Korat Cat

Korat Cat Photo: © Innath

Note: Nearly all the cat breed photographs on this website are by Helmi Flick a professional photographer of distinction. She mainly photographs show cats. I am not sure of the pedigree or history of the cats on this page because I don't know the photographers. That does not mean that they are not purebred or pedigree Korat Cats or indeed fine cats.

Introduction

The Korat is an ancient and natural cat from Thailand. A similar cat comes immediately to mind, the Chartreux. The Chartreux is a native of France while the Korat originally comes from Korat in Thailand (new window for map of Korat,Thailand), where she is associated with good luck. Apparently, a pair of Korats are, on occasions, (and other special occasions, I presume) given to newly weds as a way of wishing good luck.

Photo of Miska. Kept by Thea Robinson in Scappose, Oregon. Korat Female Silver-tipped Blue. Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder

"Korat" cat be translated as "Good Fortune". It is said that this cat is sprinkled with water to bring rain. Her coat being the color of grey rain clouds.

This cat is relatively rare in her native country as research by me did not revel reference to this breed of cat on websites about Thailand generally.

The Korat is spoken about in a reverential way by the Thai people in respect of her fine appearance. The coat is very fine and discussed below.

It would seem, and I am speculating, that this cat was kept by the more wealthy people of Thailand.

The cats of Thailand are more likely, these days to be moggies, Siamese (Vichien Mat) or Oriental Shorthair for example.

History

Date	Event
1350-1767	Mentioned in an ancient Thai book, "The Cat-Book Poems"
1959	First imported into USA by Jean Johnson
1972	First imported into UK
1966	Accepted by CFA into full status category (Championship Category)

Photo: © Nick Hodges - creative commons

Appearance and Character

The coat is special in its make up and appearance. The Korat cat has only one color, the color you see in these photographs (any slight differences is due to color reproduction). Other cats with a similar single color is the Chartreux and Russian Blue.

The coat is a single coat, which means easier maintenance. Also the fur doesn't come off quite so easily, making her less of a problem potentially for people who suffer from cat allergies. However this would seem to be anecdotal information.

**Veda Napha Naramit a male Korat Cat of 2 years of age copyright M. La Roche reproduced under creative commons**

The roots of the hair is dark blue changing to a darker color in the middle and finally silver at the top. The coat could be defined as, "silver tipped blue". The Thais, however, describe the color with reference to nature, a reflection perhaps of the good luck they seek in bringing on rain by sprinkling the cat with water.

They describe the color as, "rain cloud gray". The silver aura or the "polished silver dollar" effect (used by the CFA author) is described as, "sea foam".

There is an interesting difference in the reference to nature in Thailand and the reference to money in the USA.

The "halo" effect may be due to the absorption of light by the dark middle area of the hair follicles and the silver tipping.

The silver tipping is more concentrated on the muzzle (the front of the cat's face) and the toes.

As to character, they have, like other cat breeds, (but perhaps more so) superb hearing and a very sensitive nose. As a consequence they like it quiet

. Plus they have all the usual beautiful and natural characteristics of all domestic cats

Photo: © catalin2

Breeders

As usual, the listings are from the top non-directory cattery sites on a Google search. If you'd like a listing please contact me.

Gentlegift Korats
This is the only website listed in the first 3 pages on the above criteria. This site malfunctions in irs operation and it is not clear where the cattery is or whether it is still operating - please advise.

Sources:

Moggies
Wikipedia
CFA
Me
Cats of Thailand

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