Chapter XII: Silver or Chinchilla Persians (2)

1. Colour of Coat.—Palest silver, lavender tint preferred, nearly
white at roots. No dark stripes, blotches, or brown tint.
Darker tips to the long-hairs give the coat an appearance of
being lightly peppered with a darker shade. The whole
appearance of the cat to be very pale 30
2. Coat.—Long and thick 20
3. Texture of Coat.—Fine and soft 10
4. Tufts of hair inside and round the ears and between the toes 10
5. Head.—Broad and round; forehead wide, ears small and set low,
nose short 25
6. Shape.—Back level, not too short; legs short, paws round; brush
short, wide, and carried low 20
7. Eyes.—Large, luminous, and green in colour (if green mixed with
yellow, 5 points only allowed) 10

To breeders of silver Persian cats an article by Mrs. Neild will be
valuable and instructive. Mrs. Neild has made, so to speak, a
speciality of silvers, and owns two noted silver studs—the
“Absent-minded Beggar” and “Lord Hampton.” There are always some good
silver queens, and very frequently some choice kits, disporting
themselves in the well-arranged catteries at Hart Hill, Bowdon, where
Mrs. Neild has a kennel of Borzois and a cattery of silvers.

This is what Mrs. Neild says regarding the breeding and rearing of
silver Persian cats:—

“Perhaps of the many varieties Persian cats—and, indeed, they are a
goodly number as they now appear on our show catalogues and
schedules—the silvers may claim their owners to be the most sporting
of cat breeders. Certainly, to breed successfully it is essential that
one should possess the not too common virtues of unlimited patience
and perseverance. Also experience is necessary.

“A common occurrence among even old hands is to assign a kitten—one of
a new litter under inspection, as being of ‘little good except as a
pet’—‘to be sold at a small sum to a good home,’ and a few weeks later
discover this same kitten to be the pick of the litter. In short, the
old, old story of the ugly duckling incessantly repeats itself in our
catteries, certainly in those devoted to silver cats. Therefore I
suspect fanciers who have succeeded (all honour to the few!) and those
who mean to succeed in breeding silver Persian cats of possessing a
larger stock of patience and of having acquired a larger experience
than their brothers and sisters whose love has turned towards the
blue, black, or white pussies.

“SILVER BLOSSOM’S” TWO BUDS.

(_Photo: Mrs. G. H. Walker._)
]

“With these last three one may be tolerably sure—always taking for
granted some knowledge—of fairly pure coat colour, and at a very early
age the best kittens of the litter may be picked out—those having
greatest breadth of skull, smallest ears, etc. But the silver litters
are a veritable surprise packet, and remain so for an irritatingly
long period. Personally, I have found that those kittens which, when
born, have very pale—almost white—unbarred faces and fore legs are
ultimately those which grow palest. I take no notice of the colour of
the coat on the back, sides, hind legs, or tail, even if striped, as
frequently happens, for all these markings generally vanish _if_—as I
before said—the face and fore legs are unbarred. I must, however, own
to one kitten who was born jet black. She was by Mrs. Champion’s ‘Lord
Argent’ and a shaded silver queen of my own breeding. When a month old
I dubbed her a very bad smoke; at three months she was coatless—a most
indecent little person, having shed her coat more completely than I
had ever seen in cat or kitten. When, after a provokingly long period,
she again consented to appear clothed, her dress was of palest silver,
unadorned by any markings except a very faint smudge on her forehead
and—which, alas, spoilt her for show—a darker tinge on her broken
tail. How is it that to our _best_ some accident _always_ happens? So,
as I could not exhibit her, I sold her to a delightful home in the
North of England, and her enthusiastic owner wrote to me a few weeks
since that her big babies by ‘Lord Hampton’ were as pale as the
mother, who herself grew steadily of a fainter silver.

“WILD TOM.”

SILVER, BRED BY MRS. G. H. WALKER.
(_Photo: Mrs. G. H. Walker._)
]

“Unfortunately, silvers more than any other breed of cats lack bone,
caused, of course, by the unavoidable in-breeding practised when this
variety of cat was first introduced and so enthusiastically welcomed,
and when but one or two fanciers owned a cat of such shade. Another
article on this subject, by a lady who may really claim to have
established this breed, will explain to the reader more than it is in
my power or province to declare.

