British Shorthair

CFA calls the British Shorthair the modern embodiment of the cats that came to Britain with the Romans. The breed first drew public attention at the Crystal Palace cat shows in London around the turn of the 20th century ^[1]. Both World Wars devastated the gene pool, and breeders brought in Persians and ordinary domestic shorthairs to rebuild it. By the 1950s a blue male called Brynbuboo Little Monarch had become the first Grand Champion of any breed at GCCF, and most Brits today trace back to him ^[1]. The first exports to the US came in the early 1900s, registered at the time as "British Blues" ^[1].

• Body: compact and powerful, with a broad chest and short-to-medium, sturdy legs ^[1].
• Head: round and massive, with round cheeks, a medium-broad nose, large round eyes and medium ears set wide apart ^[1].
• Coat: short, very dense and crisp. Push it the wrong way and it springs back ^[1].
• Colours: blue, black, white, cream, red, chocolate, lilac, several tabby patterns, bicolours, smokes, and silver or golden shaded/chinchilla, among others ^[1].
• Size: males can reach about 17 lb (7.7 kg), and females are smaller. Brits mature slowly and reach full size at around three years ^[1].

Brits share their attention around the whole household rather than picking one favourite person. They like to supervise from close by, follow you from room to room, and wait to be invited onto the sofa ^[1]. They're confident, usually settle in with dogs and other pets, and are patient with children. They may retreat when things get loud, though, and most don't enjoy being carried around ^[1]. They're quiet cats that only occasionally comment on your day ^[1].

• A quick weekly brush or comb keeps shedding under control ^[1].
• Trim nails regularly and clean ears now and then ^[1].
• Brits like to keep all four feet on the floor ^[1], so floor-level play suits them better than towering cat trees.
• Keep your cat at a healthy weight. Across all cats, a non-ideal body weight is linked to shorter lives ^[6].

• Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) has been documented as familial in the breed. A Danish study that screened 329 Brits by echocardiography found 8.5% HCM-positive, with males affected far more often than females. The authors recommend screening, especially for breeding cats ^[5].
• Polycystic kidney disease (PKD): GCCF requires a negative PKD test before a British Shorthair can be placed on its breeding register [3b].
• Blood type: many lines carry type B, so know your cat's blood type in case it ever needs a transfusion ^[1].
• Lifespan: an English study recorded a median age at death of 11.8 years (69 cats), with wide variation ^[4].

Ask breeders for the parents' health-screening results, and talk to your vet about any specific concern.

Don't confuse with…

• British Longhair: the same build with a long coat, registered separately by GCCF ^[3].
• Scottish Fold: its ears fold forward. A Brit's ears are upright, medium-sized and set wide apart ^[1].

• According to CFA, no other breed has more hairs per square inch of coat ^[1].
• Lewis Carroll's grinning Cheshire Cat is presumed to be a tabby British Shorthair ^[1].
• CFA's standard says Brits need a full 3–5 years to mature ^[1].