Amongst the great many breeds found in the cat fancy today, only a very select few have actually been present from the very beginning of this all-consuming hobby. In fact there are only three, which can claim to have been ‘in’ from the start, the British Shorthair, the Siamese and the Persian.

It is to the credit of these early breeders, right through to present day breeders and judges, that the British Shorthair has steered clear of the potential pitfalls of moving away from the basic conformation that is, and always has been, the hallmark of this truly magnificent breed.

The very existence of the cat fancy owes it origins to a large degree to our British Shorthairs.

It was because of his great love for this particular breed that Harrison Weir, (1824-1906) a very popular artist of the time, was prompted to organize the worlds’ first major cat show on 13 July 1871 in the Crystal Palace at Syndenham, London. The success of the show encouraged Weir to go on to become a noted cat judge and author. Today he is regarded as ‘the father’ of the cat fancy.

Harrison Weir is recorded as saying, “The ordinary garden cat, has survived every kind of hardship, that he exists at all, is a tribute to his strength of character and endurance.”
Mr Jung, who was to become one of the first cat judges, shared Mr Weir’s great love of these cats. He believed if these beautiful cats were thoughtfully bred, a race of cats would be developed. The breed produced was named the British Shorthair.

Wars of any kind affect not only man but they also have ‘knock on’ effects and the British Shorthair was badly affected by the first world war and by the end of the war quality breeding lines were scarce. Breeders began to introduce out of necessity unregistered domestic cats into their breeding programmes.

The result was some loss of quality so to quickly regain type some breeders began to outcross with the Persian and the GCCF ruled that offspring of these matings could not be exhibited as British Shorthairs until at least three generations of pure breeding had passed.

A few very dedicated breeders persevered and having slowly developed new breeding lines, the prospects of the British Shorthairs were dashed again by the Second World War and at the end of the conflict the British Shorthair gene pool was extremely small.

So again determined breeders used Russian Blue, the Burmese, the Chartreux from France and very probably others.


Where originally the breed was found only in Blue, a few other self colours and tabby, today the British Shorthair has full recognition in many colours and patterns recent years have seen the colourpoints, self colours lilac, cinnamon, fawn, tipped and the lovely bi colours all joining the wonderful array of course that make our breed.

Whilst the most common colour is Blue, and the silver tabby and silver spotties have had more than their share of the limelight with recent TV adverts, and even starring in the opening of the first Harry Potter film, there are many other colours and patterns becoming equally as popular.
In Europe and also the continent the British Shorthair has also developed a growing following, enjoying championship status in every nation in the world.

The breed is now so well established and stable it would seem highly unlikely it will ever need to outcross to other breeds again.

Being known for their equable and most amicable of temperaments most British Shorthairs are very friendly and extremely tolerant, an ideal member of a busy family. It is not in their nature to be obtrusive or demand attention with the vocality of other breeds.

The British Shorthair is a stocky very sturdy cat, built for strength, a real teddy bear, carrying it’s origins from the Victorian English moggie with size and weight and generally a huge presence and a gentle personality.

The adult British male weighing in around 18lbs and the female 11lb, it can take up to three to four years for a Brit to reach their full potential.

The British standard calls for the cats to be of compact build, powerful and well balanced. A full broad chest, short strong legs, rounded paws and a tail that is thick at the base and tapers slightly to a rounded tip and of course a seriously large well muscled physique.

The British Shorthair has a round head with good width between the ears. The eyes are round and wide open. One of the most appealing features is the Brits built in smile caused by the round prominent whisker pads. This smile was never better displayed than in Lewis Carroll’s Cheshire cat, originally a tabby British Shorthair cat.

The British Shorthair coat is like no other, it is a coat that needs minimal care yet has an extremely luxurious feel to it. Being so thick as to be definitely, a thick ‘dense’ texture, and slightly crisp.

British Shorthairs are very affectionate to numerous people within the circle they consider to be their ‘family’, being gifted with lasting patience and confidence, Brits are especially good with children and other types of pets.

A moderately active cat, they are not destructive as a breed, generally adapting well to any size of household from the very quiet to the extremely busy.

Having such a large frame discourages them from high jumping and serious climbing, they do feel much more comfortable with their paws firmly on the ground, hence sometimes their reluctance to be picked up and carried.

Most are real lap cats but generally they can prefer to lie contentedly at your side.
British Shorthairs are a very healthy long-lived breed; with care and attention you can expect a British to live anything from fifteen to twenty years.

Whilst the British now have a very healthy gene pool the introduction of some new colours has also brought in a new blood group, so where originally they were all Blood Group A, there is also now a separate Blood Group B and this has to be taken into consideration when planning a breeding of the mixed blood groups.

Blood Group Incompatibility
Recent years have shown a clear problem due to Blood Group Incompatibility, this has been the focus of much scientific research, and concern for British Shorthair breeders.

The true medical name is Neonatal Erythrolysis, which means the destruction of red blood cells in newly born kittens.

Generally domestic cats are blood group A, given the history of the British Shorthair it is safe to say that the introduction of the newer colours and the breeds behind them, have brought with them a second blood group.

It is not too much of a problem, if breeders take the precaution of having their breeding cats’ blood type tested and then plan appropriate matings.
A Group Male x A Group Female
B Group Male x A or B Female
Group A Female x A or B Group Male
Group B Female x B Males

If a mating of compromised blood groups is done then it is advisable to hand rear the kittens for the first 16 to 18 hours, after which the walls of the gut are closed to the colostrum in the mothers milk and the kittens are safe to feed from her.

British Shorthairs are generally limited to a breeding cycle dictated by daylight hours and therefore kittens are quite scarce during the later winter months.

British Queens are excellent mothers; their placid natures encourage a quiet contentment during motherhood with the average litter size being 2-5 kittens. Though this is not hard and fast, I have had a litters of eight kittens all successfully reared.

British Shorthair kittens are never in a hurry to open their eyes and get on their feet, as are some of the other foreign breeds. The world outside their ‘bedroom’ holds no interest for them in the first three to four weeks. However when they do start to show signs of being ready for more than just ‘mothers milk’ there is generally no fussiness about them, they are very quickly a ‘chunky’ eating force to be satisfied.

Because of the general size and ‘chunkiness’ of the British kitten it can seem to people who do not know that the kittens are older than they really are. My elderly father used to love coming over to our house and just sit and watch the kittens playing and he would say, “Surely the kittens are ready for going to their new homes now?” He would look back at me in amazement when he was told, that they were only nine weeks old.

In true British fashion, steadfastly overcoming problems the breed has shown true grit and temerity, weathered the storm and has emerged a gentle giant amongst cats.

If any breed deserves the success it is now enjoying it is most certainly the British Shorthair.
The British Shorthair Cat Club is the longest established club of the breed and although there has been changes over the years the Club continues to thrive and with the expanding growth of the internet, the club’s web site is becoming a major structural part of the Club.

Holding their annual breed show on 3 September, at the TA Centre, Greek Street, Stockport SK3 8AB. This is a new venue with ample parking and excellent catering.

We would love to see you at our annual breed show, a special 21st birthday celebration this year. Do come along and see the beautiful cats and just enjoy the day.
www.britishshorthaircatclub.co.uk

The Club web site, features a comprehensive stud list and a regularly updated kitten list.