Siamese cat behavior - 7 topics covered

Classic Siamese. Seal point. Not extreme.
Photo: in public domain

Siamese Cat Behavior does have a certain reputation but this may be slightly exaggerated. There are 7 areas to cover when discussing Siamese cat behavior if you want to do a thorough job 😉.

• What the experts say about the Siamese family of cats.
• General cat behavior.
• Differences in behavior from cat to cat (individual personality). This is probably greater than any differences from breed to breed.
• Siamese cat behavior.
• Whether there are any differences in the behavior between the types of Siamese cats of which there is an endless spectrum. There are though essentially 3 types, the Modern and Traditional, with the Classic in between. Is the classic body conformation the Thai cat?
• Spaying and neutering - the effect on behavior.
• Illness - modern Siamese cats have the most inherited diseases of all the cat breeds.

As this is a very long page in which I discuss domestic cat behaviour generally as I must when discussing the behaviour of a cat breed, you might like to dip into the early part in which I report on what an expert says about the behaviour of the Siamese cat family. And there is a Siamese cat family because the Siamese cat is within a number of other cat breeds such as the Balinese, Oriental Shorthair and Oriental Longhair. And there is a range of Siamese cat types. It is a pretty big topic.

Expert opinion on the Siamese cat family

Gloria Stephens who is a past cat breeder and cat show judge (book: Legacy of the Cat) states that cats of the Siamese cat family "are vocal to the point of loudness and are quite active". They really like to sit on their owner's lap and sleep next to their owner at night. In her words, "They want to be as close as possible, and their need for closeness verges on the desperate."

And as they are intelligent, they like to investigate and "comment on everything their owner does". This makes them "demanding cats". But then to satisfy this demand all you have to do is to be close to your Siamese cat, hold them and stroke them. In short love them as an excellent cat caregiver.

General cat behavior

Obviously, a Siamese cat whether Modern or Traditional will have common domestic cat characteristics, which will be more pronounced than the particular breed characteristics. Realistically all purebred cats are very similar in character. It is usually the exotic wild cat hybrids that show some differences such as the Bengal cat.

Cats will act instinctively, which means reacting to what is going on around them. They are essentially, if one goes back thousands of years, domesticated wild cats. This is relevant as what they do is rooted in wild cat behavior. Their hunting skills come readily to mind. They are adapted to hunt so they have great senses. Play can lead to a scratch if it is too rough, for example. Play is a learning process for hunting.

Intelligent cats - and some breeds are I believe more intelligent than others (although there is no hard evidence to support this) - will be more inquisitive and generally more active than less intelligent cats. 

The Sphynx cat is thought to be more intelligent than average. We know that the Persian cat is affectionately known as a piece of furniture (i.e. static and undemanding). I wonder how cats feel about this? Being thought of as being a lesser cat breed in terms of intelligence. 

Cats don't mind as they're more tolerant than humans. We should agree that intelligence has a say in cat behavior generally. Siamese cat behavior will be subject to these general cat traits and Siamese cats are intelligent. This should include close relatives such as the Oriental Shorthair, Balinese and Javanese.

Susan Ford, daughter of Gerald Ford, and the family's Siamese cat, Shan, in 1974.
Photo: Wikipedia under CC license. Image: A1206-12A, Courtesy: Gerald R. Ford Library

Personality traits 

Due to nature (genetic traits) and nurture (environmental impact) individual cats will have differing temperaments. For example, difficult early years will or might make your cat more defensive. This will translate to being more static and less adventurous. This in turn may lead to weight problems. Or, a cat may be more prone to being nervous. This might translate to poor litter habits. These are individual traits which are similar in their variety to those found in humans. 

Siamese cat behavior (as a cat breed) will be substantially modified or completely altered by possible individual traits. This is less likely to happen in a cat bought from a quality Siamese cat breeder as the breeder will ensure that cats in her charge are well socialized (well-balanced characters and good with people and pets). A quality breeder will effectively take out of the equation the variation in character due to environmental factors.

Persian Siamese and non-pedigree cats. Human participants in a study believed that the Persian and Siamese made better pets than the non-pedigree. Is this a true result? Is it distorted by purchasing cats compared to adopting a non-pedigree from a rescue centre?

Spaying and neutering

Cat breeders keep unaltered cats for breeding purposes. They often keep their male cats in outdoor pens. That just about says all you need to know about the behavior of male unaltered cats. Castrating a male cat eliminates the natural sex drive which has the pleasant effect of reduced territorial fights and injuries. Spraying urine (scent marking) is also reduced significantly. The lack of sex drive makes them more inclined to stay at home, a trait which makes them more domesticated, in effect. 

In other words, it makes domestic cats less like wild cats and more like domestic cats; the cats that we like to live with. As for females they spray too and there is no pregnancy to worry about once neutered. Altering as some breeders call it, is pretty well essential despite seeming a little cruel. It is really a consequence of living as a domestic cat.

Illness

Illness can affect Siamese cat behavior. Sometimes unexplained behavior, perhaps untypical aggressive behavior can be put down to an illness or injury. A vet is the only person to decide the best course of action in this instance. Illness though can affect behavior generally. I wonder if the propensity of the Siamese cat to having a squint (cross eyed) affects this breeds behavior?

Siamese cat behavior

I mentioned cat intelligence earlier on. It is not surprising that Siamese cats are at the top end of the intelligence league. This is reflected in this breed's vocalizations and attachment to humans. This is a cat that is involved in the human/cat relationship and the Siamese is not backward in coming forward in asking for something when the occasion demands. So, all other elements being equal and on the assumption that your Siamese is well socialized and well balanced she should be a little more inquisitive, involved and interactive than the average mixed-breed cat and the majority of the purebred cats. This means more input for the person keeping the cat.

