Cat Breed of The Month--The Burmese

The cat breed I picked for the month of June is the Burmese!

The Burmese is considered hypoallergenic, although they aren't completely hypoallergenic, meaning they produce fewer allergens than the average cat.

The breed lives for about 16-18 years of age. One Burmese cat lived to be 35 years old; one of the oldest cats recorded.

There are actually two kinds of Burmese. The American and the British Burmese. We'll explore their differences later.

History

The origin of the Burmese cat began in Myanmar (was called Burma at the time).

A man by the name of Dr. Joseph Thompson brought a walnut brown-colored female cat named Wong Mau to the USA in the early 1930s. She was then bred with a Siamese seal point male to further develop the breed.

In 1936, the Burmese was recognized by the CFA.

Appearance

As we learned above, there are two types of Burmese. The American Burmese has a round face and round eyes. The tip of their ears and the tip of their paws are rounded as well as their paw pads. They also have a short muzzle.

The American version is medium-sized, muscular, stocky, and heavy-boned. They weigh about 8-12 pounds but feel heavier than they appear.

The British Burmese has pointier ears, a longer muzzle, and a longer, sleeker body. Their paw pads are oval-shaped. Their eyes aren't as round as the American.

Both types have a smooth, glossy, and short coat.

There are only four colors of the American Burmese that are accepted by the CFA, these include sable (the most common color in Burmese cats), blue, platinum, and champagne.

The FiFe accepts ten colors of the British Burmese; chocolate, chocolate tortie, lilac, lilac tortie, brown, blue, blue tortie, red, cream, tortie.

Personality

The breed is playful, athletic, affectionate, vocal, intelligent, fearless, and outgoing.

They are known to rule over the household as well as their owner's heart. They have a dog-like personality and will follow their owner all around the house.

The Burmese are good with children, other cats, and dogs.

They are usually lapcats.

Health & Care

The Burmese is a generally healthy breed but they, like all breeds are prone to a few health problems, these include hypokalemia, glaucoma, feline hyperesthesia syndrome, cranial deformities, and kidney stones in the urinary tract that are caused by oxalate crystals.

The breed requires minimal grooming as they don't shed a lot. Grooming your Burmese with a brush or comb once a week is recommended to get rid of dead hairs.

The Burmese as all cats should have their teeth brushed daily, at least weekly.

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