Chartreux Cat

Photo of Spenser © Helmi Flick

Introduction

The Chartreux Cat is probably the most natural cat breed of them all. This is because her origins appear to go back to the 16th century (see below) and more importantly the objective of modern breeders is to make sure she remains as she has always been. The Chartreux cat breeders deserve recognition for their foresight and unique actions. The cat fancy likes to "improve" cat breeds through selective breeding.

The desire to retain the purity of the breed seems to be a thread running through the history of this breed. This is a great motivator to continue the good work and is probably why the current breeders are dedicated to the preservation of this breed in its original form.

Her naturalness is one of several notable features of this breed. The others are that she comes in one colour, is a large cat and has a small voice. More on this below.

History

Date	Event
13th or 16th Century	Alleged stocky feral mountain cat imported from Syria during the Crusades, thought to be the possible origin of this breed. The Crusades occurred in from 1095-1291 and during the 16th Century.
1558	First written record of a grey cat that looked like this breed. A certain Joachin de Bellay refers to a dead Chartreux (?) in a poem. The poem refers to the cats rat catching skills.
17th Century	The word "Chartreux" began to be used for this cat breed
18th Century (1723)	Written evidence in a French "dictionary" of the breed name "Chartreux" for a blue cat. Apparently the cat's fur was used by furriers. This seems to mean that there were wild populations and colonies at this time, up until the end of the 2nd World War.
1747	A cat having the appearance of Chartreux painted by Frenchman. Painting now at JP Getty Museum USA
1747 - 1880	The Chartreux Cat referred to in a number of books from France and Europe.
from late 1920s	Cat Shows in Europe exhibit the Chartreux Cat
Circa 1945	Breeders recognize the worth of protecting this breed of cat and preserving the genetic make up. After WW2, the population of this cat in the wild (I presume feral) was very low.
1970 (or 1971)	Imported into the USA
1987	CFA grant full (championship status to this breed)
Present	Full status with all major associations in US and Europe. Note that the US associations and FiFe don't allow out crossing so it's always Chartreux to Chartreux. The GCCF doesn't recognize this breed.

Appearance/Character

Photo of Amethyst: © Helmi Flick

The Chartreux Cat is large and muscular except it seems their legs which are short and fine boned (the photograph doesn't support this though).

They have the classic blue coat/gold copper coloured eye mix. They are quiet and some (many?) are apparently totally mute. If not mute their meow is different being high pitched or a chirp (chirping is found in other breeds too).

Another particularity is that they are noted to be very good hunters.

They have all the usual characteristics of a domestic cat if well socialized namely, affectionate, non-aggressive and playful.

The breed standard includes these selected features:

large cat - full size is 12-16 lbs
smiling expression
rounded head
robust medium-long body - erect posture
medium short coat with dense undercoat and protective topcoat
colour: any shade of blue-gray :)
rounded open expressive eyes

This is a really nice looking cat for me. Reference to a blue coat means blue-grey. Its the same for the British Shorthair. Although the British Shorthair has other coat colours.

Other cat breeds confined to the solid blue coat colour are the Korat and Russian Blue.

Health

Photo: Eaglet © Helmi Flick

Patellar luxation can occur in this breed. This is a condition in which the knee cap dislocates from its normal position. This can cause the cat to be lame. This in an inherited condition and is therefore controllable by careful breeding - check with the breeder.

Reported in some: close set incisor teeth (this report probaby comes from a cat breeder) and possible Gingivitis (this though is a potential for all domestic cats and should be watched for)

Despite this relatively minor health issues she is a sturdy cat which supports her admirable hunting skills.

The name - Chartreux

The name means a Carthusian. So, what is a Carthusian? :) A Carthusian is a member of a Roman Catholic Monastic Order founded in 1084 in the Charteuse region of France (South East). The name originates it seems from these monks on the basis that they kept large blue cats.

There is no record of this happening although if one was being a bit flippant the silent nature of the Chartreux cat indicates that he is under the vow of silence.

Breeders

These are taken from independent websites listed in the first 3 pages of a Google search. Most of the Chartreux Cat breeders are listed in directories.

Chanson Bleu Chartreux
The first listed and a nice site. Open and inviting with a phone number and an indication of the location plus pictures all on the home page. This site has the most comprehensive study on the history of the breed as well. Nice one.

This is the only independent site listed in the first 3 pages. I would start here other than the major associations.

Sources:

Cat fanciers
Wikipedia
Online dictionaries
Cat breeders
Chanson Blue Chartreux

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