This "people orientation" may translate into an issue if another cat joins the family. I immediately think of Helmi Flick's F1 Chausie that lived with her for a time. An F1 Chausie is a wildcat hybrid and quite demanding. They form close relationships with people. They are intelligent. I could see a disturbance to the balance in the relationship if another cat or person was introduced into it. 

One site called it jealousy but this is not an emotion that cats feel (or am I wrong?). However, cats love routine and if the cat has a close relationship with a person and this is disturbed it would cause upset that could be seen as jealousy. Cats take a long time to settle into a routine. Routine provides a comfort zone, something all animals (including humans) like and don't want disturbed.

Siamese cat behavior is considered by some to be extrovert in comparison to some other cat breeds perhaps because Siamese tend to be more vocal. Their need for human companionship is expressed in their vocal demands. But let us remember that all domestic cats depend on us, as that is what makes them domestic cats.

In truth cat breeders and the cat associations tend to exaggerate the characteristics of a cat breed, particularly the breed they are breeding to distinguish the breed from others. It is important to distinguish breed from breed to justify the breed. The variations from cat to cat will sometimes outweigh the differences from Siamese cat to another cat breed.

The Wikipedia author proposes that the Siamese cat coat (white with points) contributes to this breed's character in that the coat makes this breed less well camouflaged and therefore more dependent on people for survival. Hence the desire for a closer connection with humans. This begs the question as to the development of the coat color and pattern. It is certainly not the best for survival. That accolade for that must go to the tabby cat coat.

From the point of view of people living in the West the history of the Siamese cat starts late in the 1800s on the importation from Siam of a Siamese cat. This cat was a Traditional cat. What happened in Siam (now Thailand) to create the pointed coat? The pointed coat is probably due to a genetic mutation. 

If this happened naturally in Siam (and the history of the Siamese cat goes back a long way in Thailand) then this theory could have merit. It is a development that leaves the Siamese more vulnerable. Think of all the wild cats (except the big cats) such as the Scottish Wild cat and the American Bobcat .They all have the best tabby coats you can see. These provide great camouflage. The top cats like the Tiger are not well camouflaged as they have no predators.

There are a number of posts on cat behavior on this website, which discuss cat behavior from various aspects. You can use the labels panel to select these posts. Here is one on cat breed characteristics.

The Different Siamese cat types

There used to be one Siamese cat, the standard regular looking cat as imported into the UK in the latter part of the 1800s. Now things have changed. This change was brought about entirely by cat breeders breeding for a more "elegant" and "extreme" or plain skinny figure. These contemporary cats that I have called "Modern Siamese" may have altered characters.

My research indicates that they are less robust from a health point of view. But do they have different characters from the Traditional Siamese cats? The answer is probably not. There is certainly no obvious evidence that Modern Siamese behave differently. But being noticeably thinner and therefore more prone to being affected by ambient temperature may affect their character and eating habits (greater heat loss). Modern Siamese are in my opinion less healthy and this will be manifest in an altered behavior (depressed and less active). The Modern Siamese may also be nervous.

The First Siamese Cats in the Western World

Mrs Vyvyan of Dover, England, UK was the person who first brought the Siamese cat to the Western world from the Orient. The year: 1886. I am sure that snippet of information will be disputed by many! However, it comes from Mrs Vyvyan herself who sent the information to Harrison Weir, the founder of the cat fancy. This is referred to in Harrison Weir's book: Our Cats and all about them at pages 77-79.

If she is not the first, she is one of the first and it is, therefore, interesting to hear what Mrs Vyvyan has to say about the Siamese cat - the original version before cat breeders in the West got hold of the breed and mangled it 😉.

We don't have a photo of her Siamese cats (if you can help, please comment) but below is an early Siamese showing a normal body conformation and head shape.

An early Siamese cat showing a normal body conformation and head shape. Photo: Wikipedia Commons and in the public domain.

Her experiences with this famous breed relate to Siamese cats that came direct from Siam (now Thailand). She nursed and cared for the original Siamese cats believed to have come from the King's Palace and sent to her from Bangkok. At the time she was in China.

These are some of the comments she makes about the first Siamese cats in the western world. I think her comments will interest aficionados of the Siamese cat breed.

"They are very affectionate and personally attached to their human friends, not liking to be left alone, and following us from room to room more after the manner of dogs than cats." 

We know that the Siamese cat is famous for their loyalty, close relationships with people and being talkative - see character. She confirms this.

She says that the male Siamese is very strong and that they fight with strange dogs. The male Siamese can "conquer all other tom-cats in their neighbourhood". 

Apparently, while Mrs Vyvyan was living in China one of her cats had had a fight with a wild cat and lost. He was killed but managed to walk home before dying.

Being the time before the existence of pet food manufacturers Mrs Vyvyan fed her cats fresh fish with boiled rice, bread, warm milk, chicken and game.

She supported the idea that they were better off going out and catching their own food, "feather and fur".

Mrs Vyvyan said:

"We find these cats require a great deal of care, unless they live in the country, and become hardy through being constantly out of doors". 

A thought which is out-of-step with today's trend towards indoor cats. She said that kittens are more likely to survive if born in late spring so they could benefit from the warmer weather.

