Chinchilla (cat) – detailed information from A to Z

A chinchilla is not only a rodent, it is also a breed of cat! There are Scottish, British and Persian chinchillas, with the first considered the most elegant and aristocratic. These cats got their name due to their thick fur, which cannot be matched by the fur of any other breed.

Handsome men captivate at first sight and make you literally fall in love with them. Their home country is Britain, where the first representative of the species appeared at the end of the nineteenth century. She had a silver ombre fur coat. The breeders decided to breed other such individuals. Their unique beauty is remembered for a long time, and they are quite simple to care for, while also having a good character. If you decide to have such a pet, you will never regret it - it will bring you many pleasant moments.

History of chinchillas

The first smoky kitten was born in 1882 in England, as a result of an unplanned mating.
The parents of the baby, who was christened Chinni, were a mongrel cat and a blue Persian cat, who met by chance while walking. The owner of a Persian cat liked the kitten's non-standard color, which gave her the idea to start breeding a new breed. As a result, the already adult Chinni was crossed with a female cat, which had a striped-gray “fur coat”. The offspring born from a smoky mother and a tabby father did not inherit the unusual coat tone. However, a few years later, Chinni’s children began to bring unusual babies of the same chinchilla color, which felinologists around the world still do not stop arguing about. The first appearance of Chinni's descendants at exhibitions occurred in 1894 in London. After some time, American breeders also joined the experiments of Foggy Albion breeders, wishing to increase the palette of cat colors. This is how the golden (apricot) variety of chinchillas arose. Later, it became fashionable not only among Persians to form original colors, but also among representatives of other cat families. As a result, Scottish Folds and British dogs wearing silver and apricot “fur coats” began to appear more and more often at exhibitions.

Long-lived domestic cats

The record holder for life expectancy is a cat named Lucy, who lives in the UK. According to official data, she is 43 years old. Translating to our human age, it turns out that the cat is almost 175 years old. In second place is the cute cat Cream Puff, originally from the USA, who lived a happy life at the age of 38, leaving this world in 2005.

Well, in third place among long-livers among mustachioed fluffy pets is a cat who once lived in Devon (England). He lived happily until his 36th birthday, after which he calmly passed away. By the way, the mentioned animals are Guinness Book record holders in the section of long-livers among domestic cats.

Chinchilla cat standard

Chinchillas are solid and stocky cats. Their image is enhanced by their thick, dense coat, which gives their body a pleasant softness and roundness. Chinchilla cats are noticeably smaller than males, so the latter are always more popular among lovers of textured pets.

The chinchilla color is documented for representatives of three breeds:

Persian;
British (short-haired and long-haired);
Scottish (straight and fold).

Individuals belonging to the Persian clan have longer fur and have super fluffy tails, the hair on which can be twice as long as on the body. The body standard of Persian chinchillas is the same as that of their eastern counterparts, but with minor additions. In particular, the noses of representatives of the first variety are not so short, so the problems of difficulty breathing, characteristic of brachycephalic breeds, are inherent to them to a lesser extent.

British chinchillas are large pets with round heads and chubby cheeks. Their eyes are wide apart, their ears are small with rounded tips, their noses are wide and short. Coat type: semi-long or short. In fact, all representatives of this branch differ from the traditional British only in color. All other characteristics are inherited by pets from their relatives in full. Typically, representatives of this type of chinchilla are silver or golden in color, but the latter option is less common.

Scottish “mix” chinchillas fully fit into the standard of Scottish folds and straights: the same slender legs, muscular body and raised pads on the face. The animals' fur is silver or peach with darkened tips. The hair itself is dense, short, but without a pronounced fit to the body. Acceptable iris colors for Scottish chinchillas are green and blue.

Appearance

British Chinchilla is medium or large in size, there are individuals weighing up to 8 kg. Distinctive features of the breed:

dense build;
round massive head with widely spaced, slanted ears;
powerful skull;
upturned nose;
pronounced outlines of the cheeks;
firm chin;
thick, large tail with a rounded end; the fur on it is usually longer than on the entire body;
strong paws; due to the dense fur coat they appear shorter, which gives the animal a squat appearance;
velvet wool;
thick undercoat.

