Birman

This lovely semi-longhaired breed is one of the most fascinating in the Cat Fancy. There is a charming legend surrounding the origins of their unusual colouring. They are colourpointed with a dark mask, legs and tail and a contrasting paler body coat, but they have characteristic markings to their paws. On the front paws they have white gloves, and on the hind legs the white area extends up to the heel, forming a gauntlet.

The legend tells of the Temple of Lao-Tsun, built by the Khmer people of Asia, in which to worship a golden goddess with sapphire blue eyes, called Tsun-Kyan-Kse. One of the temple priests, Mun-Ha, meditated before the goddess with Sinh, a beautiful white temple cat by his side. One fateful night, raiders attacked the temple and the priest, Mun-Ha, was killed. As he died, Sinh placed his feet upon the stricken priest and faced the golden goddess. As he did so, the hairs of his white body turned golden, his yellow eyes turned to sapphire blue and his four white legs turned brown, but where his paws rested on his dead master, they remained white as a symbol of purity. The next morning, the hundred white cats of the temple were as golden as Sinh, who died seven days later, and carried his master’s soul into paradise.

At the beginning of the last century, the temple was raided again. Two westerners, Auguste Pavie and Major Gordon Russell, came to the aid of the priests. In gratitude, in 1919 the priests sent to the two men, then living in France, a pair of Birman cats. The male sadly didn’t survive the journey, but the female arrived and was already pregnant, which ensured the survival of the breed in the West.

Birmans were recognised in France in 1925, the word Birman is derived from the French Birmanie for Burma (now Myanmar). The breed in France can be traced back to a single pair, Orloff and Xenia de Kaabaa. As with many other pedigree breeds, they suffered a setback as a result of war in Europe, and by the end of WW2 there was only a single surviving pair and much work was needed to restore the variety by outcrossing to Persians (which introduced the dilute gene for blue) and also to Siamese.

In the early 1960s, an English woman, Elsie Fisher (Praha prefix), who was a Siamese breeder, saw Birman cats at European shows and, together with Mrs M Richards (Paranjoti prefix jointly held with Elsie Fisher), imported the first Birmans into the UK. These included Ch Nouky de Mon Reve (seal-point male), Orlamonde de Khlaramour (blue-point female) and Ch Osaka de Lugh (blue-point female). The breed was recognised by GCCF in 1966. Initially Birmans were shown in the Longhair Section, alongside Persians and Turkish Vans before the arrival of other semi-longhaired breeds. They were very popular with large classes and regularly won Best in Show. They are now shown in Section 2 in GCCF, alongside all the other semi-longhaired breeds.

The Birman has a broad, rounded skull with a medium length nose and full cheeks. The ears are medium sized and spaced well apart. Its body should be long and substantial with medium length strong legs, the tail should be bushy and in proportion to the body. The eyes should be almost round and decidedly blue, the deeper in tone the better. Initially the Birman was recognised only with seal and blue points colour, but is now also recognised in chocolate, lilac, red and cream. Tortie points, tabby points and tortie tabby points are also recognised in the basic colours. The gloves and gauntlets are the result of a specific “gloving gene” which is not related to the white spotting gene which causes bi-colour cats in other breeds. The GCCF Standard of Points is very specific with regard to the gloves and gauntlets:

Front Paws – Pure white symmetrical gloves ending in an even line across the paw and not passing beyond the angle formed by the paw and leg. Colour of the paw pads irrelevant.

Back Paws – Pure white socks covering the entire paw and gauntlets tapering up the back of the leg to finish just below the point of the hock. Colour of the paw pads irrelevant.

Birmans, like other colourpointed cats, are born white, without their mask and points colour, or their gloves and gauntlets visible. It must be a great test of patience for Birman breeders to wait and see if the gloves and gauntlets, when they appear, reflect the strict requirements of the Standard of Points without coloured spots or toes or gauntlets that don’t match.

Above all else, this breed is best known for its personality or temperament. They are wonderful companions with a lot of love to give. Birmans adore being around people and use a soft chirp-like mew to get attention. Eager to love and play but less inclined to hunt, Birmans make perfect family pets and are highly suitable for elderly people. They will also happily share their lives with other breeds of cats and dogs. Birmans take an intelligent interest in everything their human families do – they will often follow you from room to room and want to be involved in what you are doing. With a constant response from his owner when the cat meows, the Birman will become quite a talker (although nowhere near as vocal as its pointed cousin, the Siamese). If you prefer just the quietness of his purr, lack of response will discourage the cat from talking but not from purring!!

With their striking good looks, ease of maintenance and friendly demeanour, no wonder the Birman is understandably a popular pet and figures in the Top 10 of breeds registered with GCCF.

Typically females weigh between 6 to 10 lbs and males average between 10 to 15 lbs. Life span is 12 to 16 years. Despite the length of the Birman’s coat, it has a silky texture that does not mat easily. It should be combed weekly to remove stray hair and distribute skin oils. The thickness of the Birman’s coat will vary with seasonal conditions; Birmans shed their winter coat in the spring so you may want to comb more frequently then to remove loose hair. A warm bath can also help to loosen and remove the shedding coat.

The most severe threat is feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) which is the most common heart disease seen in cats.  In Birman cats it is thought to be inherited as an autosomal dominant trait.  HCM is a progressive disease and can result in heart failure and sudden death.   Breeders are, of course, aware of this and, with the help of screening, do all they can to eradicate problems and not breed from cats with any genetic problems.  Birmans also carry a very low risk for Polycystic Kidney Disease.