The predominant illness in her kittens appears to have been worms. They were so bad the kittens tried to vomited them up. She gave them raw chicken with heads and with feathers on as a relief from the discomfort.

She describes the gradual development of the pointing. The first Siamese cats were seal pointed. This is the classic pointing. Breeders have developed a lot of different colours for the pointing including lynx (tabby) pointing. Mr Vyvyan believed that the "true breed, by consensus of opinion" was the seal point which she describes as, "of the dun, fawn, or ash ground, with black points." She mentions other colours which implies that even then there were other colours. I think chocolate pointing has been referred to as an original color. Although Mrs Vyvyan didn't refer to this.

"When first born the colour is nearly pure white, the only trace of 'points' being a fine line of dark gray at the edge of the ears; gradual alteration takes place, the body becoming creamy, the ears, face, tail, and feet darkening, until, about a year old, they attain perfection, when the points should be the deepest brown, nearly black, and the body ash or fawn colour, the eyes opal or blue, looking red in the dark. After maturity they are apt to darken considerably, though not all specimens."

Mrs Vyvyan says that the Siamese is a delicate cat (she is referring to a delicacy of health). She recommends that only a "real cat lover" should get involved in caring for a Siamese cat. They still are delicate, ironically, due to selective breeding. They have the most inherited genetic illnesses of all the cat breeds.

She refers to the intelligence of the Siamese cat. This is a known quality and in fact the Siamese related cats such as the Oriental Shorthair are also rated in the top bracket for cat breed intelligence, if you believe such things.

Harrison Weir's drawing of a Siamese cat's head pointing 1889.

To finish off this page I'll show you what Harrison Weir considers to be the "properly marked Siamese cat". The picture above is also interesting for the shape of the head. This is a perfect example of a traditional Siamese cat. That is the way the Siamese cat looked in Siam before 1886! The modern Siamese or even the Thai cat are not representative of the original Siamese cat.

Associated page: Siamese cat history.

Note - copyright. I have decided that, despite what some have said, the copyright in Harrison Weir's book has expired due the passage of time and it is now in the public domain. If I am wrong, please tell me and I will take prompt action. 

Friendliest and most aggressive cat breeds

The friendliest cat breed is said to be the Oriental and Siamese both long and short haired. This is according to a University of Helsinki study in which they questioned the owners of about 4000 purebred cats living in Finland. They admit that when you assess cat personality through a questionnaire you don't necessarily obtain accurate information because subjectivity can distort the results.  Although they did their best to make the results as accurate as possible:

For validation, we studied the internal consistency, test–retest reliability, inter-rater reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity of this questionnaire and extracted factors.

The Burmese ranks highly in friendliness too. They friendliest originate in the Far East - coincidentally?

Friendly Oriental Shorthair. Photo: Helmi Flick.

I will also add that it is difficult to label an entire cat breed with a clear personality because by and large breeders don't breed for personality but for appearance. That said, it is known that Siamese cats or those cats within the Siamese family, as I call them, are vocal and interactive. If a domestic cat wants to interact, they have to be called friendly. Cats of the Siamese cat family are like this. They can be quite demanding and have loud voices. 

ASSOCIATED PAGE: Information on cat behavior – 13 snippets

But sadly, the Turkish Van has been branded the most aggressive cat breed by quite a margin by this group of scientists (but how big is the difference?). Once again there has to be a caveat against their conclusions. I suggested in an earlier post that it is possible that the human participants in this study all bought their Turkish Van cats from the same breeder. And what if that breeder had a foundation male cat who was a little bit aggressive but a beautiful specimen in terms of appearance. That would distort the results. Or perhaps the same male foundation cat's offspring were all used by various breeders in Finland. That, too, would have the same effect. I'm just suggesting that distortions in these sorts of surveys can occur and I'm sure the scientists would go along with that.

Aggressive Turkish Van? No, but perhaps in comparison to the more friendly Siamese and Oriental. Photo: Helmi Flick.

However, I have read in the past, in a different study as I recall, that the Turkish Van has this reputation. It's interesting in one way to because I believe that the Turkish Van and Turkish Angora are the same cat. I believe that the cat fancy split one Turkish cat into two breeds. On that basis you would have thought that the Turkish Angora will also be aggressive but it is not listed in that way in the study.

There is difficulty in assessing a cat's personality in any case. The circumstances under which they live affects their behaviour and therefore the assessment of personality. A breeder can alter personality through selective breeding. This is a cat's personality being affected by inherited genes. But personality is also affected by environmental conditions and experiences. For example, a Turkish Van living in a slightly difficult human environment where the owner perhaps is not there a lot of the time and there are other cats, one of which might be a bully, would result in that individual Turkish Van presenting a less appealing personality to their owner.

ASSOCIATED PAGE: Siamese Cat Behavior Problems

I believe that when assessing cat personality, you have to do it on a cat-by-cat basis and in a good environment from the cat's perspective to ensure that you bring out the best in them. I don't know whether these conditions were wholly met by this study. I doubt it. The strength of the study is that they looked at 4000 cats or more. That's a large number and therefore some of these wrinkles that I have mentioned might have been ironed out to a certain extent. Therefore, the study has some value.

The friendliness of the cats of the Siamese cat family squares up with the views of Gloria Stephens who wrote the book Legacy of the Cat. She knows cats very well particularly cat breeds because she was a show judge. Her views validate the conclusions of the scientist. But I would make your own mind up on whether the Turkish Van is aggressive. I think that you will find many very friendly examples of this breed. But as for the Siamese, Oriental Shorthair, Oriental longhair, Balinese and Burmese, you'll find that they are friendly. But are they any more friendly than many other individual cats of other breeds or non-purebred cats?

