The Balinese is a breed of cat originating in the United States.
This medium-sized cat is the semi-long haired variety of the Siamese.
Origins:
The Balinese is the semi-long haired variety of the Siamese. Their history is therefore identical until the 1950.
Various legends tell that these cats with colored ends were sacred temple cats, others that they were bred in Thailand under the supervision of the King of Siam or that they were presented to the English as sacred cats so that don't steal their real lucky cats, the Khao Manee.
It was the English who imported these cats to Europe at the end of the 19th century. They were already exhibited in London in 1881.
This very exotic cat quickly captivated the English who greatly appreciated it.
From 1930 to 1954, the number of colors accepted in the Siamese increased considerably, going from only seal point to blue, lilac and chocolate point.
A trace of a Siamese with semi-long hair was found dating from 1928.
It is likely that it is a spontaneous genetic mutation because kittens with semi-long hair indeed appeared naturally among the litters of Siamese.
These kittens were excluded from the breeding circuits because they did not correspond to the breed standard.
After World War II, many Siamese were imported to the United States.
It was one of the most popular breeds with the Persian.
It was two American Siamese breeders who started breeding this Siamese with semi-long hair.
They selected the semi-long-haired kittens born in their litters and gave the Balinese name to these cats.
Indeed, their pace reminded them of that of the dancers of Bali.
Several Balinese breeders worked for the recognition of the breed by making numerous exhibitions.
TICA and CFA accepted the Balinese as a separate breed in 1970, FIFé in 1972 and LOOF in 1983.
The 1980 were devoted to refining the silhouette of the Balinese.
Indeed, the Siamese had already evolved a lot and had become considerably refined, passing from the traditional type (currently known as Thai) to the modern type.
In order for the same change to take place in the Balinese, breeders used crosses between Siamese and Balinese.
The short-haired kittens born from these marriages are called "variants".
With the appearance of many other breeds over the past twenty years, the popularity of the Balinese has declined.
In 2008, it was still rare in France where it represents only 0.08% of the total pedigree cats. Between 2003 and 2008, the LOOF registered less than 20 new births each year.
In England, the GCCF has recorded an average of 172 Balinese births for a total of 30,000 purebred cat births per year since 1997.
Standards:
Body:
Like the Siamese, the Balinese has a long and flexible body.
He is of medium height and his athletic build and fine bone make him elegant.
A body that is too short or massive is considered a fault during an exhibition.
Hips and shoulders are the same width.
The neckline is long and thin.
The legs must be long but remain in harmony with the rest of the body.
They are fine but without exaggeration.
Their bone structure must, as for the rest of the body, remain fine and the musculature must be firm.
Legs that are too short or massive are penalizing faults in exhibition.
The feet are small and oval.
The tail is long and thin, said to be in the shape of a “whip”.
However, the length should not be excessive and remain in harmony with the rest of the body.
In the Balinese it is provided but only with fine hairs whose lightness is comparable to that of an ostrich feather.
The French standard specifies that the Balinese, although fine, should not be too thin.
Head:
The head is medium in size and triangular in shape.
The skull and forehead must be flat or slightly domed but in excess this would be considered a penalty.
The head should also not be too wide or too round.
The profile is either completely straight or slightly curved.
In any case, there should be no break along the line of the nose.
The cheeks are flat with an exception for adult males who may have jowls.
The eyes are almond shaped and slanted8. They should be well spaced and their color is always blue.
The intensity of the color plays an important role.
Eyes that are round, too small or slightly slanted penalize the cat during a championship.
Any color other than blue is considered a serious fault and directly eliminates the cat from the championship circuit.
The CFA standard specifies that Balinese with strabismus are penalized.
The nose is long and straight but should not be too narrow.
The ears are large, well spaced on the head and quite wide.
Coat and fur:
The Balinese's fur is medium-long and should not have an undercoat.
The coat is fine and silky, lying on the body.
The Balinese must not have a collar, but the breeches and tail must be well furnished with hair.
At the level of the shoulders the hair can be shorter.
The standard tolerates incompletely developed fur in kittens under twelve months.
Coat that is too short or lacking in silkiness is considered a fault.
The presence of undercoat is an eliminatory fault.
The only authorized pattern is the colourpoint, in all colors for the LOOF.
The CFA only allows seal, blue, chocolate and lilac.
Balinese of another color are registered as Javanese.
The contrast between the colored extremities and the rest of the body should be sharp.
The color of the tips should be as uniform as possible.
Any white spot, including on the pads, is an eliminatory fault in France, while for the CFA standard it only entails a penalty.
Interbreeding is authorized with Siamese, Orientals and Mandarins.
The CFA also allows crossbreeding with the colorpoint shorthair.
Character:
The Balinese would share with the Siamese a playful, extroverted and active character.
Like his cousin, he is also a great talker.
He would be sociable and extremely affectionate.
These character traits are, however, perfectly individual and depend on the history of each cat.
Breeding:
Health:
Amyloidosis:
Oriental cats such as the Balinese also seem to be more affected than other breeds by amyloidosis.
This disease leads to chronic kidney failure eventually resulting in the death of the animal.
Affected cats generally die before the age of five, at three and a half years on average.
This pathology was discovered only recently in cats and no genetic study has yet been carried out in order to know the mode of transmission of the disease.
An analysis of the pedigrees shows however that it would be hereditary.
The symptoms result in diarrhea which can be accompanied by a state of dejection and a refusal to eat.
There is no treatment to cure the disease, only its symptoms.
The goal is to prevent inflammation and slow the progression of kidney failure.
In case of anemia, veterinarians may also resort to transfusions.
Currently, veterinarians recommend an autopsy of all unexplained dead Siamese and related cats to better understand the condition.
Strabismus:
Cats with a colourpoint coat present in greater numbers than cats of other breeds a convergent strabismus.
This defect was extremely frequent in the Siamese and even authorized until the appearance of a stricter standard.
This strabismus is due to various anomalies of the nerve fibers which do not always arrive in the correct hemisphere of the brain.
Their three-dimensional vision is impaired and their visual acuity diminished.
In order to compensate, the cat must change the position of its eyes.
It would seem that the allele which codes for the colourpoint dress is the cause since it modifies the presence of melanin in the retina.
Genetic:
The colourpoint coat is a genetic peculiarity that does not allow color to develop in areas of the body at normal temperature.
It is the “cs” allele that causes the production of tyrosinase that cannot function at normal body temperature.
The limbs, tail, ears and face being colder, they are the only parts to color.
The kittens are thus born white because they have been kept warm throughout gestation and their color only appears slowly after birth, when their extremities have reached a lower temperature than the rest of the body.
This dress also darkens with age and lightens in case of high fever.
The crossing of Siamese with fully colored cats has given rise to a new coat, the sepia whose ends are colored, but unlike the colorpoint, the body color remains quite dark.
Crossing sepia and colorpoint cats gave the mink dress.
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cat breeds