Girls are significantly smaller than British chinchilla cats. But a sterilized adult can reach 10 kg

It is very important to prevent pets from becoming obese. It is necessary to follow the feeding regime and maintain the physical activity of furry friends

With proper health care, the appearance of the animal will delight the owner.

Eyes

British chinchillas have large, shallow-set eyes of various green colors. It took a while for experts to achieve such a bright emerald hue. Blue and yellow eyes are found in varieties of the British chinchilla breed. A characteristic feature of the animals is the bright black rim of the eyes. It makes the pets look more expressive.

Colors of chinchilla cats

All three varieties of chinchillas have very complex color palettes. In general, we can say that animal fur comes in three basic shades:

silver;
golden;
shaded.

Silver individuals are cats with white fur, which has a barely noticeable “spraying” of dark pigment at the very tip of the hair. No spots or extraneous patterns on the body are allowed, but it is imperative that the chest remain white. There are also veil and shaded varieties of silver color. In the first case, a dark “patina” on the wool creates the effect of a veil or organza, slightly darkening the light background of the “fur coat”.

An interesting fact: kittens with a veil color are born only when both parents are carriers of the same color.

Shaded Silver is a completely white undercoat and guard hair, ⅓ of which is dark in tone. The most intense colors of shaded chinchillas are the head, back, ears and tail. The collar area has a classic silver color, and completely dark hairs can appear on the paws and tail.

The palette of chinchilla veil and shading pigments is quite extensive. In particular, the tips of animal hairs can be colored in the following shades:

chocolate;
cinnamon;
faun;
blue;
lilac;
black.

An important nuance: chinchillas in veil-type “fur coats” with black hair pigmentation should have black eye rims bordered by white hair, as well as black paw pads.

The golden color of chinchillas is not identical to the red one. It's more of a soft apricot shade. Individuals with golden veiled “coats” are pets in which the pigment appears only at the very tip of the hair and only in certain areas. The most pigmented parts of the body are the back, ears, head, and tail. On the sides the “veil” noticeably thins and completely disappears closer to the stomach. The shaded golden coat is colored in dark tones for ⅓ of its length. More intensely pigmented areas are the back and head of the animal. The collar area remains white.

What is important to know when knitting

Each genetic trait, including color, can only appear in pairs, that is, having one color gene from the mother, the other from the father. Let us explain: each cat is a carrier of two color genes, which, when combined with each other, can produce a specific color. For example, WW, where the first W is the white color gene from the mother, and the second W is the white color gene from the father: the kitten also turns out white, that is, WW.

Another important point for proper mating: genes can be dominant and recessive. Dominant genes, when paired with other genes, suppress them and manifest themselves. Recessive genes are suppressed by a stronger dominant gene. If an individual received two dominant or two recessive genes, it is called homozygous; if one gene was recessive and the other dominant, then it is a heterozygous individual.

Now a small example. White is the dominant color, so a white cat can have different sets of genes: two dominant ones, or one dominant white and the other recessive. From such a cat, if the owner does not know its genotype, a variety of kittens can be born, that is, the result will be unpredictable. Therefore, if you are going to breed cats professionally and get the desired colors, and not rely on the will of nature, then you definitely need to know what genes your pets have. This can be calculated from their pedigree, where the ancestors with their colors are indicated, or you can find out experimentally by analyzing the colors of the offspring.

Below are tables that will help you determine the right pair for crossing. The tables are based on the international designations of the felinological association FIFE. One table is given as an example. The fact is that an amateur will not understand anything in these tables, despite the fact that the answers are ready in them. But a professional doesn’t need them, because he finds out who will be born by solving genetic puzzles.

There are dozens of tables similar to this one for different colors.

Decoding tables

DD - the animal does not have the diluent gene, it will not produce kittens of weakened colors (blue, cream, etc.). D is the density gene.

Dd - the animal has a diluent gene, d - a diluted density gene.