That's an issue which needs to be mentioned briefly. If you're talking about friendliness and aggressiveness in individual cats, you will find millions of fantastically friendly shelter cats waiting to be adopted. You don't need to go to a breeder and rely on her and fork out $1000. You can pay the far cheaper shelter adoption fee and probably find an individual cat which is more friendly than even the friendliest of Siamese cats.

There is one last point that comes to my mind. If you say that the Turkish Van is more aggressive than the Siamese you have to ask by how much. If it is by a small amount, you might not even notice it in day-to-day living. It is a question of degree. Once again, I am watering down these results because I am sceptical about them although by all means read the study if you wish which you can do so by clicking on this link. It is called: Reliability and Validity of Seven Feline Behavior and Personality Traits.

What are cats' points?

The question in the title can refer to 2 things (1) the Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme also known as CATS which enables academic credit to be transferred between higher education institutions i.e. "CATS points" and (2) the dark extremities to the fur of cats carrying the Siamese gene, typically the Siamese cat.

Pointed and angular head of the Siamese. Photo: Frangipani Balinese cattery.

I'm going to address the second point. Pretty well everyone on the planet knows what a Siamese cat looks like. The ends of their legs, their tail, their ears and the extremities of their face are covered with darker fur than the other parts. This is because the production of melanin in the epidermis of the skin in melanocytes is heat sensitive. This means that where the skin is warmer there is less melanin which is in the flank or the middle of the body and where the skin is cooler at the extremities, because of a lesser blood flow at those points, there is more melanin production and therefore the fur is darker. The typical Siamese colour at these dark extremities is called "seal".

However, over many years of selective breeding and evolution of the appearance of Siamese cats, cat breeders have added to this central, core colour which is why you will see, for example, blue pointing which is in fact grey pointing with a hint of blue.

There are other cat breeds with pointing such as the Ragdoll and the pointed Persian which is called a Himalayan cat. If you are interested you can click on this link to look at all the purebred cat breeds and this link to look through some articles about the Siamese cat.

Are Oriental Shorthairs healthy?

Like most purebred, pedigree cats Oriental Shorthairs (OSH) have inherited certain health problems due to selective breeding. One major issue for me, is that there is a family of Siamese cats which includes the Oriental Shorthair. They are all centred around the Siamese cat because the Siamese cat is in their breeding lines. And the problem here is that, on my reckoning, and based upon my extensive research, the Siamese cat has the most inherited health problems of any cat breed. So the question is: is the Oriental Shorthair susceptible to many of the medical problems that potentially affect the Siamese cat?

Oriental SH - photo: Helmi Flick

In addition to that long list of possible illnesses it is said that these animals are susceptible to respiratory illnesses and cardiomyopathy has also been reported in some lines. This information is according to Dr Ross D Clark DVM in his book Medical, Genetic and Behavioural Aspects of Purebred Cats.

A pet insurance company say that the OSH can suffer from progressive retinal atrophy and glaucoma. In addition, about nine years ago I wrote an article about hepatic amyloidosis in Siamese and Oriental cats. The article was based upon information provided by a visitor to the website, Lisa Lyons, who lives with Oriental Shorthair cats. The symptoms of hepatic amyloidosis include jaundice, a high white cell count, a low red blood cell count, vomiting, anaemia, general malaise and cyst damage to the liver causing bleeding. It is a very serious disease which is incurable and fatal. Some cats die within 2 to 3 years. That does not paint a very pretty picture in terms of the possible health problems affecting the Oriental Shorthair cat. But I have to be truthful and straightforward in answering the question in the title.

I would recommend that you read my page on Siamese cat health problems. It might surprise you. I decided at the Siamese cat was the most unhealthy cat in the world certainly amongst all the pedigree cats.

Karl Lagerfeld's Siamese Cat

Karl Lagerfeld has that robotic looking face and style. Apparently he is a man of deeply entrenched habits. Perfectly understandable. He is the designer for Chanel. He is very rich. He has a rich man's habits. He was asked to look after a Siamese kitten for the model Baptiste Giabiconi - his 'muse'. What is a muse? A person close to you who inspires your creative process. I think that is right.

Mr Lagerfeld liked the Siamese kitten too much to give her back. She was too cute, he says. His muse accepted his wishes. The cat is called 'Choupette'. You can see a picture on Twitter here.

Naturally, Choupette has everything a cat desires and more. She has two maids to look after her and who write a diary about her every move. It is already 600 pages long and will be made into a book (possibly).

Choupette likes to use an iPad along the lines of what we see on YouTube. She eats with her human companion on the table. Mr Lagerfeld makes sure she eats cat food and not his food. I sense that he is a very good cat caretaker. He's a cat person! Great. This has to be good for cats.

Choupette likes to use an iPad

Of all the cat breeds the Siamese is the breed most attractive to celebrities and the rich. There is a long history of this. Why? Well they were called the 'Royal Cat of Siam' as they originally came from the royal palaces of the King of Siam (now Thailand) - history. That may be a factor. They are still a glamorous looking cat and still in the top three of the most popular cat breeds. However, the Siamese is no longer considered exotic. That accolade belongs to wildcat hybrids today (2012).

Associated:

• Film Stars and Siamese Cats
• Amy Winehouse and her cats (not Siamese as far as I am aware).

