BALINESE

A luxuriously silky, svelte little imp with deep blue eyes.In the 1940s, American breeders developed an interested in Siamese kittens born with semilong hair. They did not know if the longer hair was the result of outcrosses with Persians or spontaneous mutation.Until that time, semilonghaired kittens had been considered undesirable. After World War II, Marion Dorsey of California began raising "Longhair Siamese," also called Balinese to reflect their Asian heritage and gracefulness. These Longhair Siamese were shown for the first time in 1955.The C.F.A. and T.I.C.A. recognized the breed in 1970, the F.I.Fe in 1972, and France in 1983.This breed is still uncommon in Europe.

Head:Medium size. Long and triangular with a straight profile. Slightly convex skull (?); flat (n). Flat forehead. Fine muzzle. No nose or whisker break. Long, straight nose. Medium size chin (?).
Eyes:Of medium size, almond shape, and slanting slightly toward the nose. Color: Deep blue.
Body:Long, svelte, oriental body type. Fine bones and firm muscles.
Tail:Very long and thin, tapering to the tip.
Coat:Semilong, silky, fine hair.Longer on the body, belly, and tail (plume). Slight undercoat.All Siamese colors are recognized. Color points must be uniform. Clear contrast between point color and body color.Kittens are born solid white. The coat does not take on its adult coloring until one year of age.The C.F.A. recognizes only four varieties:Seal Point: Deep seal brown pointsBlue Point: Deep blue pointsChocolate Point: Milk chocolate pointsLilac Point: Frosty gray pointsCats of other colors are classified as Javanese in the United States.In France, no distinction is made between the Balinese and the Javanese.