference, not visible to experts, is the tail: it is at the Chartreuse long pipe, and at the British - a shorter, with a curved tip.
Despite the name of the breed - "British Blue" - the set of permitted colors of the animal, not just shades of blue: white, black, red, tabby, tortie, colorpoint.These "Anglo" without any doubt before mixed with Chartreuse, considering the French and British cats close relatives.However, in 1982, was finally adopted a new standard, and two short-haired, are similar to each other, the rocks were separated.Chartreuse, as before, was granted independent status.
However, the difference between them can be determined only expert.Blue color and short hair are dominant features so distinguish 100% British on the mestizo pretty hard.Do not buy these kittens on bird markets, because at a young age have not yet seen the characteristics of this species.Even buying an aristocrat with a pedigree, you run the risk faced with fake documents.You can show the paper to a single animal, and sell very different kittens.Only getting baby in the nursery with a reputation, you can be sure that this is a thoroughbred British blue cat.
In Russia this breed is very popular, it united all our ideas about the ideal cat: a soft, plush, thick.And the care of British blue requires a minimum: sometimes it is necessary to comb out.This breed does not have some generic diseases.However, for the development of specific animal cheeks should be given raw meat, cut into large cubes to the favorite could work, chewing it.The nature of the representatives of this breed is the most ideal: they are not lingering as ancestors - the Persians, but not too noisy.Cats are very clean, but if you have a British white or light color, it is recommended to clean the edge of the eye, that there is no unsightly browning fur.