British Royalty Keeping Cats

With it being the Queens's 60th wedding anniversary and with the massive jubilee celebrations taking place in the UK I thought I would find out if I could add the domestic cat into the mix and see whether there are any royals who keep cats and if so what type of cat.

By the way, I'm going down to the Thames tomorrow to have a look at the flotilla of boats accompanying the "Royal Barge" that cost a million quid - we can't afford it, I say.

I came to a rapid conclusion that the royals of Britain are dog people. That probably would not surprise most visitors who read this (very few!). The royals are sort of upper class (actually very upper class), hunting, shooting, fishing sorts and with that kind of background you are much more likely to prefer dogs. You know...the outdoor life, country sports lifestyle with hunting dogs etc.

The Queen is famous for her Corgis and that is about all I know about the Queens's animal preferences other than her love of horse racing. She kept or still keeps some racing horses.

One person who is part of the royal family but not at the heart of it is HRH Princess Michael of Kent. She has various talents including writing and interior design. She's a cat person.

People say that she is pushy and unpleasant. I don't know her but anyone who likes cats can't be unpleasant!

She keeps cats (plural). I have seen a picture on her website with two cats. One appears to be a rich dark brown/black cat  (a moggie it seems) with a studded collar and the other is a Siamese as far as I can tell from the picture. You can see a photo on this page.

Blue Persian cat of 1901 the kind Queen Victoria cared for.
The cat is Lady Marcus Beresford's blue Persian "Gentian Landor".

Even royals from the past usually kept dogs it seems. For example, Wallis Simpson who married King Edward VIII liked dogs. Although she owned a diamond bracelet of a panther worth £4.5 million ($7 million) in modern money.

If we go back a bit further we discover that Queen Victoria cared for two blue Persian cats. Victoria was the Queen from 1837 until her death in 1901. This was the era of the beginning of the cat fancy. Persian cats were one of the relatively few cat breeds of that time and very popular they were.

There is a picture of Princess Victoria ("Toria"), daughter of Edward VII & Queen Alexandra (1868-1935) holding a cat on the royal yacht (see picture). I don't how significant this is. It does indicate that a royal personage kept a Siamese cat. The picture was taken in about 1914.

I can find nothing else that indicates that British royalty liked and kept cats. It's a doggy family.

However Siamese royalty was different. Siam is now Thailand and the Siamese cat as you probably know originates in Thailand. At one time, it seems (cat history can be a bit vague) that the Siamese cat was confined to the Royal Palace and the King of Siam. This was clearly a special cat in Thailand in the 19th century and the King of Siam, at the time of the cat's export to the West, was a cat person.

Siamese Cat History
King of Siam 1853-1910

The King of Siam allowed a foreigner to export the Siamese out of Siam to start the breed in the West. The story of the Siamese cat's kinked tail is bound up with the creation of this breed in the West. See also Siamese cat history.

Siamese Cat Kinked Tail

It was entirely normal for original Siamese cats to have kinked tails. The Siamese cat was referred to as "The Royal Cat of Siam". Mrs Vyvyan who lived in Dover, Kent, UK says that the only purebred Siamese cats in Siam (now Thailand) were at the King's Palace. In other words all the others were not purebred. That makes sense because it was the time of the beginning of the cat fancy and the breeding of purebred cats. Certainly in Siam if a cat was deemed to be purebred is was not assessed as such through cat association records but by observation and/or the cat being confined to a certain area - perhaps the King's Palace.

It is believed, she says, that the original pair that were imported into England came from the Palace and that importation happened with great difficulty because they were rare even in Siam and the king wanted to keep them. Mrs Vyvyan was the person who imported them. She was living in China at the time and the cats reached her in 1886. She brought "the father, mother and a pair of kittens to England". The history of the importation of the Siamese cat is a little muddled so you will see variations on the theme.

She says that, "most of the kittens have a kink in the tail". She goes on to say that the kink varies in its position on the tail; the middle of the tail, close to the body (towards the base of the tail) or towards the tip of the tail forming a "hook".

Mr Harrison Weir, the founder of the cat fancy and the first cat show, says that Mrs Vyvyan's description of the kink tallies with the descriptions of Charles Darwin, the famous naturalist who created the theory of evolution of the species. In his studies and writings he referred to cats with shortened tails.

At page 47 of Mr. Darwin's book, "The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication," vol.i, page 47, he writes that throughout the area of the Malayan Archipelago, Siam (Thailand), Pequan (no idea where that is - it's an outdated name) and 'Burmah' (Myanmar) "all the cats have truncated tails about half the proper length, often with a sort of knob at the end".

Darwin also refers to the "Madagascar cat", which he says has a "twisted tail".  This observation is confirmed by another scientist who says that the "Malay cat" has a tail that is half the normal length and contorted into a sort of knot, which cannot be straightened.

Harrison Weir makes the point that the kinked Siamese cat tail is reminiscent of the truncated tails referred to by Darwin. They are both "defects" for want of a better description in a cat's tail. Incidentally Mr Weir also speculates that the Manx cat might have originated in the Malayan short tailed cat.

Clearly in that part of the world, the Far East, a genetic mutation has taken place that was, and probably still is, widespread which affects cats' tails. The genetic mutation that shortens the tail may be linked to the mutation that causes the Siamese cat's tail to kink. I don't know of any science to support that, however.

Breeders in the West, selectively bred out the kinked tail. They did not like it. It did not conform with western notions of beauty. They also modified the appearance of the original Siamese cat to extreme proportions in an attempt to "refine it". I am afraid that they failed in that task as judged by public opinion.

