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The Birman cat breed is said to have originated in western Burma. Birman cats were first sent to France in 1919.

Birman cats have been bred as companions for many generations. They are a very loving cat breed and usually take a genuine interest in whatever their owners are doing.

All Birman kittens are born white and start developing their colors at the age of one week. The first parts to develop are the points of ears, nose and tail. The true color is complete at two years old and after a wintry season.

The following physical description is given as tips to help you decide if this cat breed is right for you, your family and lifestyle.

Physical Appearance

These cats are colorpointed, which means they have a darker color on their tail, legs, ears and face like the Siamese and Himalyan

Birmans are accepted by CFA in the colors of seal point, chocolate point, blue point and lilac point, and a variety of lynx point, parti-color point and red factor solid-color point

The unique white color of the feet and up the back of the hind legs are referred to as gloves and laces

Head: includes a strong, broad, rounded skull with a medium-length Roman nose, full cheeks, heavy jaw, and a well-developed chin

Eyes are almost round and blue, set well apart with the outer corners tilted slightly upward

The body should be long and stocky with medium-length heavy legs, large, round paw and a medium-length tail

Females are generally more petite than males, but also have substantial boning in proportion to their size

The standare for Birman cats calls for penalizing of delicate bone structure

They have long silky hair that is fine and does not mat

The following personality description is given as tips to help you decide if this cat breed is right for you, your family and lifestyle.

Personality

These cats are often referred to as middle of the road cats

They do not tend to be as active as short-haired breeds such as the Abyssinians and are not as laid back as other long-haired breeds such as the Persian

They are loving who often prefer to sit beside their human, or lay in their human's lap

Generally a soft spoken cat

It is typical for a Birman to not like being the only animal in the home and are not very fussy about whether the other animal or animals are Birmans, a mixed cat breed or even a dog

They are social animals by nature and become lonely if their owners are gone most of the day

If you decide to adopt a Birman, it may be wise to have another animal companion to keep them company.

The Birman cats mature slowly and may not reach their ufll growth until the age of 3 years. They are generally healthy cats and live 15 years or more.

Care and Training Tips

Most Birman cat breeders recommend a high-quality dry food. Follow the link in the resource box of this article to find a recommendation. These cats can usually be free feed without becoming overweight. Remember to keep a good supply of clean, fresh water available at all times.

They are very easy to groom. Their single layer coats typically need combed once in a while and there is usually no matting of their fur.

Birman cats typically teach themselves about the litter box as very young kittens and never forget.

Special Medical Conditions

There are no prevalent medical problems for the Birmans, however, you may find some isolated cases of conditions such as cardiomyopathy. Taken as a whole, the Birman breed is a very hearty breed of cat.

Follow the link in the resource box of this article to find pictures and more information about many different breeds of cats.

This article is FREE to publish with the resource box.

Copyright 2008 All Rights Reserved Connie Limon

Written by: Connie Limon. Visit "Adopting Kittens" at http://smalldogs2.com/AdoptingKittens to find a complete online reference for choosing and caring for the perfect kitten, which matches you and your lifestyle. Learn about litter box training at http://smalldogs2.com/LitterBoxTraining