The Birman cat is said to have originated in Burma, where it was considered a sacred companion cat of the Kittah priests. There is a legend as to how the Birmans developed the colors 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. 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 color of earth. However, his paws, where they touched the priest, remained white as a symbol of purity. All the other temple cats became similarly colored. Seven days later, Sinh died, taking the soul of Mun-Ha to paradise.
A more likely scenario?
A male and a female (whose name was Sita), were stolen and given to an American millionaire, Mr Vanderbilt, by a disloyal servant of the temple of Lao-Tsun, whilst Vanderbilt was sailing in the Far East. It is then alleged that the pair was given to a woman called Mme Thadde Hadisch. The male (once again) died on the boat, but the pregnant female gave birth in the French town of Nice in 1920 to a litter of kittens. One of the female offspring was splendid, and was then named Poupee. Poupee was bred with a Laotian Lynx. Baudoin-crevoisier, who has been documented as a top Birman breeder, confirmed this in an article written in 1933, "Poupee could not be bred by a male of that breed, but was bred to a Laotian Lynx cat belonging to a doctor in Nice. This type of cat resembles the Siamese, with very blue eyes, and this breeding produced young mongrels of Birmans and Laotians. Through successive breeding was born a perfect result - Manou de Madalpour, whose marks resemble her mother, Poupee." Baudion then wrote in 1935, "This female was next bred to a male Siamese, which, at that time was baptised for the circumstances -Laotian Cat.
However, the breed known as "Sacre de Birmanie" was registered with the French Cat Registry in 1925. The Birman breed was almost wiped out during World War II. Only two cats were alive in Europe at the end of the war, a pair named Orloff and Xenia de Kaabaa, both belonging to Baudoin-crevoisier. The foundation of the breed in postwar France were offspring of this pair. Manou, Lon saito, Djaipour, Sita 1 and Sita 2, and they had to be heavily outcrossed with long-hair breeds to rebuild the birman breed. By the early 1950's, pure birman litters were once again being produced. The restored breed was recognised in Britain in 1965 and by the American Cat Fanciers' Association in 1966.
Sacred Birma in Poland
The first birmans came to Poland thanks to Mrs. Irena Nalewaj (who's The Vice President of FPL), she created her own cattery - White Star *PL and bought - EC. KAZU van Moustache*NL, HEIDI of Midway and IC. AUDREY van Moustache*NL. We can't forget about Mrs. Izabella Hermanowska who imported GIC DK*Kiru's ALYCAT and - IC. CECYLIA van Moustache*NL, and Mrs. Barbara Mikołajczyk who's an owner of the first tabby birman in Poland - DOROTY of Midway. There are sixteen catteries of birmans registered in FPL and one in ICF.
Appearance
Birmans have semi-long, silky hair, a semi-cobby body and relatively small ears compared to other cat races. In order to comply with breed standards, the Birman's body should be of an eggshell colour or golden, depending on the intensity of the markings colour. The markings can be pure seal, chocolate, blue, red, lilac or cream. Tabby variations are also allowed. Tortie cats can be seal, chocolate, blue or lilac. Birmans have sapphire coloured eyes. The Birman's coat is unusual due to the white 'gloves' on each paw. They are the only cat breed in the colourpoint coat that has fingers and toes in pure white colour. The genetics of this feature is still unclear.
Colours and coat
Points of Sacred Birman are: Seal-point, Blue-point, Chocolate-point, Lilac-point, Seal Tortie-point, Cream-point, Blue Cream point, Chocolate Tortie point, Lilac Tortie point. The same colours in Tabby version (Lynx): Seal Tabby point, Blue Tabby point, Chocolate Tabby point, Lilac Tabby point, Red Tabby, Cream Tabby point, Tortie Tabby point, Lynx or Red Factor colors on the legs, tail and face. Birmans differ from conventional colour-point cats by their white paws called gloves. The coat is medium-length, not as long and thick as a Persian's, and does not mat. A notable feature is their clear blue eyes, which remain blue throughout their life.
