Oriental Shorthair Cat Picture

A WOW Oriental Shorthair cat picture, by the famous Helmi Flick, of a really stunning purebred cat. Even if you are not that keen on the Oriental Shorthair, you should be impressed by this impressive cat.

Oriental Shorthairs have what are called foreign or oriental body shapes. This simply means slender. They are the opposite if you like to the cobby and rounded Persians and Manx cats.

The Oriental is a sleek, svelte, elegant purebred cat. Jupiter has an amazing presence. He has a great spotted tabby coat as well. The Oriental SH is closely associated with the Siamese cat; not the traditional Siamese but the contemporary Siamese. They are the same shape; the same appearance in fact except the Oriental SH is accepted in all colors and all divisions in the traditional category as opposed to being limited to pointing.

So, you will see a cat of many colors and patterns. The coat is very fine and close to the body; almost painted on. This must lead to easy maintenance.

Whereas the Siamese occurred naturally in Siam (Thailand) for centuries before being exported to the West, the Oriental SH is man made, a hybrid. It seems that breeders liked the slender Siamese but wanted to express themselves more in creating cats with an infinite range of colors and patterns.

Apparently green eyes are preferred and gold eyes are accepted. Jupiter has gold eyes that match his coat enhancing this Oriental Shorthair cat picture.

In the UK, the GCCF, the premier cat association in that group of countries, describe this cat breed as “Oriental” and then break down the breed into eight subdivisions such as bicolor, shaded, self (solid color) and longhair.

On my judgment – and I will submit to better and more experienced judgment – the British Oriental SH is less slightly slender than the North American Oriental SH. This is inline with how the GCCF treats the cobby Persian. It is slightly less extreme in terms of its flat face.

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