“To go back to the subject of our small silvers, in-bred to delicacy.
We should now remember how many good sires, absolutely unrelated and
within easy reach, are placed at our disposal. Therefore, surely there
can be no possible excuse if in a comparatively short time we do not
manage to own silvers big in bone and limb, and owning—ah! happy
accompaniment—greater constitutional vigour.

“We are, I believe, too apt, if owning a pale queen, to mate her with
the palest known stud, disregarding other very important
considerations in the all-absorbing wish to breed the wonderful ‘dirty
white’ king or queen of silvers. Sometimes this atom (verily so) of
perfection does make its appearance, and is enthusiastically greeted.
But what of the mite itself? A tiny, sickly scrap of a kitten,
constantly ailing, refusing to grow or to weigh, except at a rate of
less than half the average blue kitten of its own age. But
extraordinary care keeps the mite alive until one day some chance
draught or a maid’s carelessness ends our careful nursing, and the
poor owner of that ‘lovely dirty white kit’ at last realises that this
other good-bye means it may be wiser to mate that same pale queen to
the strongest, hardiest, biggest-boned stud possible to be found among
our silver studs, even if he is rather barred.

“Now mark. From the result of this mating, keep the best of the female
kittens and marry her—if possible, not before she is eighteen (at any
rate, fifteen) months old—to a stud unrelated, sturdy, of undoubtedly
splendid health, for preference paler than herself, and boasting grand
head and the essential tiny ears and short nose. Then you may dream
your dreams with a chance of their resulting in a golden reality.

“If breeders would but spend rather more thought when they select
husbands for their pussies, they would be indeed repaid. I am not
speaking, of course, to the fortunate few who have won their laurels,
and of whom I would I might learn; although I rather suspect their
secret of success is but the result of continual study, coupled with
extreme care. Would not an enormous increase of size and weight soon
become evident in the occupants of our catteries if, when a queen was
about to be mated, her owner would first carefully study the list of
points provided by the Silver and Smoke Persian Cat Society
(previously quoted in this work), jotting down those good qualities to
which she believes her queen may lay claim, and then selecting that
sire possessing the points most wanting in her own cat—of course,
never forgetting relationship? The old rule about in-breeding is ‘once
in, twice out,’ as all old fanciers know; but where silver Persian
cats are in question, I would most strongly urge that this adage be
disregarded, and, as a rule, avoid in-breeding entirely until a
stronger race of silver cats is established, cats with frames equal to
those big blue beauties we see at our shows. I think that in a
comparatively short time—of course, always avoiding tabby blood,
breeding _chiefly_ for bone—our silver cats may be very different to
those of to-day, those who own too fairylike limbs to be beautiful.

“A word about our famous sires—and, by the way, we may congratulate
ourselves on having within reach so many beauties. Often I have
letters asking for advice as to which stud such and such a queen shall
visit; and, in addition to the above suggestions, I would remind the
owner that length of journey should be taken into consideration, and
the fact that if the chosen sire is extremely popular it may be that a
better result may be gained if the queen is sent to one not so much in
request, especially if the owner of the stud cat has not been warned
before of the visit of your pussie. However, most owners of stud cats
are extremely careful in limiting the number of visitors, and few
object to keeping Sir Thomas free for a week beforehand if given due
notice.

“Do let me urge all whom it may concern to keep Madame in close
confinement for several days after her return home. Indeed, in the
interest of the owner of both stud and queen this is of vast
importance, and many a disappointment is due to this seemingly small
neglect. Puss does not always return as one would wish, however great
the care given her whilst away on her holiday, and may take her
matrimonial affairs into her own paws with results most unsatisfactory
to everyone but herself. When the kits arrive, do not—if you have
reason to expect valuable kittens as a result of the mating—leave more
than two or three with the mother (I am, of course, speaking of silver
kittens) for reasons I shall directly state. By far the best plan is
to procure (some time before the birth of both litters) a good big
English cat as foster mother, one known to have brought up a previous
litter—_not_ an old cat. The usual method of substituting her foster
for her own babies is to take away the mother cat for a few minutes—of
course, out of sight—and, removing one of her own kittens, rub the
little silver baby with the hay of the nest and against the other
kittens so that the strange smell—sense of all others so wonderfully
developed in animals—may not raise suspicion in the foster mother.
Then the next day remove one or two more.