The fact is that the color that we ultimately see, for example, blue and black, may simply be the result of different concentrations of pigment in the hair. As a result, if the concentration is lower, the color will be lighter, if higher, it will be darker.

a - blue (blue)
b - chocolate (chocolate)
c - lilac (lilac)
d - red (red)
e - cream (cream)
f - black tortie (tortoiseshell)
g - blue-tortie (blue cream tortoiseshell)
h - chocolate-tortie (chocolate tortoiseshell)
j - lilac-tortie (lilac tortoiseshell)
n - black, seal, sable, ruddy (black, seal, sable, wild)
o - sorrel, cinnamon, (sorrel, cinnamon)
p - beige fawn (fawn, beige)
q - sorrel cinnamon tortoiseshell (cinnamon, red-brown tortoiseshell)
r - beige fawn tortie (fawn, beige tortoiseshell)
s - silver, smoke (silver, smoky)
w - white (white)
x — unregistered (unregistered color)
y - golden (golden)

Eye and coat color codes

01 - van
02 - harlequin
03 - bicolor, two-color (bicolour)
04 – white markings for color points
05 — snowshoe color
09 - little white spots
11 - shaded: 1/4 of the top part of the hair is darkened
12 - veiled (tipped, shell): 1/8 of the upper part of the hair is darkened
21 - tabby (tabby, agouti): striping caused by the agouti factor
22 - marble (blotched, marble tabby)
23 - tiger, mackerel (mackerel, tiger tabby)
24 - spotted tabby
25 - ticked or Abyssinian (ticked)
31 - Burmese
32 - Tonkinese
33 - Himalayan or Siamese (himalayan, siam)
34 - Singaporean (singapura)

61 - blue
62 - yellow, orange, golden (yellow, golden)
63 - odd eyes
64 - green
65 – eye color of Burmese cats (burmese)
66 – eye color of Tonkinese cats (tonkinese)
67 - eye color of Himalayan and Siamese cats (himalayan or siam)

The color of a kitten affects its price

There are colors that, when crossed, can give the maximum number of different colors of future offspring, and there are those that are limited to 1-2 options. The more colors this or that cat or cat can give, the more expensive it will be. Of course, the price also depends on other factors.

Character of a chinchilla cat

Since we are talking about three different breeds, united by a common shade of coat, it is logical to assume that the characters of their representatives will differ. Chinchillas also have individual behavioral characteristics that allow them to stand out from the rest of their fellow tribesmen. In general, it is worth noting that the unique color muted the wild instincts of the breeds, so most cats with silver and golden fur remain very cute and obedient pets.

Persian chinchillas are calm and incredibly gentle creatures. Breeders speak of them as super-patient pets, completely devoid of the arrogance and desire for independence inherent in cats. In fact, the chinchilla Persian is a born “couch dweller” and “cushion crusher”, addicted to comfort and stubbornly unwilling to part with his comfortable addiction. Persochinchillas do not annoy you by meowing. The breed's voice is quiet, almost inaudible, so sometimes it is difficult to understand what exactly the animal wants. Chinchillas are not too happy to be around other, more active pets, but they steadfastly tolerate children's pranks, even if they frankly do not like them.

British chinchilla cats are softer in character than their relatives, who have standard coat tones. They are less independent and willful, and in general they have a calmer temperament. In addition, chinchilla cats are neutral towards stroking and hugging, which the British do not like. You shouldn’t expect any manifestations of aggression or obstinacy from the breed either. By the way, British chinchillas are one of those rare types of pets that feel equally good both close to their owner and completely alone. These teddy bears will easily endure your visit or supermarket, without jumping on cabinets and window sills and without announcing their forced seclusion with annoying meows.

Scottish chinchillas are the same good-natured phlegmatic people as all Scottish dogs. They are a little less persistent in achieving their goals than classic folds and straights, but to a large extent they have inherited the habits of their fellow tribesmen. The breed’s human orientation is also a little more developed, so in ordinary life its representatives are easier to train. The pride characteristic of the Scots is not so pronounced in their descendants, so the animals are ready to dissolve in their owner, performing the function of a living anti-stress toy. The voice of Scottish chinchilla cats is as quiet and creaky as that of other representatives of the breed, but cats use it in the most emergency situations, preferring meaningful silence and philosophical contemplation of the surrounding situation to conversations.

Price

If you decide to buy a kitten, it is better to do it in a large nursery, this way you will definitely protect yourself from deception. In addition, the seller will continue to advise you regarding care and maintenance. The cost depends on the class, there are three in total.

A pet, usually purchased only for the soul, will cost you about thirty thousand rubles. Such individuals do not have a stellar career, but they are just as sweet and attractive as others, they just have deviations from the standard.

