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The
Birman cat is believed to have originated in Burma,
where it was considered sacred, the companion cat
of the Kittah priests.
There is a legend as to how
the Birman's developed the colours they are today,
Originally,
the guardians of the Temple of LaoTsun were yellow-eyed
white cats with long hair.
The golden goddess of
the temple, Tsun-Kyan-Kse, had deep blue eyes.
The
head priest, Mun-Ha, had as his companion a beautiful
cat named Sinh.
One day the temple was attacked and
Mun-Ha was killed.
At the moment of his death, Sinh
placed his feet on his master and faced the goddess.
The cat’s white fur took on a golden cast,
his eyes turned as blue as the eyes of the goddess,
and his face, legs and tail became the colour of
earth.
However, his paws, where they touched the priest,
remained white as a symbol of purity.
All the other
temple cats became similarly coloured.
Seven days
later, Sinh died, taking the soul of Mun-Ha to paradise.
The
modern history of the Birman is almost as shrouded
in mystery as its legendary origin.
What is known for certain is that, probably around 1919, a pair of
Birman cats were clandestinely shipped from Burma to France.
The male cat did
not survive the arduous conditions of the long voyage, but the female, Sita,
did survive, and happily, was pregnant.
From this small foundation the Birman
was established in the western world. The French cat registry recognized the
Birman as a separate breed in 1925.
By the end of World War II, only two Birman's were left alive in Europe, and
a program of out crossing was necessary to re establish the breed.
Most cat registries
require at least five generations of pure breeding after out crossings to fully
accredit a breed for championship competition.
Birman's were recognized by England
in 1966 and by The Cat Fanciers’ Association in 1967.
The ideal Birman
is a large, long stocky cat. It has long silky hair, not as thick as that of
the Persian, and is of a texture that does not mat.
The colour of the coat is light, preferably with a golden cast, as if misted
with gold. The “points” - face, legs and tail - are darker, similar
to the Siamese and colour pointed Persian colour patterns of seal point, blue
point, chocolate point and lilac point.
The almost round eyes are blue, set
in a strong face with heavy jaws, full chin and Roman nose with nostrils set
low. The very distinctive white feet are ideally symmetrical.
The gloves on
the front feet, if perfect, go across in an even line, and on the back feet
end in a point up the back of the leg, called laces.
It is very difficult to
breed a cat with four perfect white gloves.
The Birman personality is marvelous
- gentle, active, playful, but quiet and unobtrusive if you are busy with other
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