“May I, at this point, plead that the little kittens taken from their
mother for your benefit should not be drowned? If they must be sent
along the silent road to the Quiet City, let it be done mercifully and
by chloroform. Such wee things may rest easily in a big biscuit box,
the lids of which usually close tightly, and about 1 oz. of chloroform
poured on a piece of flannel or sponge laid on a small saucer by their
side will send them painlessly to sleep.

“The reason I strongly advise that the English foster should nurse the
_best_ of the litter is but an echo of the old cry, ‘Want of bone.’
Fed by the sturdy British puss, the delicate tiny balls of silver
fluff will gain greater strength, and be mothered for a longer period
than would be possible with their real parent.

“FUR AND FEATHER.”

(_Photo: Mrs. S. F. Clarke_)
]

“It is necessary to remember that, although the foster mother needs
extra food when nursing—just as in the case of the silver mother—more
caution must be exercised when beginning the more liberal diet, for
very probably, if this is forgotten, a liver attack—which will also
affect the precious kits—will be the result of her unusually liberal
fare. Remember, also, to inquire of the owner of your foster as to how
she has been fed. With this knowledge, common sense and careful
watching of cat and kittens will quickly show if it would be better to
increase or diminish her meals either in quantity or quality. It is of
enormous value to bespeak the foster mother, if possible, four or five
weeks before the birth of the kittens, for then it will not hurt to
give her what is almost certain to be necessary—_i.e._ a worm powder.

“I always allow my mother pussies as much milk as they like (although,
as a rule, my cats drink water), but it should be boiled, and one
tablespoonful of lime-water added to each half-pint. When I once urged
this care of the foster mother to a friend who owned two kittens she
was extremely anxious to rear, I was laughed to scorn, and assured
that such fussiness about a strong English cat was more than foolish.
Yet I would remind breeders who are inclined to agree with the above
opinion that on the perfect health of your head nurse rests the future
of your much-prized litter. On her depends their growth, their first
chance of throwing off their natural delicacy. Mr. House, in one of
his articles lately published in _Fur and Feather_, advises that
kittens should be kept with and fed by their mothers as long as
sixteen weeks. In my humble opinion this is too great a strain on any
Persian cat, but there may be great wisdom in keeping the kits with
the mother or foster for as long as it is possible without overtaxing
the cat. The same authority speaks of a relay of foster mothers. I
confess this puzzles me, for I should imagine that the food supplied
by the second mother would be too weak in quality (as Nature provides
it shall be of different quality to suit the age of all and every kind
of baby) for the big kits after that of the first foster, and I should
have also imagined the second foster would refuse to nurse kits so
much bigger than those she had just left.

“When my kits are four weeks old I give them raw lean beef—scraped,
not chopped—beginning with half a teaspoonful daily, then the same
quantity twice daily, then three times a day; and at the same time
teach them to lap, using a plate, which, being shallower than a
saucer, causes less choking and fear to the little things.”

Mrs. G. H. Walker, of Woodheys Park, is the chief supporter of the
Northern Counties Cat Club, and is a member of the National Cat Club
Committee. For several years she has been a well-known breeder and
exhibitor of silver Persians, and has a most excellently planned
cattery, which I had the pleasure of seeing when on a visit to
Woodheys Grange. Mrs. Walker kindly had some views taken, specially
for reproduction in these pages. I consider the arrangements for the
pussies’ comfort and well-being as complete as it is possible to make
them. The floors of the outside catteries, which face south, are
cemented, so that they can be washed over every day. The roofs are
boarded, and then covered with galvanised iron, so that all the rain
runs away easily. The spacious apartments are fitted with benches and
ledges, and trunks of trees and leafy shrubs are planted in the ground
for the cats’ special amusement and exercise. The kennels—which, for
the purpose of photographing them have been placed outside—are the
cosy sleeping dens of the pussies. There is a maid in attendance on
these fortunate cats, and the man who looks after the kennels of dogs
also gives a helping hand.

“THE SILVER LAMBKINS.”

