Exotic Shorthair Cat

Exotic Shorthair Cat - Abbe - Photo: © Helmi Flick

Introduction

This highly interesting (and perhaps slightly amusing) looking cat is a simple hybrid, originally, of two pure-bred cats, the American Shorthair and the Persian (strickly speaking the Ultra Persian). If you click on the links above (which open in a new window) and come back, you will immediately recognise that this is a fusion of these two well known cat breeds.

Why did breeders create this breed? A question I think worth asking when one considers two things;

Photo: © secondyip

the public prefers less extreme looking cats (see the polls on this site - this link points to the Trad/Ultra Persian Poll) and there are known health issues that come with the Ultra (squashed) face.

It seems that the initial reason was to "strenghten" the American Shorthair "type". "Type" in cat fancier's language means the recognizable appearance of a particular cat breed.

In this instance, I presume this meant to make the American Shorthair look more like an American Shorthair i.e. solid, rounded looking. What they got was a squash faced American Shorthair, which they liked. They went on to make a new breed out this mating. The appearance is of a shorthaired Persian cat. I don't want to sound too critical but I wonder how much consideration was given to the health issues?

Since the initial creation in about 1960, breeders have "expanded" the breeding programme and included other similar shaped shorthair breeds namely the British Shorthair and Burmese, for example.

Photo of Gunny Parks: © Helmi Flick

History

Date	Event
Late 1950s & early 1960s	Exotic Shorthair created
1960s	Breed expanded by crossing with Brit Shorthair, Burmese and Russian Blue
1967	Recognized by CFA
1971	Exotic Shorthair achieved status of CFA Grand Champion
1991	CFA Cat of the Year
1992	CFA best kitten

Appearance and Character

Photo: © secondyip

As expected this cat is very simailar to the Persian's "furniture with fur" temperament. But the introduction of the American Shorthair and the breeds mentioned above mean she is probably a bit more lively.

She is then, docile, quiet, loyal and sweet natured. And there's less time grooming and more time to play and cuddle (grooming though is a form of exchange of friendship and affection if done gently). She is sometimes called the "lazy man's Persian" because of the lower grooming requirements.

The wide range of coat colors are the same as for the Persian.


Thumbnails - Abbe left & Divinity right in beauty shots © Helmi Flick

Medical Concerns

The Persian has certain medical concerns. These are found in the Exotic Shorthair Cat. I have also discovered that there are at least potential problems with an asymetrical jaw. This naturally affects eating and can lead to dental problems.

Then you have the problems associated with the squashed face, namely, sinus, tear duct overflow. These as we know can be minimised by not overbreeding towards the extreme face. It's all about responsible breeding practice.

Photo of Tango: © Helmi Flick

Breeders

Google listed (excluding directories) first 2 pages on search for Exotic Shorthair Cat breeders in order of appearance:

Heida
Located Bedford Virginia, USA. Owned by Nancy Pribble. Small cattery and nice clean, simple website.

La Boheme's
Located Northern Calfornia, near Sacramento.

Milbury Cattery
Located Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Sources:

http://www.solarwindscats.com/historyoftheexotic.htm (history)
Wikipedia
Fanciers
CFA

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