Type
Often likened to the Maine Coon and the Norwegian Forest Cat; the Siberian Cat is easily distinguished by its more barrel shaped body and its broad, wedge shaped head, giving an overall impression of circles and rounded contours.
The Siberian is a medium to large cat that can take anything up to 5 years to reach full maturity. It's substantial bone structure, broad chest and big paws give a general appearance of substance and strength – definitely a cat with 'heft'.
The Siberian Cat is classed as semi-longhaired and has a distinctive coat that changes with the seasons and is unique to the breed. The topcoat consists of a layer of long waterproof guard hairs beneath which is very dense, soft undercoat. The coat is considerably longer and thicker in winter; complete with a full ruff, fluffy breeches and a big bushy tail to tackle those cold Siberian winds! Other examples of this cat’s wild heritage can be seen in their tufted paw pads and the lynx tips on their ears.
The Siberian Cat comes in a huge variety of colours and patterns. Recognised colours are brown, black (with its dilute version which is blue) red, (with the dilute version of cream) and white. Patterns are solid, tabby, and tortie, Silver gene can be present which also gives smoke and shaded patterns. Colourpointed cats (also referred to as Neva Masquerade) are allowed in all colour varients and all colours and patterns are recognised both with and without white. This gives a total count of 124 possible colour variations!
A Siberian Cat’s bright eyes greatly contribute to its alert, intelligent expression; they are large, slightly oval in shape but with a rounded lower line, set wide apart and slightly oblique. Eye colour ranges from coppers to greens, with blue being permitted only in the Colourpointed varieties.