BY “RAHMAN” _ex_ “BEAUTY.”
]

In one of the pictures will be seen a staircase, and this leads to
three charmingly arranged rooms. All the appliances and utensils
connected with the animals are kept in one of these apartments.
Another is set apart for mothers and their families, and a third is
kept in case of illness for an isolation ward. In one of the loose
boxes near at hand the cooking for the pussies is carried on, and
there is a larder specially for the cats’ food. Mrs. Walker devotes
much of her time to looking after her pets, and great has been her
sorrow over the untimely death of some of her treasured pussies. After
one of the large shows, infection crept into her cattery, and worked
most cruel havoc. Such losses as Mrs. Walker sustained were enough to
damp the ardour of the most enthusiastic cat lover and fancier; but
the lady of Woodheys Grange bravely faced the situation, and after a
period of sad reflection she once again resumed her hobby with renewed
interest. At the Northern Counties Cat Show at Manchester in 1902 Mrs.
Walker exhibited a really wonderful silver kitten. I say wonderful,
for this youngster, bred from the owner’s “Woodheys Fitzroy” and
“Countess,” was the most unshaded and unmarked specimen of a silver I
have ever seen. This unique specimen will be watched with interest by
silver fanciers. May his shadings ever grow less!

The average number of inmates of this cattery is about thirty, but at
one period of Mrs. G. H. Walker’s catty career the silver fever ran
high, and there were sixty-three cats and kits within the precincts of
the spacious and luxurious catteries of Woodheys Grange.

Mrs. Martin, of High Wycombe, who has often acted as judge, has been a
most successful breeder of silvers, and the progeny by “St. Anthony,”
her noted sire, have distinguished themselves by winning over one
hundred prizes. “St. Anthony” has retired into private life, but he
will always be remembered if only by his two children “Silver Dove”
and “Fascination.” Mrs. Martin says, “I am all in favour of the male
being older than the queen in breeding silvers; also select a
good-coated stud cat, short in the legs. Eyes are a worry just now. Of
course, I like green best, but if a cat is good in all points but
colour of eye, this should not upset an award. I find that if a kitten
is born almost self silver, it will develop into an indifferent silver
tabby later; but if the body is dark, and head and legs light and
clear, you may hope for a very unmarked specimen in due time.”

Mrs. Wellbye’s silver cats “Dossie,” “Silver Lotus,” and “Veronica”
were at one time well-known winners, and for length of coat and beauty
of eye have seldom been surpassed. Mrs. Wellbye is a most astute judge
of silvers, and her remarks on this her favourite breed will be read
with interest:—

“This handsome variety of the Persian ranks high in the estimation of
cat lovers; indeed, its ardent admirers consider it the _crème de la
crème_ of the cat world. And why not? Surely there is nothing to
compare with a lovely young chinchilla Persian in full coat. Its very
daintiness and seeming pride in itself is quite charming. One is
reminded of a pretty child dressed out in its party frock, for puss
appears to know it is well dressed and desirous to show her charms to
the best advantage. She dances, pirouettes, and throws herself into
the most graceful and entrancing attitudes, until we feel in sympathy
with the Egyptians of old and are willing to fall down and worship our
adorable pets. We all love beauty, but to those who love cats there is
something beyond even beauty, for only they who keep and care and
treat them well know the comfort these little creatures are, and the
happiness they can bestow by their sweet caressing ways, perhaps more
especially to those whose hearts are starved of human love, but still
to all whose sympathies are wide of the varieties of silver cats. I
will first treat of the chinchilla.

“The Crystal Palace show of 1895 or 1896 was the first I remember with
a class for chinchillas; previous to that, I believe, they were not
recognised as such, but were shown with the silver tabbies. Strictly
speaking, the name chinchilla is a misnomer as applied to these cats.
The soft grey coat of the little animal called the chinchilla, whose
lovely fur is so much prized as an article of ladies’ dress, differs
diametrically from the cat so-called.

“The fur of the chinchilla is dark at the roots, and shades quite pale
grey at the tips. The cat’s fur, on the contrary, is absolutely pale
grey, almost white at the roots, but tipped with black at the outer
edges.

“The points as laid down by the Silver Society are as follow:
‘Chinchillas should be as pale and unmarked silver as it is possible
to breed them.’

“The aim of the breeder of this variety, therefore, is to obtain a cat
with none of the markings of the original stock (the silver tabby),
the dark tippings to be slight and faint.

BROWN TABBY AND SILVER PERSIANS.

