Colorpoint Shorthair

Appearance and features:

Colorpoint Shorthairs are a variety of domestic cat. Depending on the cat registry, they may be considered a separate breed of cat, or more often a variant of a pre-existing one, if accepted at all. These cats are distinguished by their conformance to wide range of sixteen different point colors, beyond the four standard Siamese colors. The variety was initially created by crossbreeding Siamese with the American Shorthair – the same mixture that created the Oriental Shorthair, but with different goals. The Colorpoint Shorthair shares the point-coloration pattern with the Siamese, but in the nontraditional colors of red, cream, tortoiseshell, and lynx (tabby) points, and minor variations thereof. In body style, head shape, and other features, it may be intermediate between the two foundation breeds, which show cats leaning toward Siamese traits. Those who favor the Traditional Siamese look may also favor the more moderate-typed Colorpoint Shorthairs that take after their American Shorthair ancestors in shape.

Size:

This is a small to medium-size cat weighing 8 to 12 pounds.

Family:

Colorpoint Shorthair  are a combination between the Siamese, Abyssinian,  the red domestic shorthair, and the American Shorthair.

Coloring:

The Colorpoint Shorthair comes in a variety of point colors. They include: Red Point (also called Flame Point), Cream Point, Cinnamon Point, Fawn Point, Seal Point, Chocolate Point, Blue Point, Lilac Point, Lynx Point (in any of the colors), Tortie Point (in any of the colors), and Torbie Point (in any of the colors). If a solid pointed kitten is born from “Colorpoint Siamese” parents, it is Registered as a “Colorpoint Siamese,” because it is still genetically a Colorpoint.

Origin:

The effort to produce a Siamese-style pointed cat in colors other than the traditional four began in England and in America in the 1940s, carried out by breeders who used foundation crossings between the Siamese, Abyssinian, and the red domestic shorthair. The American Shorthair also became part of the matrix. Initially, the Colorpoint breeders experienced setbacks and failures; in the effort to achieve the proper colors in the proper places, the Siamese body type was often sacrificed. The breeding was further complicated by the difficulty of working with the red coloration because it is a sex-linked color.

Temperament:

The Colorpoint Shorthair is a highly intelligent, playful, and people-friendly breed. They are extremely affectionate and outgoing and enjoy lounging around and playing with people, causing them to also be described as “extroverts”.[2] They can also be very sensitive with nervous temperaments, which do not adapt well to changes of environment or to strangers. Like Siamese, they can be extremely vocal and attention-demanding, feeling a need for human companionship. They have over 100 vocal sounds, much more than regular cats, making very unusual meows. Males are sometimes found to be overly aggressive towards other animals, will fight with other cats whenever they feel their territory has been invaded or just to express dominance.

Health concerns:

Some health issues a Colorpoint Shorthair could encounter:

Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)

Pancreatitis

Glaucoma

Corneal Sequestration

Progressive Retinal Atrophy

FLUTD

Breed Characteristics

Here is a helpful guide for the different characteristics of the breed.  On a Scale of 1-5.  1 being very low level to 5 being high level.

Adaptability
5/5
Energy Level
3/5
Extra Grooming
1/5
Affection Level
5/5
Social Needs
4/5
Shedding
2/5
Kid Friendly
4/5
Friendly to Strangers
4/5
Health Concerns
4/5
Dog Friendly
4/5
Intellegence
4/5
Vocalization
5/5

Hypoallergenic: Yes

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