Breed, any representative of which can participate in exhibitions, costs approximately fifty thousand.

Show - the cats belonging to it are descendants of medalists and will definitely win awards in various competitions. They have a price of about seventy thousand.

Education and training

Chinchillas need to be raised and trained using the same methods as all cats, but taking into account the individual characteristics of each breed. Mandatory skills and abilities that the animal must master by the age of one year:

the ability to respond to one’s own nickname;
go to the toilet and sharpen your claws in a strictly designated place;
observe the sleeping and feeding schedule, do not wake the owner at night;
sit calmly in the owner's arms;
adequately perceive the need for transportation: traveling in a carrier bag, traveling by car.

Owners of show pets will also have to work on the technique of displaying the animal at an exhibition. Since both the British, the Persians, and the Scottish have a compact body, in the ring they are not exhibited “stretched” like Orientals, but in a grouped state. Preparation for this action is considered to be the development in the cat of the habit of sitting on the laps and hands of the owner, as well as patiently accepting changes in posture at the insistence of the person.

Persian chinchillas are intelligent and highly intelligent cats, grasping basic cat wisdom on the fly. For example, by 1-1.5 months, kittens go to the litter tray quite carefully. Often, if babies live with their mother or another adult cat, they don’t even need to be taught this skill - the furballs independently copy the behavior of the older pet.

Young and even slightly mature chinchillopers retain a lively interest and curiosity in things they see for the first time, so at first you will have to hide indoor plants, toxic detergents and cleaners, as well as the wires of household appliances from the animal. The breed does not produce any destructive actions - chinchillas do not scratch furniture (provided that there is a normal scratching post in the house), they do not rummage through the owner’s plates, and they do not take away piece by piece a newspaper forgotten by the bed.

At the beginning of socialization, it is important for a kitten in a new home to create a peaceful atmosphere, so try to make less noise in the presence of the baby and warn your household about this. Classes should be carried out taking into account the chinchilla’s biorhythms: in the mornings and afternoons, cats are inactive and prefer to take a nap. And of course, keep in mind that not a single pet is capable of multitasking, so if you decide to practice one command, finish what you started without switching to teaching your furry other useful skills.

Chinchillas from the British and Scottish clans are hampered in their studies by natural shyness and timidity. These comrades are generally frightened by everything new and unknown, so during lessons, talk more with your pet in an even, calm voice. A chinchilla doing dirty tricks is such a rare phenomenon that not every owner of the breed manages to see it. If, nevertheless, the pet is drawn to the “scratchers” or the dining table, influence the animal with its own fears. Suddenly clap your hands or secretly splash water on the furry criminal - then you can only watch how the chinchilla coward quickly runs away from the crime scene, turning into a quiet good boy.

Description of the breed

At the end of the 19th century, the first kitten was bred with plush gray fur. The work was assessed as experimental. Then additional research and crossings began, as a result of which the official ancestor of the British chinchilla Silver Lambkin appeared.

Silver Lambkin

Silver participated in numerous exhibitions, where he was a repeated winner and prize-winner. The cat lived for 17 years.

Afterwards, work was carried out on the color of the animals' eyes. Breeders tried to achieve a beautiful emerald color; mixing led to the fact that the fur became worse. Initially, only light gray colors were recognized, which were called silver.

After the ideal silver cat was bred, breeders began to develop other colors. Later, golden chinchillas appeared. At the end of the 20th century, the species earned international recognition and was included in the official list of breeds with its own standard.

Appearance

The British Chinchilla standard corresponds to the characteristics of the British Shorthair cat. The main difference is the wool.

Representatives of the breed have a large body with a wide sternum, a straight back, and well-developed hips. The muscle corset is strong.

Breed standard:

a large rounded head with a wide forehead and a neat rounded muzzle with wide cheekbones and pronounced round cheeks;
the nose is wide, short and straight, the nose mirror is pink or brick colored;
small rounded ears at the ends are spaced widely apart;
the neck is short, thick and muscular;
the eyes are large and round, set shallowly and not very far apart, the color is rich emerald green, but there are blue-eyed and yellow-eyed individuals;
well-developed muscular limbs are proportional, but short, making cats appear squat;
the paws are round, thick and large, with tufts of hair between the toes;
the tail is not very long, thick, with a rounded tip;
weight: male - 5-8 kg, female - 3-4 kg (castrated or sterilized individuals can reach 10-12 kg).

