Persian Cats Keeping And Grooming

As all longhaired cats, Color-Points require for everyday grooming and everyweek baths - it is not rarity in many nurseries. If the animal takes part in the shows, in this case she will need more carefull grooming (depends on type of the hair it can mean bath in a day!). In the majority Persians are combed and washed from the very childhood, that's why they treat these priocedures very calm.

But problem of keeping is that colors are inclined to the black discoloration of the hair. For the adult animals it's undesirable, but excusable, and for the young it's a great defect, after al with time animal can be quite dark.

Black coloration of the hair depends on several factors:

1. First of all, genetics. Inclination to black discoloration of body is hereditary property, which is controled by modifier genes, and two cats of the same color living in one room can have different degree of black discoloration (even kittens of one set).

2. Second, physiological conditions. Result of effect of Siamese color's gene is thermodependent , that's why first of all more cooled parts of kitten's body darken - ears, nose, tail. And in future that fact as far as dark the color of Color-Point's body is, in parvo depends on temperature in the room where he lives: the warmer, the lighter hair is. Optimal temperature is 20 - 28 degree centigrade (by higher temperature animal can start to throw down the hair). In connection with thermodependence of the color it isn't recommended to cut Color-Points, pluck arista (integumentary hairs), alow them to lay on the cold floor and window-sills. Experts think that it is necessary for Points to be bright, and the body to be pale, but long hair prevents the color of Points to develop to the same degree of brightness as Siamese cats have. It happens because even short hair on the Persian's face is longer and hold more warmth than short close-fitting hair of Siamese. The thermodependence of Siamese color's gene can be explained that hair of little Seal-, Blue-, and Torti-Points darkens in the first weeks, and then snow-white undercoat begins to grow, and by 1 month kittens are look like smoke - dark tips of hair and white basis. By 4-5 month hair fully overcolors and becomes light, corresponding to its color.

3. And, of course, good feeding and health have significant meaning. The more healthy animal is, the better condition of his skin is, the lighter his color is. Besides, Color-Points are not recommended to feed with vitamins with sea grass, conducive to the development of more intensive color.