It is interesting to speculate what would have happened if the breeders had decided to keep the kinked tail and made a feature out of it.

Source: there are many sources for this. The main source is Harrison Weir's Our Cats and all about them first published in 1889, now published by Read Country Books.

Tonkinese Health

There are few health problems reported for the Tonkinese. The foremost book on cat breed health and genetic diseases in cat breeds says that Tonkinese cats have a low resistance to upper respiratory diseases (also called URIs). Upper respiratory diseases are one of most common cat illnesses.

Tonkinese - photo by julicath/Cath (On- Off ;-))

The Tonkinese may be sensitive to "certain vaccines". Finally, this excellent book says that when anesthetizing the Tonkinese for whatever medical reason it is best to use gas rather than intravenous injections. Anesthetizing a cat carries risk of injury and death, please note.

It would seem then that this cat escapes the rather more extensive list of genetically inherited health problems associated with the Siamese and to a lesser extent the Burmese. The Tonkinese is a Siamese/Burmese hybrid.

I am a little surprised, accordingly. You might like to see the page on genetic diseases in purebred cats to see what I mean.

Source: page 181 of Medical, Genetic & Behavioral Aspects of Purebred Cats - ISBN 0-9634124-0-X

Strange Cat Show Picture 1950s

Cat cruelty? This cat fancier would probably be stopped and questioned about the possibility of being charged with animal cruelty under modern laws if it happened today (2012)! I have never seen a person carry around a cat, purebred or not, like this - unless the cat is dead or it's China - sorry China but I have seen a cat being taken to market to be killed for meat being carried like this.

The picture from Life Magazine¹ is of a Siamese cat breeder (I presume) carrying his Siamese show cats to the show in 1952. It is interesting on two counts.

J.W. Blackford carries his Siamese cats to show
Los Angeles cat 1952 (photographer unknown)

Are you as surprised as me to see this? I don't think it is as bad as it looks but it is not good particularly from a breeder or at least someone who knows cats and is heavily involved in cats.

It is not recommended for plainly obvious reasons to carry a cat like this. It could cause injury. These are show cats, purebred cats that are at a cat show to win a prize. I don't think this behaviour would enhance the chances of winning either. Mr Blackford says that Siamese cats are more muscular than most and his cats just relax when carried like this. He was criticised in another edition of Life Magazine (see picture). Note: Siamese cats are not more muscular than most.

The second point of interest is the type of Siamese cat in the picture. They are not what today I call "modern Siamese" meaning highly bred oriental shape (very slender) Siamese. These cats are what breeders would call "old-style Siamese". That was the only type of Siamese in the USA in 1952. Today there is an extensive range from super slender to more cobby or natural looking traditional Siamese.

---

Note: (1) about publishing the picture here. The photo is 60 years old. Google allow people to embed the picture in their websites using the iframe tag. On that basis I have to make the presumption that I am licensed to publish it here in the conventional way using the img src tag. If someone thinks differently please contact me. The picture of the drawing is published under the same rationale.

Old Style Siamese Cat

The "old style Siamese cat" is a purebred Siamese cat of moderate proportions or body conformation. The terminology "old-style" is one more of a long list of terms to describe the spectrum of appearances of the Siamese cat. At one time, pre-1950s, there was one type of Siamese cat and that was the same appearance as the original imported Siamese cats from Thailand.

There is a lot of debate and dispute as to what the original appearance was and should be today. All this has caused confusion to people outside the cat fancy. You will read about:

1. Traditional Siamese cats
2. Applehead Siamese cats
3. Classic Siamese cats
4. Thai cats
5. Old style Siamese cats
6. Modern Siamese cats
7. Contemporary Siamese cats

and so on... Breeders of  the old style Siamese cat say that they breed the original appearance. The old style Siamese cat is also referred to as the Thai cat (see photos above). And the Thai cat is a registered purebred cat with TICA, a large cat association based in the USA but international in its work.

So, the old style Siamese cat is in between the traditional Siamese and the slender show cat, the modern Siamese, in terms of body conformation. The term "Thai cat" was, in my opinion, a mistake as it introduces yet another label for the Siamese cat. But breeders of the Thai cat will strongly disagree with that. For them the Thai is not a Siamese cat although it definitely looks like one!

In my view the traditional Siamese sometimes referred to as the "Applehead Siamese" (a derogatory term made up by some breeders who don't like the cat, I suspect) is near the true appearance. You only have to look at old photos to see that. But here is the complication. The original Siamese cats must have varied in appearance and some would be similar to Thai cats (old style Siamese cats) and some similar to traditional Siamese cats.

But none would be similar to the overbred, overly slender, modern show Siamese with unnatural oversized ears. This cat breed is a mistake and the CFA only recognize this odd looking cat. Odd that.

Old Style Siamese cat to Home page.

Thai Cat Breeders Map

A map showing the US states where there are breeders of the Thai cat and contact details (click on the markers for email address). The Thai is only bred in the USA as far as I am aware. It is an "old style" Siamese meaning this breed is intended to be faithful to the original Siamese cats that were imported from Siam now Thailand. I think the original Siamese cats were actually slightly more cobby (stocky) than the Thai but the Thai is a really nice looking cat and far better than the extreme Siamese show cat that I call the modern Siamese (as opposed to the traditional Siamese). Note: Cat breeders don't provide addresses so you'll have to email or phone them.

