Although Helmi has not described this cat as an Oriental Longhair, he has to be judging by his appearance. His name is Jack of Noah’s Ark. The photograph has an ethereal quality, semi-translucent, which I like. It gives Jack a mysterious appearance.
The face is 100% Oriental Shorthair or Longhair; long and thin (and Jack’s muzzle is incredibly ‘square’). This is a face that I don’t really like normally but I think I can make an exception for Jack. He is very handsome. The Siamese family of cats is large: Oriental Shorthair, Oriental Longhair, Siamese and Balinese (long haired Siamese). There are more cat breeds associated with the Siamese such as the Javanese.
“Elegance” appears to have been the guiding light for breeders of this family of cats over the past half century and more. Elegance in breeding translates to a slender, sleek beauty and that includes the face which is noticeably “wedge shaped”. The ears are always extraordinarily large and triangular. Jack’s ears are not extreme by the some standards. The coat appears to be a dilute grey (blue) but no doubt someone will correct me on that.
All the characteristics (except for the longer hair) and discussion topics about this breed apply equally to the Oriental Shorthair, which on is this page of PoC.
One last point: Everything on this page relates to the modern appearance. There is a still a lot of support for the more traditional Siamese/Oriental appearance which is less slender.
Thanks for commenting Laura. Have a nice day.
Thanks Laura.
Thanks Laura for popping by and sharing your thoughts – it is appreciated.
You are so correct on the rare part very few breeders work with the Oriental Longhair. They are hard work every time you outcross to Siamese or OSH you get all shorthairs. These then need to be bred back to more longhairs or LH carriers. Most people don’t have the patience for the 2 or more step process to have cats like Jack. Also of the breeders working in OLH most are doing non solid colors (tabby,tortie, and whites). So Jack is truly a rarity even in the cat fancy.