Silver Persian Cats

In the Cat Fancier's Association Silver division, there are chinchilla silvers and shaded silvers as well as the Goldens.

The Chinchilla Silver Persian is an almost pure white cat with a sprinkling of black tipping that gives it a sparkling silver appearance. They are much lighter in all over color than the Shaded Silver Persian. The Chinchilla should have a tiny amount of black tipping on the face and legs.  Shaded silver and chinchilla silvers have red brick noses, and black eye liner around their eyes called "mascara."  The black eye liner is unique to the silver and chinchilla Persian cats.

Silver Persian Cats have the emerald green or blue-green eye color, which is  unique to them and helps to set them apart from all other Persian cat colors.  This unique eye color is especially striking peering out of a white face and slight hues of silver. 

All Colors have:

A round head, well set on a short thick neck. The ears are small and set far apart. The nose is short and snub with a break.

Persian's Coat:

The Persian's coat is "thick" (double coat) with various textures. Some have silky textures, while others have the cotton type coat. There is quite a bit of grooming to do on a long-haired Persian cat. (See grooming section below)

Persian cats come in a great variety of colors. Exquisite silvers are considered the most ethereal of all Persians. The Silvers and Goldens are known as the Rolls Royce of this cat breed. The many colors contributes to this cat breed's popularity, however, the overall beauty and elegance of the Persian is what gives it the regal bearing that is most respected by cat fanciers.

Other distinctive Persian characteristics include:

• full brush tails
• sweet expression
• the thick ruff around the neck give the Persian cat a regal attitude of a lion, however, the temperament is one of being "docile and sweet."
• Persian cats carry an air of respectability
• they prefer a comfortable, quiet and serene life of lounging around indoors. They can adjust to hectic type households as well.

Persian cats are divided into seven color divisions for purposes of show competitions.  The color divisions are:

• Solid Color
• Silver and Golden
• Shaded and Smoke
• Tabby
• Parti-color
• Calico and Bi-color
• Himalayan

There are three different eye colors unique only to the white Persian cats.  These colors are:

• brilliant copper
• deep blue
• combination of one blue and one copper

It has been said that a white cat with two blue eyes is deaf, however, many breeders of this color say this is not true of all.

Regular grooming is essential for the Persian cat. A show cat will obviously require more grooming than a pet.

It is a good idea to have all grooming supplies in place before you get a new Persian kitten. What you will need:

• a gentle slicker brush
• stain remover (either homemade or Eye Envy) I prefer the Eye Envy.
• shaving cream (used for silvers and goldens)
• Q-tips
• sharp blade or bikini razor (used for silvers and goldens)
• hemostats or tweezers
• 5" straight scissors, blunt nose scissors or small curved scissors
• small, soft toothbrush
• tearless shampoo especially for cats
• small square cosmetic pads (used to clean stained areas)

 Keep in mind:

• stay relaxed, if the cat senses you are nervous, he or she will become nervous
• set up a routine and follow the same step each time
• start grooming your kitten as soon as he or she arrives home

Trim the nose and around the eyes to help the eyes to appear larger ad more open.

• apply a small amount of shaving cream to the nose liner area with your finger or a Q-tip
• use a sharp blade or bikini razor to gently shave left to right, right to left (the result should be a small, straight and even line avoid shaving up to high on the nose
• use hemostats or tweezers to gently remove black whiskers from the face, pull one whisker at a time and try to grasp close to the roots without getting other hairs.
• stand from behind and to the side of the Persian cat
• hold the cat's head with one hand, and carefully trim around the eyes, using 5" straight scissors, remove longer strands of hairs and eyelashes (result should be wider and more open appearing eyes)

About Stain Removing:

The best I have found for my silver persians to remove stain around the nose and eyes is the Eye Envy.  Actually, I use the version that does not have to be refrigerated and is labeled for "dogs."  This seems to work best on my silver persians.  I also use their powder, which serves as a make-up and stain remover.