The map:

Javanese Cat Pictures

Here are two Javanese cat pictures:

Javanese cat "Blush" - Photo copyright Helmi Flick

Javanese cat "Foxy" - Photo copyright Helmi Flick

The photos on this page are protected by copyright ©. Violations of copyright are reported to Google.com (DMCA).

The Javanese cat has nothing to do with the island of Java in Asia. It is just a name that conjures up an exotic cat breed. A breeder, Helen Smith of MerryMews Cattery, made it up.

The cat is a long haired Oriental Shorthair. The Oriental Shorthair is a modern Siamese cat (slender) that is not confined by the breed standard to being pointed. There are a wide range of colors and coat types.

The Javanese cat is slender therefore. This is called "oriental" or "foreign" in cat fancy language.

When you think of a Javanese cat you should think about a very slender cat with long close lying hair and a plumed tail and with a wide range of coat colors and patterns.

Cat Barking

Some cats do make sounds that are like a dog barking. It is about individual cat characteristics. The Siamese cat, being very vocal, is predisposed to making loud sounds that we are not familiar with as cat sounds.

We tend to think of cat sounds as meowing, purring, growling, hissing etc. But there is a much wider range.

My three legged cat cat makes a sound that is neither a bark nor a meow. It is a sound that we would not normally associate with a cat.


Cat Sounds and Communication from Michael Broad on Vimeo.

The truth is that cat sounds and their meaning are work in progress. The video that "cat barking" refers to is of a black cat at an open window.

At first you might think that it is a fake but it seems real. It is possible that a cat can mimic a dog. Cats learn from observation. They usually learn from watching other cats. If they are raised by a dog they might learn from a dog; not only learning how to bark but what to bark at! That seems possible to me. I am not saying that that is what happened in this case.

What is interesting about this video is that when the cat sees the camera person, he or she reverts back to a very typical cat meow. When barking, the cat was behaving instinctively as if in the wild. When the person turned up he became a little kitten, the person being the mother cat. We keep our adult cats in permanent kitten-hood because we feed them and keep them warm and safe etc.




From Cat Barking to Home Page

Are Siamese cats hypoallergenic?

The answer is, No, I am afraid to say. There is nothing in the best books or on the internet that tells us that Siamese cats are hypoallergenic. There is no reason why they should be.

There is no reason why any cat or cat breed should be. What makes the domestic cat allergic to some people is the Fel D1 allergen, a protein in the cat's saliva.

All cats, purebred cats or not have this allergen in the saliva. It seems though that some breeds are less likely to cause an allergic reaction, but it is anecdotal.

The Siberian comes to mind but breeders will tend to promote breeds in some way or another and hypoallergenic properties is a good promotional tool. Sorry of that sounds a bit cynical.

I expand on hypoallergenic cat breeds. Individual cats may be less likely to cause an allergic reaction and tom cats that are not neutered are more likely to cause an allergic reaction. I should know. I fed a male stray cat I named Timmy and I itched when I saw him. No other cat caused even the slightest sign of an allergy.





From Are Siamese cats hypoallergenic? to Home Page

Are Siamese cats mean?

No, Siamese cats are not mean. It is wrong to make any statement about all the cats of one cat breed because individual cats vary in character.

In any case, the Siamese is an extremely popular cat. On my reckoning they are third most popular of all purebred cats of which there are over 100 but about 60+ are mainstream.

They have a very long and successful history as a cat companion. It is impossible to have that sort of recognition and reputation and be mean.

Siamese cats love human company, like to be close, and are very vocal. Sometimes the sound that they make is loud and demanding. This may give the impression of meanness. Or the film Lady and the Tramp may have given the Siamese a reputation. Who knows. 

Siamese cats make great cat companions. In addition they are known to be smarter than the average cat breed. There coats are silky and easy to maintain. I would advise adopting a traditional Siamese, however. That last sentence will no doubt cause consternation amongst modern Siamese cat breeders. I make it for health reasons (please see here and here).




From Are Siamese cats mean? to Home Page

The World's Healthiest Cat

The Siamese cat was one of the first cats of the cat fancy. The cat fancy by the way is the group of people who breed purebred cats and show them at cat shows that they organise. They also formed cat associations to manage the cat fancy. There are too many of them.

When the Siamese was first introduced into the cat fancy in England from far away Siam it caused quite a stir. This was an unusual looking cat. It was a cat that was considered "exotic" in the same was the wildcat hybrids are now.

The truth is the Siamese cat is still exotic. In its pure state of seal pointing and standard conformation it is a very beautiful cat. All the selective breeding to add different color pointing and to make the cat thinner and "more refined" have probably failed. The beauty is in the original appearance.

Of course I am a purist. And I like things that are natural. But that is because natural is best. Nature can do the job better than us.

The Siamese cat today has many "body types" and pointing colors and even patterns that go far beyond the simple elegance of the original cats that lived with the King of Siam in the late 1800s.



Above video: I just woke up and it looks like it! But the info is I think useful and carefully prepared.

The body shape has been altered and molded through selective cat breeding as if it were an automobile that needed to be remodeled every few years to keep the customers interested.

We now have the super slender modern Siamese cat that the Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognize. The CFA have rejected the original, traditional, Siamese cat as being too mundane. They have re-written the history books and say their version of the Siamese is the original. Wrong, sorry.

The cat fancy in their enjoyment of creating a cat that they feel is refined and elegant have taken their eye off the ball. They have compromised health. Overbreeding can have a negative impact of health. This is a bone of contention. How to get the cat fancy to focus more on health and less on appearance? Health sells cats because people are concerned about their cat's health even from the simple standpoint that it is cheaper to maintain a cat that is healthy!

