Chartreux Cat

Chartreux Cat – Photo of Spenser ©copyright Helmi Flick please respect copyright

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Introduction

The Chartreux was the chosen cat companion of Charles de Gaulle, a past president of France and the famous author Collette⁵. Farmers liked them too⁶– for their hunting skills.

This is possibly one of the most natural cat breeds of them all because the origins appear to go back to the 16th century (see below) and more importantly the objective of modern breeders is to make sure the breed remains as it has always been. This cat is almost the same as it was hundreds of years ago⁴.

I think that Chartreux cat breeders deserve recognition for their foresight and almost unique actions. The cat fancy usually likes to “improve” cat breeds through selective breeding.

The desire to retain the purity of the breed seems to be a thread running through the history of this breed. This is a great motivator to continue the good work and is probably why the current breeders are dedicated to the preservation of this breed in its original form.

The cat’s naturalness is one of several notable features of this breed. The others are that the Chartreux comes in one color or shades of one color, is a large cat, has a small voice (mute sometimes⁴), a permanent, apparent smile due to its strong jaws and a body that is out of proportion to its legs. The body is semi-cobby and quite substantial but the legs are slim⁴.

This cat breed is in the mid-range in terms of rarity and therefore not one of the rare cat breeds. Although Gloria Stephens describes it as “relatively rare”⁴, which may be true as at 2007 there were around 20 breeders in the USA⁶.

This cat is the native working cat of France⁴ in the same way the American Shorthair is for the Americans (or the Maine Coon). It is said that the only grooming that the Chartreux cat needs is a gentle stroking with your hand. How good is that! The coat is water repellant⁴.

This is another cat breed (with the Birman) where the first letter of the  name of the cat is dictated by convention depending on the date of birth. The letters K, Q, W, X, Y, and Z are ommitted⁶. A cat born in 1997 will have a name beginning with “N” (2002 = “T”⁶). I’ll leave you to check if that adds up and to work out the others!⁵

History

It is said that the name Chartreux is either derived from an association with Carthusian monks (a Roman Catholic Monastic Order founded in 1084) living in the Chartreuse Mountains north of the city of Grenoble, France or the Chartreuse liqueur that the monks are famous for². But, in 1972, the Prior of the monastery apparently denied any connection on the basis that the archives contained no records⁷. The word “Chartreux” means a Carthusian so you can see the connection. 

Another possibility is that the name is derived from a Spanish wool of the same or similar name from the early 18th century⁴.

There is an experimental breed called the Benedictine Cat keeping the same monkish theme. This cat is a long haired Chartreux. Another name for the Chartreux cat is the Carthusian cat.

After World War II, in order to save the breed, the Chartreux cat was crossed with Persians or British Shorthairs¹ and British Blues⁵. It is also said that the outcrosses were with blue longhaired cats. This diluted the pure Chartreux strain.

Apparently Chartreux were shipped back to France from the USA to help preserve the breed in the country of its origin¹.

It is said that many Chartreux were killed for their coats⁴ reflecting the plight of the small wildcats which often suffer the same persecution. They were also killed to eat⁴.

Appearance/Character

This is a late maturing cat⁵. The Chartreux Cat is large (quite substantial in cat fancy parlance – see cat body types) and muscular except it seems their legs which are short and fine boned (the photographs don’t really support this, though). They develop pronounced jowls as they get older⁵.

The Chartreux cat has been described as “primitive” in terms of build⁵.

On the linked page, I discuss cat breed size.

They have the classic blue coat/gold copper coloured eye mix. They are quiet and some (many?) are apparently totally mute. If not mute their meow is different, being high pitched or a chirp (chirping is found in other breeds too e.g. Maine Coon). The British Shorthair has a similarly very quiet voice.

Another particularity is that they are noted to be very good hunters (but not good fighters⁵). This may be in part due to their quick reflexes⁶.

They have all the usual characteristics of a domestic cat if well socialized namely, affectionate, non-aggressive and playful. They are noted for being reserved, calm and devoted to their human companions. They are good climbers (legacy of their hunting skills perhaps). They need plenty of room⁴.

The breed standard includes these selected features:

• broad, round head with small to medium sized ears (small by modern cat fancy standards but normal size in terms of random bred cats).
• the ears are set “close together”. Yet bearing in mind that this cat is  “natural” the position of the ears are normal, I would suggest.
• the coat should be short and thick. It is a thick double, woolly coat. A sheen is desirable⁴.
• large cat – full size is 12-16 lbs
• smiling expression due to the structure of their heads and muzzle⁶.
• rounded head
• robust medium-long body – erect posture
• medium short coat with dense undercoat and protective topcoat
• color: any shade of blue-gray
• rounded open expressive eyes

This is a really nice looking cat for me. Reference to a blue coat means blue-grey. The coat can be any shade of blue-grey from ash coloured to a slate colour³.

The blue-grey colour is the same for the popular colour of the British Shorthair. Although the British Shorthair has other coat colours. There has been some overlap with the Brit SH in the past. Read more here: The health, history and character of the Chartreux cat

Other cat breeds confined to the solid blue coat color are the Korat, Russian Blue and Nebelung. They are all grey cat breeds.

Health

Patellar luxation can occur in this breed. This is a condition in which the knee cap dislocates from its normal position. This can cause the cat to be lame. This in an inherited condition and is therefore controllable by careful breeding – check with the breeder.

Luxating patella is considered hereditary if it is present in both legs — if it only occurs in one leg it is likely to be caused by something else, like an injury…..Amanda Bright

Reported in some: close set incisor teeth (this report probably comes from a cat breeder) and possible Gingivitis (this though is a potential for all domestic cats and should be watched for)¹.

Despite these relatively minor health issues this is a sturdy cat which supports the admirable hunting skills. I expand on health issues on this page.

Breeders

These are taken from independent websites listed in the first 3 pages of a Google search. Most of the Chartreux Cat breeders are listed in directories.

Chanson Bleu Chartreux
The first listed and a nice site. Open and inviting with a phone number and an indication of the location plus pictures all on the home page. This site has the most comprehensive study on the history of the breed as well. Nice one.

This is the only independent site listed in the first 3 pages (as at 2008). I would start here other than the major associations.

Sources other than below:

1. Medical, Genetic & Behavioral Aspects of Purebred Cats – edited by Ross D CLark DVM

2. Cats by Roger Caras 1985 page 108

3. Cat Fanciers Association – Breed Profile

4. Legacy of the Cat by Gloria Stephens and Tetsu

5. The Encyclopedia of the Cat by Dr Bruce Fogle

6. Wikipedia authors

7. The Chartreux Cat by Simonnet, Jean (1990). Translated by Jerome M. Auerbach. Paris: Synchro Company. ISBN 978-2-9506009-0-5.

8. Encyclopedia of Cat Breeds byHelgren, J. Anne (1997). Barron’s Educational Series. ISBN 978-0764150678.

9. The Cornell Book of Cats: A Comprehensive and Authoritative Medical Reference for Every Cat and Kitten – Siegal, Mordecai (1997). The breeds. Chapter 2 in — Second edition. Edited by Mordecai Siegal. Villard: New York. ISBN 978-0-679-44953-9.

Sources:

• Cat fanciers
• Wikipedia
• Online dictionaries
• Cat breeders
• Chanson Blue Chartreux

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