The coat should be dense and dense, the undercoat should be well developed.

Character of the breed

Representatives of the breed do not like to obey. They can become attached to the owner, but they always put themselves in the same place with him. The animal is calm, prefers to observe the situation from the side, and intervenes only if necessary.

Pets are quite capricious, do not like excessive affection, and prefer to spend time alone. They are easy to train and quickly get used to the tray. The British almost never play pranks in the apartment and do not damage furniture or wallpaper.

Cats are characterized by slowness, thoroughness, and patience. The animal will not ask for food at the wrong time and wake up the owner unnecessarily.

Colors

There are three main colors of the breed.

Silver or silver is considered classic and is most common. The ground color is white, and the undercoat is black at the tips. Darkening occurs on the sides, back, and tail. The muzzle (eyes and nose) is outlined with a thin black outline, the paw pads are dark.

The golden color is distinguished by the presence of a golden-colored undercoat. The color is even, without spots, all color transitions are smooth. Shading occurs on the tail and back. The belly and chest are distinguished by a light apricot hue.

The shaded color differs from silver in having a darker undercoat and the presence of large dark spots. There are dark stripes on the paws and tail; there are no pronounced transitions on the body.

Experts also distinguish ticked colors (merle). Chinchillas can have this color mainly in golden color. Such individuals have bright blue or blue eyes, and their character is more impulsive.

Breed health

Cats have strong immunity and rarely get sick; if they are improperly bred or crossed with closely related individuals, genetic abnormalities appear.

The most common diseases:

retinal atrophy;
polycystic kidney disease;
thickening of the wall of the cardiac ventricle.

In the presence of genetic abnormalities and hereditary diseases, individuals are excluded from breeding and are considered defective.

Maintenance and care

Like any decorative pets, chinchillas need to be provided with maximum comfort in the apartment, outside of which they very rarely go. Take care of safety: if you decide to walk your cat on the loggia, do not forget to close the windows or cover open window openings with netting. Chinchillas, British and Scottish dogs are not the most jumping creatures, but sometimes they want to frolic too, so buy your animal at least a small play set. A cozy bed or basket is also necessary - representatives of this clan are comfort-dependent and love soft mattresses.

Hygiene

Owners of Persian chinchillas will have to put in the most effort. Adults should be washed at least once a month, and kittens every two weeks. In addition, you will have to spend time searching for special shampoo and balm. Do you want to preserve the exquisite color of your cat’s “fur coat”? Look for cosmetics formulated for animals with light fur. Systematic scratching also cannot be avoided, so if you don’t want to devote a lot of time to the image of your pet, pay attention to chinchillas from the British and Scottish genus. There is much less fuss with their wool.

British chinchillas are washed only when they are really dirty. In other cases, you can get by with collecting dead hairs with a damp cloth or rubber glove. A little more work with representatives of the semi-longhaired variety of the breed. These comrades will have to be fully combed, and during periods of seasonal molting they will even have to be treated with a furminator.

Care for the eyes and ears of chinchillas of all breeds is standard. The organs of vision are examined daily, the ear funnels are examined once a week. Mucous lumps in the corners of the eyelids are removed with a clean cloth, which can be moistened in cold boiled water or chamomile infusion. Do not forget that both the Persians and the British are characterized by excessive tearfulness. Usually tear tracks leave unsightly marks on the silver fur, so to keep your pet looking perfect, wipe away tears often and buy a special lightening powder for the area around the eyes.

It’s great if you have trained your chinchilla to adequately accept brushing its teeth with a classic brush. If you can't get your pet to use this device, consider alternatives: solid treats that remove plaque, as well as oral lotions like Cliny, which are added to drinking water.

Feeding

There is no consensus on how to properly feed a chinchilla kitten. Most nurseries give preference to high-quality dry food with a high protein content and a minimal percentage of grains. Typically, such varieties are completely balanced, so all that is required from the owner is to measure out the correct portion to the animal, which will satiate, but will not cause excess weight gain. Another advantage of “drying” is that the animals that eat it do not need to brush their teeth, since dry croquettes perfectly “erase” any type of plaque.

