Pedigree Cat Breeds - Seychellois

The Seychellois is a fairly recent breed of cat, bred to resemble the cats thought to be native to the Seychelles.

Over the years there have been a number of reports of a very particular looking cat found in the Seychelles islands. Some travellers have merely mentioned the cats in their travel logs, while others have written romantic and detailed accounts of their sightings. The cats are described as being elegant (of foreign type) with a silky, semi long coat, predominantly white but with splashes of colour and blue eyes.






One explorer described the cats as usually having one of three identified patterns: Septième - white with large patches of colour on the head, legs and body; Huitième - white with smaller patches of colour on the head, legs and flanks; Neuvième - white with small splashes of colour on the head and legs only. All cats have a coloured tail. The patches or splashes on the coat can be of any colour.

In the 1980's British cat breeder Pat Turner set out to recreate the specific appearance of the cats that she had read about. She crossed bi-coloured Persians to Siamese and Orientals to get the look. Although it was a successful project, the breed was slow to catch on. However, a recent interest in bi-coloured Orientals and Siamese, has given the Seychellois a new lease of life.
 

Today all Siamese and Balinese (longhaired Siamese) that are bi-coloured (with white) are generally thought of as Seychellois, which means there are now two varieties: Seychellois Shorthair and Seychellois Longhair. And thus, the modern Seychellois does not have a breed standard of its own but falls into the same category as Siamese, Balinese and Orientals. All of which have the same conformation or 'type', that being fine boned and slender with a long, wedge shaped head and large, wide set ears.

FIFe granted championship status to the Seychellois in 2005 and breeders registering with GCCF are currently working for the same thing. Seychellois shorthair cats are on the increase as quite a few Siamese breeders are producing them but Seychellois Longhairs are still very rare with only a couple of breeders in the UK working on the longhair project.

Profile written by (Click to view profile): Puddha's Palace Oriental and Seychellois Cats

Photos & texts on this page © 2007 - 2009: Puddha's Palace Oriental and Seychellois Cats

*Breed standards may vary according to cat governing body