Siamese

The Siamese is a pedigree cat with a distinctive colourpoint coat: a paler body with darker colour on the face, ears, legs and tail. Siamese have blue almond-shaped eyes, a triangular wedge-shaped head, large wide-set ears and a long, slender, muscular body.

The coat is short, glossy and fine, and lies close to the body with no undercoat. The modern show-style Siamese is especially elongated, with a lean, tubular body, long legs and a very thin tail that tapers to a point.

Point colours include seal (almost black), blue, chocolate, lilac, cinnamon, fawn, red, cream and caramel or apricot. They can come in solid, tabby, tortoiseshell, silver or smoke patterns, and some have white spotting. Siamese are recognised by all major cat registries.

The Siamese was selectively bred from the Wichianmat, a landrace of cat native to Thailand, which was known as Siam before 1939. Wichianmat cats are described and illustrated in the Tamra Maew, or Cat-Book Poems, a set of manuscripts thought to come from the Ayutthaya Kingdom and estimated to date from the 14th to the 18th century.

Siamese reached the West in the late 19th century. In 1878 the first documented Siamese reached the United States. In 1884 the British Consul-General in Bangkok, Edward Blencowe Gould, brought a breeding pair named Pho and Mia to Britain. Their kittens were shown at London's Crystal Palace in 1885. More cats were imported in 1886, and a small number of imports over the following years formed the foundation stock for the breed in Britain. Most Siamese today can be traced back to them.

In Britain these early cats were called the Royal Cat of Siam, and some reports said they had only been kept by Siamese royalty. Research has found no evidence of an organised royal breeding programme.

From the 1950s, breeders and judges favoured an ever more slender look. By the mid-1980s the traditional rounder type had largely disappeared from shows, though a few breeders, particularly in the UK, kept it going. From the 1980s several registries re-established it as a separate breed, the Thai.

Siamese are usually very affectionate and intelligent cats, renowned for their social nature. Many enjoy being with people and are sometimes described as extroverts.

They often bond strongly with a single person. Myrna Milani describes the Siamese as more diurnal, more likely to stay close to their owner and less likely to hunt than other cats.

A UK study of veterinary records found a life expectancy of 11.69 years for the Siamese, compared with 11.74 years for cats overall. Swedish insurance data, which followed cats only to 12.5 years, found that 68% of Siamese and Siamese-derived breeds lived to 10 years or more and 42% to 12.5 years or more. That data showed a higher mortality rate than other breeds, with most deaths caused by tumours, mainly mammary tumours.

Siamese are at higher risk of tumours and gastrointestinal problems, but a lower risk of feline lower urinary tract disease. They are also known to be prone to progressive retinal atrophy, certain skin and hair-loss conditions, and mast cell tumours in young cats. They are one of the more commonly affected breeds for an inherited condition called gangliosidosis 1.

The gene behind the pointed coat also alters the wiring between the eye and brain. Many early Siamese were cross-eyed because of this, but selective breeding has made the trait far less common. Unlike many other blue-eyed white cats, Siamese do not have reduced hearing.

This is general awareness only, not veterinary advice. Always consult a vet about your pet's health.

Why do Siamese cats have dark points?

The pattern comes from a heat-sensitive form of partial albinism. The pigment enzyme only works in the cooler parts of the body, such as the face, ears, legs and tail, so those areas are darker.

Do Siamese kittens have points when they are born?

No. Siamese kittens are cream to white at birth and develop visible points in colder parts of the body over the first few months. By four weeks old the points should show which colour they are.

Why does my Siamese get darker as it gets older?

Because the pigment is temperature-sensitive, Siamese tend to darken with age. Adults living in warm climates generally have lighter coats than those in cool climates.

How long do Siamese cats live?

A UK study of veterinary records found an average life expectancy of 11.69 years, close to the 11.74 years for cats overall. Swedish insurance data found 68% of Siamese and Siamese-derived breeds lived to 10 years or more.

Are Siamese cats deaf?

No. Unlike many other blue-eyed white cats, Siamese do not have reduced hearing ability.

What is the difference between a Siamese and a Thai cat?

The modern Siamese has an elongated, angular build, while the Thai is the traditional, rounder type. Both share the pointed pattern and descend from the same Wichianmat ancestors.

Many early Siamese had a kink in the tail, which was later considered a flaw. Breeders largely removed it by around the 1950s, though it persists among street cats in Thailand.

The Siamese has been used to create many other breeds, including the Oriental Shorthair, Balinese, Himalayan, Havana Brown, Ocicat, Snowshoe and Tonkinese. Others, such as the Ragdoll, carry its colourpoint gene.

Siamese cats star in the Disney film Lady and the Tramp, where the song "We are Siamese if you please" is sung by the cats Si and Am. They also appear in That Darn Cat! and The Incredible Journey.

In 2024, the Siamese ranked 17th out of 54 breeds in popularity with the registry FIFe.