(_From a Painting by Miss F. Marks._)
]

“Breeders have found this ideal most difficult to obtain; although
some kittens are born pale all over, with no markings, in a few
weeks—or maybe months—the hope of the family is no more, for the
lighter the kitten the more delicate. ‘Whom the gods love, die young.’
Or, again, if the cherished one lives over its baby troubles, and
starts on the change from its first, or kitten coat, to the second
coat, too often do the markings appear, the shadings get darker, or
fine black hairs are seen amongst the pale grey. Some of the best
chinchilla kittens have been born quite dark, and with tiny stripes
all over. At a month or six weeks these marks have disappeared, and
later the coat has become an even silver.

“The breeder must not even then build high hopes. Again change may
occur. There is no cat which varies so much; it is quite
chameleon-like in this respect.

“A few years ago the Cat Club adopted the name of ‘self silver’ as
applied to the chinchilla—another misnomer, as a self silver should
have no tippings or shadings, and the silver cat has not been bred
that had fur the same shade throughout from roots to tips.

“The slight dark edging to the fur constitutes to most people the
charm in these silvers. Sometimes it is almost imperceptible to the
casual observer; or when the cat is in full coat (the fur being from
three to seven inches long on the tail—sometimes as much as nine
inches) the tiny fleckings are lost in wavy, tossing, billowy coat.
But let the coat become damp, however slightly, it will be seen that
the dark edges are clearly in evidence.

“JUPITER DUVALS.”

OWNED AND BRED BY MISS S. MEESON.
(_Photo: F. Parsons, Southend-on-Sea._)
]

“As, however, breeders could not always produce the pale shade of
silver, the litters, even with the most careful mating, being
generally assorted in good, bad, and indifferent so far as colour was
concerned, many fine cats—dark silvers—had no place assigned to them.

“It was then suggested that a class should be given at the shows to be
called ‘shaded silver,’ the points according to the Silver Society
being as follows:—

“‘Shaded silvers should be defined as pale, clear silver, shaded on
face, legs, and back, but having as few tabby markings as possible.’

“The dark or shaded silvers, it was understood, should have pale,
clear under-coats; but instead of the fleckings of the self silver
(so-called), the dark edges ran a considerable way into the fur. The
shaded silver is a handsome cat, but too often much marked on the face
and barred on the legs, a defect most difficult to overcome. Many cat
fanciers describe the shaded silver as a ‘spoilt tabby.’

THE ELDER MISS BLOSSOM.

SILVER, OWNED BY MISS HORSMAN.
]

“The third in the group of silvers is the silver tabby. The points are
here stated:—

“‘The colour of a silver tabby should be a pale, clear silver, with
distinct black markings.’

“This variety ought in equity to have been mentioned first, as it is
the original stock, but it has been overshadowed by the superior
attractions of the chinchilla. (Silver tabby enthusiasts will perhaps
pardon this eulogy of my favourite breed.) There is not the slightest
doubt this handsome cat, the silver tabby, has suffered materially
from the craze for the newer variety, and consequently the type has
not been kept pure. They have been mated over and over again with cats
of less markings in the hope of breeding chinchillas, until at the
present day there are very few silver tabbies true to type.

“The position of the silver tabby in the feline scale is very
peculiar. As a Persian it is, of course, necessary that its coat
should be long and fine, whilst as a tabby it is desirable that the
markings should show up to advantage. How to reconcile the two is the
puzzle, for the longer the coat the less the markings are evident, as
the stripes are merged in the flowing coat, so that we sometimes see
at the cat shows exhibits woefully out of coat placed in the first
rank, as the markings are much more distinct. It follows, then, in
this variety of the silver, a long coat is distinctly a disadvantage
when competing at shows.

“Having now obtained three types for silvers, and the Cat Club willing
to give classes for them at the great shows held in St. Stephen’s
Hall, Westminster, the outcome was looked forward to with much
interest. But it was one thing to get four types, and quite another
matter to get silver breeders to understand the fine distinction;
consequently, the cats were entered in self silver, shaded silver, and
silver tabby classes indiscriminately. The result was, of course,
muddle and confusion, many exhibitors having the mortification of
finding ‘Wrong Class’ on the cat pens.

“At a recent show held at Westminster under the auspices of the Cat
Club, the judge was asked by the Honorary Secretary to go round the
classes first, and if any exhibit was wrongly placed to re-classify
before judging. This worked satisfactorily so far as disqualification
was concerned.

