Korat

Appearance and features:

The Korat is a silver-tipped blue-grey, short-haired breed of domestic cat with a small to medium build and a low percentage of body fat. Its body is semi-cobby, and unusually heavy for its size. It is an intelligent and playful active cat that forms strong bonds with people. Among the Korat’s distinguishing characteristics are its heart-shaped head and large green eyes.

Size:

This is a medium-size cat weighing 5 to 11 pounds.

Family:

The Korat is a natural breed, and one of the oldest stable cat breeds. Originating in Phimai, Thailand, it is named after its province of origin, Nakhon Ratchasima Province (typically called “Korat” by the Thai people). In Thailand, the breed is known as Si sawat, meaning “colour of the sawat seed”. The Korat is known colloquially as the “good luck cat”. Traditionally, they are given in pairs to newlyweds or people who are highly esteemed, for good luck. Until recently, Korats were not sold, but only given as gifts.

Coloring:

The Korat’s unusual colour is actually a silver-tipped blue that appears to shimmer. The Thais refer to this colour as “rain-cloud grey”, and the shimmer as “sea foam”. This cat has a single coat that is short, with roots of a lighter silver blue. The hair shaft colour increases to deeper blue and the tips are silver, especially on the muzzle and toes. This is the only colour accepted for a Korat. The eyes are large and peridot green in an adult cat, but kittens have muddy, amber or golden-green eye coloured eyes which gradually change as they become adults, at two to four years.

Origin:

The probable first allusion to the breed is in the Thai Tamra Maew (The Cat-Book Poems), authored between 1350 and 1767 CE and now in the National Library of Thailand.^[1] However, the illustration of the Korat in this book is not detailed enough to be definitive as to the breed portrayed. In recent years, the Korat was pictured on a postage stamp in Thailand. An example hangs in the city of Korat’s post office.

Korats first appeared in Britain under the name “Blue Siamese” in 1889 and 1896, but these solid blue cats did not conform to the cat show judges’ perception of a Siamese cat, and they disappeared by 1901. One early import, “Dwina”, owned by Russian Blue breeder Mrs. Constance Carew-Cox and mentioned in Frances Simpson’s The Book of the Cat (1903), reputedly produced a large number of “Siamese” kittens; the other, Mrs. B. Spearman’s Blue Siamese male, “Nam Noi”, was disqualified as a Siamese, but accepted in the Russian or Any Other Blue class in which he placed first (WR Hawkins, “Around the Pens”, July 1896). Spearman tried unsuccessfully to import more of these “Blue Siamese”.

Korats first appeared in the US in the 1950s. In 1959, Cedar Glen cattery was the first to import a pair of Korats to the US for breeding: a male named Nara and a female named Darra. In 1966, the Korat was accepted into championship status, through the efforts of a breeder from Maryland.

Temperament:

The Korat has a very different temperament from other Thailand-derived cat breeds. They are intelligent, with a good memory. If they are brought to a place they have never been before, they can return home on their own. They like to rule an area by urination around their home. Male cats will not cross the line but female cats will. If they are living in a big group, they will use a hierarchy system. When fed, the sergeant of the group will eat first and then the other cats follow the hierarchy, though they will let kittens eat first. Female cats will teach their litters to survive and protect themselves by taking some small animal for the kittens to play with for practicing. Korat cats can remember their owner. If they see a stranger they might scare or make a noise, but they will run to their owner and play with them.

Health concerns:

Korats can have a genetic neuromuscular degenerative disease as well as low body fat, which can make them sensitive to anesthesia.

GM1 and GM2 gangliosidosis occur when cats lack particular enzymes that are necessary for proper functioning of the nervous system. Fortunately, tests are available to identify cats that carry the diseases, so the condition is uncommon.