Color variants
Six main color variants:
- Blue - SBI a - blue-greyish points
- Chocolate - SBI b - milk chocolate points
- Lilac - SBI c - kolor znaczeń określany jest mianem "szarości lodowca" a wizualnie przypomina tzw. kawę z mlekiem
- Red - SBI d - red points
- Creme - SBI e - creme points
- Seal - SBI n - from dark brown to almost black points
- Blue Tortie - SBI g
- Chocolate Tortie - SBI h
- Lilac Tortie -SBI j
- Seal Tortie - SBI f
Charakter
Temper
Birmans have been bred for their temperament, and companionship, and they form a great affinity with their owner and their family. As all cats, they are highly intelligent creatures, and seem to take a genuine interest in whatever is taking place around them. They are also very inquisitive, and playful, particularly when young, and require plenty of stimulation and attention.
Standard
| FIFe Standard | ||
| Category II | SBI | Sacred Birman Cat Standard |
| General | Size | Medium in size |
| Head | Shape | Strong bone |
| Forehead | Slightly rounded | |
| Cheeks | Full, somewhat rounded | |
| Nose | Of medium length without stop, but with a slight indentation | |
| Chin | Firm | |
| Ears | Shape | Rather small |
| Placement | Set slightly tipped, not too upright on the skull with good width between. | |
| Eyes | Shape | Not quite round, slightly oval. |
| Color | Deep blue | |
| Body | Structure | Slightly long body. Males must be more massive than females. |
| Legs | Short and strong | |
| Paws | Rounded | |
| "Gloves" | The special feature of the Birman is the white feet, called "gloves", on both the front and hind feet. These gloves must be absolutely pure white. They should stop at the articulation or at the transition of toes to metacarpals, over which they should not extend. Slightly longer white gloves on the hind feet can be tolerated. On the back of the hind feet the white gloves end in points. The ideal "gauntlets" end in an inverted "V" and extend 1/2 to 3/4 of the way up the hock. Lower or higher gauntlets are acceptable but should not go beyond the hock. It is important that the gloves are equally long and show a symmetry of white, on either the two front feet and two hind feet; or even better on all four feet. | |
| Tail | Of medium length, forming a plume. | |
| Coat | Structure | Long to semi-long. According to the actual part of the body: short on the face, gradually growing longer on the cheeks to a full frill, long on the back and the flanks. Silky texture. Little undercoat. |
| Color | Show all the characteristics known from the colourpointed cats, but all 4 feet are white (gloves). The points include the face, ears, legs, tail and genitals. The points shall be even and in good sontrast to the body colour. The body colour and colour of the tummy is very pale egg shell; the back is golden beige in all varieties. Only in adult cats the colour of the points and the body colour are fully developed. | |
| Points | The Birman breed shows a special morphology which is unique for the breed. | |
| Faults | Coat | Pure white or coloured patches on the chest or the stomach. |
| Fautls precluding the certificate | Nose | Incompletely coloured nose leather |
| Legs | * Creeping up of the white on the side or reverse sides of the gloves of front and/or hind feet. (known as "runners") * Absence of "gauntlets" on the hind feet |
|
| Coat | * A white patching in the coloured areas or reverse. * A white patch on the genitals. |
|
| Scale of points | Points | |
| Total | 100 | |
| Head | General shape, cheeks, nose, jaws and teeth, forehead, chin, placement and shape of the ears. | 20 |
| Eyes | Color and shape | 5 |
| Body | Shape, size, bone structure, legs and shape of paws | 20 |
| Tail | Lenghts and shape | 10 |
| Color | Body colour and points, quality and texture, length | 20 |
| Gloves | On the front feet | 5 |
| On the hind feet | 5 | |
| Gauntlets | 5 | |
| Uniformity and symmetry of gauntlets and gloves | 5 | |
| Condition | 5 | |