Why don't the Cat Fanciers' Association create a cat breed that is marketed as the world's healthiest with no hidden inherited diseases? We have the longest domestic cat (the Maine Coon), the biggest domestic cat (F1 Savannah Magic); it is time to look under the bonnet and create the healthiest and most economical cat.

Siamese Cats For Sale

Traditional Siamese Cat - Photo by Robert Couse-Baker

As there are a good number of websites that list breeders etc., and there is the occasional individual Siamese cat breeder website that Google lists highly in a search result, I thought I would write about the background issues and suggest some other sources of Siamese cats for sale that are not so obvious.

Buyers of Siamese cats for sale should, I think, first understand that there are different types of Siamese cats in terms of body shape. There are also Siamese cats that have pointing (the dark extremities) that is not conventional or at least it is not the kind of pointing that a lot of people are familiar with. See for example the lynx point Siamese cat.

I would like to address the body shape issue first. The differences are quite extreme, actually. On the one hand there are the modern Siamese cats that have been selectively breed to be very, very slender indeed. My point of view is possibly well known. To summarize, it is that these super slender cats are unnatural and I would say unhealthy (at least potentially). I don't want to breeder bash etc but cat breeding should be carried out with great respect for the cat and its health.  This is not happening in relation to the modern Siamese cat as this ancient and well know breed has the greatest number of genetic diseases other than the Persian another very long standing cat breed.

People who buy purebred cats are usually concerned about the health of the breed. This is clearly sensible as cat owners do not want the stress and distress of trying to nurse to health a cat they have become attached to. There is also the issue of cost in vet's bills.

Cat health is number one, so when buying Siamese cats for sale this aspect of the process should be uppermost in the mind of the buyer.

One way of minimising buying a Siamese cat that may be inherently ill - and who may die at a relatively young age - is to have a look at the traditional Siamese cat which is commonly called the Applehead Siamese cat.

These cats should be breed with a greater regard for health and in any case they look more attractive, so say 78% of the public based on a long standing poll on my website.

Chart showing the public prefer traditional Siamese cats

This is not a science so you will get variations amongst individual cats. Some will be more healthy than others. These variations are probably greater than breed to breed variations and variations due to the type of cat within a breed.

Health, both mental and physical, is a hidden factor when purchasing a purebred cat. But it is, ironically, the most important factor. Although I am not saying that purebred cats are less intelligent than moggies, I have seen two examples of purebred cats - Burmese and British Shorthair - that were clearly what might delicately be called "educationally challenged". Or less delicately you would say there is something wrong with them mentally. In human terms you would say that they had low IQs. This affects character. People want a cat to interact with them. Cats that are very stupid (for no fault of their own) will not interact well. They are passive and statue-like.

OK enough of that.....When buying a cat it is said that the cat selects the person. People know which cat amongst a litter or group of cats is right for them. You can only achieve that end result of the selection process by being there at the breeder's establishment. That in turn means that if you are looking for Siamese cats for sale you will need to look locally or not too far away so you can visit, inspect and discuss with the breeder. Transportation back will also avoid air travel that can be stressful for all concerned.

There are several pages on this site that describe the Siamese cat:

• Siamese cat discussion
• Modern Siamese
• Traditional Siamese

People should also be aware that there is a cat that is a Siamese but is not called a Siamese - confusing. That statement will annoy some people but it is true. The cat is the Thai cat. These two pages, Siamese Cat History and Thai Cats,  might also prove of use when studying the breed and making an informed decision when buying a Siamese cat for sale.

Finally, if I was looking for a Siamese cat for sale I would check out the best cat club for that breed first, second I would check out the main cat associations for their breeder referral list and third I would consider joining a Yahoo Group for the breed concerned to discuss with like minded people the ins and outs of the breed.

I don't think this is going too far. Adopting a cat is for the life of the cat, say 15 - 20+ years. The cost over that lifetime might be in the order of $10,000 or the same in pounds sterling in the UK.

That is the price of a car. When you buy a car you spend a lot of enjoyable time researching things.



From to Home Page

Blue Point Siamese Kitten

Blue point Siamese kitten -- Photo by iampeas

If you are looking for a blue point Siamese kitten in the UK then I am acting as a go-between! The Siamese Cat Club members kitten list is a really nice source of information on newborn Siamese kittens.

It is probably the best source in the UK. Please go to this page to have a look.

What about the USA? I think I would start with the two premier cat associations in the USA as they have breeder list.

For the CFA breeder referral list please go to this page and for TICA's breeder list, this is the page.

The National Siamese Cat Club in the USA has a healthy list of breeders on this page.

Good luck.



From Blue Point Siamese Kitten to Home Page

Chocolate Point Siamese Cat

The chocolate point Siamese cat is one of the original pointing colors. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) only recognise the four solid colors one of which is chocolate. The others are blue (dilute black), lilac and seal (very dark brown). The International Cat Association (TICA) recognize other colors and patterns that break up the pointing. I don't like that as the cat no longer looks like a Siamese cat.

Seal is point color of the original Siamese cats from Siam, in my opinion. It is the color we associate with the Siamese cat.

Chocolate actually looks like a diluted seal. The chocolate point Siamese cat was recognised sometime after 1934 in the USA. Despite that the Siamese cat was first imported into the West (England) from Siam in the late 1800s.

The genotype for chocolate pointing is aabb.

Chocolate pointed Siamese - by sam.romilly (Flickr).

From Chocolate Point Siamese Cat to Home Page