“At this show, however, the judge was confronted with another
difficulty, it being found that most of the cats in the classes for
shaded silver had deviated materially from the standard of points laid
down by the Silver Society. Instead of the clear, pale under-coat, the
fur was a dark grey right down to the skin. The majority of these cats
were quite dark, and, rightly speaking, were not silvers—that is, if
one bears in mind the metal so named. It is difficult to say in what
class they could be placed, unless a new class was created, to be
called ‘clouded or oxydised silver.’ If we go on to these subdivisions
we shall not know where to stop. Self silver or chinchilla, shaded
silver, clouded silver, and silver tabby—a truly appalling problem for
the bewildered judge to decide, for the majority of exhibitors would
not appreciate the variations.

“It may come to this eventually, but at the present time the threefold
classification leads to much confusion, for as nearly—or very
nearly—all silver cats are more or less tabby marked, so will
exhibitors be in doubt as to the class to which their cats rightly
belong.

“It is a question if the introduction of the shaded class at shows has
not done more harm than good, for as previously we saw very few of the
dark silvers—it not being worth breeding the variety when there was no
class in which to show them—so now the tendency of exhibits, as anyone
who attends shows can see, is to run to darkness rather than light;
and breeding for colour, purity of colour, and absence of markings has
received a set-back, for with some judges colour is nothing, and
prizes will be showered upon a ‘spoilt tabby’ if it happens to have,
perhaps, a broader head or a bulkier body—good points, as everyone
will allow, but points which the common or garden cat may possess; and
we do not pit our dainty chinchillas against all and sundry.

“Without wishing in any way to detract from the good qualities which
the more plebeian branches of the cat tribe undoubtedly possess, it is
impossible not to award the palm for grace and beauty to the highly
bred aristocratic chinchilla. Coal and iron are useful, but we give
our admiration to diamonds and pearls.”

“DOLLY DAYDREAM.”

(_Photo: E. Landor, Ealing._)
]

Before closing the chapter on silvers, I will allude to the Cat Club
show held at St. Stephen’s Hall, Westminster Aquarium, in January,
1903. On this occasion there was quite a record entry in the male
silver class, which contained twenty-one cats. The list was headed by
Mr. J. F. Dewar’s handsome “Father O’Flynn II.” Many well-known
prize-winners had to be content with a V.H.C. card in this class of
quantity and quality. The females numbered eighteen, and here again a
noted winner was awarded the highest honours. Miss Chamberlayne’s “Cap
and Bells” is very pale and pure in colour, and carries a soft, silky
coat. In the silver kitten class the sexes were not divided, and Miss
Ford’s lovely kittens scored first and third. A sweeter face and
rounder head than that possessed by “Silver Button,” the first
prize-winner, would be difficult to find, and Miss Ford may be
congratulated on having bred such a gem. Mr. T. B. Mason judged the
silver classes at this show, and he doubtless experienced some
difficulty in testing the colour of the exhibits in the bad light of
St. Stephen’s Hall, more especially as on the opening day of the show
a dense fog hung over the city. Another difficulty which must present
itself to our most capable judges is the awarding of specials offered
for silvers and shaded silvers. Perhaps the easiest way out of this
difficulty is to give the shaded silver prizes to the darkest cats;
but all are shaded, even the palest, and therefore some judges might
justify themselves if they awarded both sets of specials to the one
cat. At this show Lady Marcus Beresford offered three special prizes
in each silver cat class for the palest specimens, one of these in the
male class being won by her own handsome “Beetle,” a son of the famous
“Lord Southampton.” The classification for silvers at the specialist
societies’ show at Bath, which followed close after the Westminster
show, was the largest that has ever been given, consisting of classes
for novices and breeders, in addition to the ordinary division and
subdivision for cats and kittens. The sensible plan of a ring class
for neuters _only_ was adopted.

Members of the specialist society for the encouragement of silvers
must on this occasion have felt proud of the liberal classification
and of the long list of handsome special prizes offered for their
favourite breed of long-haired cats.

“I WANT TO GO HOME.”

(_Photo: E. Landor, Ealing._)
]

“THE MARQUIS OF DINGLEY.”

SILVER TABBY, OWNED BY MISS ANDERSON LEAKE.
(_Photo: Cassell & Company, Limited._)
]