Veterinarians continue to “vote” for natural products: lean meat and offal, low-fat fermented milk, fish fillet, vegetables (except legumes and potatoes) and fruits. Bakery products, any food from the master's table and meat delicacies intended for people are strictly prohibited. At the same time, it is important to understand that it is difficult to balance the diet with food alone, so from time to time you will have to grow grass for your pet on the windowsill, buy dietary supplements with taurine, as well as vitamins for the beauty of the coat. By the way, about supplements: at different ages, chinchillas need certain dietary supplements. If kittens need complexes with a large amount of minerals, then older individuals need vitamin D, calcium and phosphorus.

Nutrition

What to feed? Like many others, cats of this variety can eat natural food or prepared food.

When choosing natural food, it is necessary to include dairy products, meat, cereals, and chopped vegetables in your cat’s diet. It is recommended to chop the protein ingredients and put them in boiling water before use. Fermented milk products should be included in the menu 1-2 times a week. It is better to exclude unleavened milk from the diet.

When choosing ready-made mixtures, you should take into account the pet’s physiology: weight, age, health status. The animal should be offered food twice or thrice a day. You need to remember about vitamin and mineral supplements.

Chinchilla health and diseases

The main problems of Persian chinchillas are uncontrollable lacrimation and susceptibility to colds. The latter phenomenon is directly related to the structural features of the animal’s skull. All chinchillopers have been diagnosed with a slight curvature of the nasal septum, due to which even a slight runny nose is more difficult for them than for other cats.

British and Scottish Straight chinchillas do not have genetic diseases. At the same time, representatives of these families easily catch various infections, the salvation from which will be timely vaccination. Cats are also prone to gaining extra pounds, so when creating a diet, you will have to constantly keep your finger on the pulse.

Scottish Fold chinchillas are not as big as Straights. In particular, Scottish Folds exhibit a genetic disease such as osteochondrodysplasia. The disease is provoked by the gene responsible for the drooping shape of the animal’s ear, so it will not be possible to prevent it even if one wants to.

It is important!

It is not advisable to engage in breeding without the appropriate knowledge. The average person does not know what a hook on the tail looks like, how to recognize early dysplasia (which cannot be treated, the animal is disabled for life), undershots, undershots, polydactyly and much more, which makes cats unsuitable for breeding. Especially if it is a Scottish breed (Scots are prone to genetic problems of the musculoskeletal system - MURCOTICS). To do this, we need breeding assessment sheets from an expert from exhibitions to eliminate disqualifying factors for further breeding. You need permission from the club in which the breeding animals must belong. Documents are required for all animals. After all, if there are no documents, then there is no breed, and there are plenty of outbred or phenotypic (only outwardly similar to Scots - MURKOTICS) on the streets and in shelters.

Source

How to choose a kitten

Kittens of corpulent breeds such as British and Scottish cats grow very unevenly. Accordingly, when going to the nursery, calmly accept the fact that two-month-old babies look extremely cute, but six-month-old teenagers have a very unsightly appearance.
When buying a Scottish Fold chinchilla, conduct a thorough inspection of its limbs. If a kitten has too short legs and a tail, these are signs of impending osteochondrodysplasia.
Many chinchilla colors are unstable and can change the saturation of the tone, so if you are afraid to miss, choose cats over the age of 1 year.
Be sure to meet the kittens' mother. If the breeder stubbornly hides the female breeder, this is a reason not to conclude a deal. You should also not take babies who, for some reason, were raised not by the cat, but by the breeder himself - kittens that did not feed on mother's milk in the first month of life have weak immunity and run the risk of contracting an infectious disease.
Assess the condition of the animal's coat. A purebred chinchilla should not have bald spots or areas with sparse hair.

Shaded color

Traditionally, felinologists divide cats of this color into three types: the shade can be silver, golden or red. With it, the hair is colored in a different shade by only one third (unlike ticked hair - there the proportion of color is different, one eighth).

Shaded is also possible in several variants: animals can be shaded golden with a cream undercoat or silver with a snow-white undercoat. Finally, a reddish tint is possible - in this case, the main part of the hair will be bright red, and the undercoat will be white.