Russian Blue cat: Nutrition, character, training and much more about the Russian Blue cat

By Roswitha Berger

What seems to be a modern breeding experiment, is in fact a historically proven natural development. Blue cats were already known in Northern Europe in the 8th century. Seafarers made gloves and capes out of their furs, which have been preserved until today. More gratifying for the cats was that their presence at aristocratic courts and the court of the tsars began to be appreciated in the 19th century. From there, the sensitive and beautiful cats conquered the world.

In the book you will get answers to the questions:

Does the Russian Blue need outdoor access?
What vaccinations are important?
With what do you feed the cats correctly?
How do you arrange the apartment cat-friendly?
Why you should train the animals?
What to consider in the care and nutrition?

The book gives you especially a deep insight into the character and characteristics of the Russian Blue. The reserved animals need love and attention, but they do not demand it loudly.

The contents of the book include:
- History of the breed and hereditary diseases
- Breed characteristics - appearance and character
- Demands of the breed - care, food, activities
- Health and veterinary visits
- Selection of the animal
- Preparation for moving in
- Education and training
- Socialization and tricks
- Dealing with problems
- Extensive bonus chapters

When it comes to pedigreed cats, the exception is the rule. Your cat may also show significantly more temperament or be more outgoing than is typical for the breed. Read the book if you are not sure if a Russian Blue cat is right for you.

It is also a perfect guide for anyone who owns such a cat, because it will help you better understand and raise the animal. In addition, the more than 10 illustrations make the book practical and easy to understand.

• Language: English
• Publisher: XinXii
• Release date: Apr 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9783986469337

Book preview

List of Figures

Image 1:Russian blue cat

Figure 2: Small care equipment

Image 3: Russian Blue cats love running water.

Image 4: A playful cat.

Figure 5: It is important where the syringe is placed.

Figure 6: Funnel collar is sometimes unfortunately necessary.

Figure 7: Reading in the chip is possible at any time.

Figure 8: Transport box

Figure 9: Our bowls as an example,

Image 10: The cat loves our drinking fountain,

Image 11: Our cat under the hood toilet,

Figure 12: The cleaning of the litter box,

Figure 15: Cat tree drawing,

Figure 17: Cat leash

Figure 18: Clicker training

Figure 19: Wrong way of wearing

Figure 20: Taking a urine sample, rgladel

Figure 21: Create scratching opportunities, rgladel

Figure 22: Tick map, rgladel

Figure 23: special flea comb

Background information about the breed

Each breed of cats has characteristic features, which, of course, are different in each animal. But it should know some things about the origin of the breed, the breed standard and the typical character to understand the nature of the Russian Blue.

Origin and breed development

The breed has developed as a natural breed without human intervention in the city of Arkhangelsk, a port city in northern Russia. Long cold winters and short cool summers are characteristic of the city. Probably for this reason, there is no distinctive change between summer and winter coat in the Russian Blue.

So-called blue cats are known since the 8th century in Russia and Scandinavia. Scientists have already found in historical sites gloves and capes of Nordic sailors, which were made of blue cat fur. In the 19th century, cats became very popular at aristocratic courts. In 1901, the Russian Tsar gave Queen Victoria of England a Russian Blue breeding pair. With their slender, elegant build and soft, silky coats, the newcomers differed markedly from the stocky, stocky British cats and soon enjoyed great popularity. The breed was recognized as an independent breed in 1937. Before that, they were considered variants of the Maltese Blue, Foreign Blue or British Shorthair.

However, the breed was almost wiped out during World War II and could only be saved by crossbreeding with Siamese, British Shorthair and European Shorthair. Due to these influences, the coat of the Russian Blue became shorter and denser. The deep emerald green of the eyes is also due to this.

Today there are three recognized breeding branches:

The Siberian/Scandinavian type is slightly smaller, more elegant and has a very dark coat. It is almost anthracite. The ears are further apart than in the English type. The cats of this type are very shy towards strangers.

The American type is medium in size and has a very light, almost silvery coat. The ears are set further apart. This type is sociable and also open-minded towards strangers.

The English type has a strong, medium blue coat color and a narrow, vertical ear position. Cats of this type have a character that lies between the other two types.

In Europe, mixing of these breeding branches takes place. The line can be considered as Central European Russian Blue. Currently, however, there is no recognized breeding standard of this line.

From the USA comes a breeding line with longer hair. It comes from a mating of the black cat Elsa with an unknown male, which looked like a Russian Blue. This resulted in two cats named Siegfried and Brunhilde. Both had long blue-gray fur. It is known that the short-haired Elsa had a long-haired father. The descendants of Siegfried and Brunhild were recognized by TICA as the Nebelung breed. It is not a variant of Russian Blue. Longhaired cats with blue fur are otherwise considered mixed breeds.

Hereditary diseases

The Russian Blue is a long-lived cat breed with a life expectancy of 20 years. It is also largely free of hereditary diseases despite the small gene pool. Occasional cases of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM), Patella Luxation (PL) and Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) occur.

Good breeders exclude by a genetic test that the parents have PKD. Ask to see appropriate documentation to be sure that your Russian Blue does not have the disease.

The tendency to patellar luxation (PL), i.e. dislocation of the kneecap, is polygenetically hereditary. The control of the disease is difficult, because it can happen that the kittens suffer from PL despite negative tested parents. Some cats have only minor symptoms, while others have pain so severe that surgery must be performed. However, you can strengthen the muscles through specific training and the opportunity to climb. This usually prevents the kneecap from popping out.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) also cannot be ruled out with certainty when breeding. If grandparents and parents do not have the disease, it is very unlikely that the heart muscle will thicken in the kittens. Unfortunately, the disease often forms very late and the animals already have offspring when the thickening shows up in the ultrasound. Due to the thickening of the heart muscle, the volume of the heart chamber decreases. Therefore, when it contracts, it pumps less blood than usual into the circulation. The animals become short of breath and weaker. If the disease is detected early via ultrasound, the symptoms can usually be delayed with medication. A genetic test has been available for some time. If both parents of the kittens do not carry the HCM gene, you are on the safe side that the little kittens do not have this predisposition.

Breed characteristics

Features of the coat

The blue-gray coat color is not the only peculiarity of the Russian Blue's coat. It is the only cat breed that has a double coat. The outer coat and the undercoat have the same length. For this reason, the fur stands out and does not lie against the body.

Another special feature are the colorless hair tips, which are called tipping. On these the incident light refracts and the cat gets a silvery shimmer. Especially in the light cats of the American type, the animals look in the sunlight as if they had a coating of chrome.

There are efforts of breeders to have also coat markings, multicolored or other colored cats recognized as Russian Blue, but up to now only unicolored gray cats are recognized. Only at the tail a hardly visible ringing may show up.

Head and physique

Males have a shoulder height of 30 to 40 cm and a weight of 3.5 to 6.5 kg. With a height of 20 to 30 cm and a weight of 2.5 to 4.5 kg,