Chantilly Tiffany Cats - Pictures

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Chantilly Tiffany Cats - Breed History

Chantilly/Tiffany cats are very rare. Though the breed has been around for a few decades, it did not gain necessary numbers and is not as popular as some other feline breeds. The history of the Chantilly/Tiffany cat started in New York when J. Robinson bought a pair of longhaired cats names Thomas and Shirley. They were of deep chocolate color and resembled the Burmese cat in appearance. In 1969, the first litter was born. The kittens were all chocolate and lacked characteristics of the Burmese breed. It appeared that the Burmese cat had no relation to the new breed.

J. Robinson started a breeding program that resulted in about 60 kittens produced. The breed was registered as "sable foreign longhairs" by the American Cat Association (ACA). The cats appeared in a show ring and attracted attention of some feline breeders.

After J. Robinson stopped breeding the cats, Sigyn Lund continued developing the new breed. Since judges insisted that the name of the breed was too general and had to be changed, Sigyn Lund named the breed Tiffany. She was a great admirer of theater and called the breed so after the Tiffany Theater. Plus, the name emphasized the elegance and class of the cat.

Lund's breeding program turned out to be a success. However, there was still much confusion as to the origin of the Tiffany cat. Since Lund also bred Burmese cats, the public mistakenly assumed that the Tiffany cat was a longhaired Burmese. This misconception spread and consequently, the Tiffany cat was accepted by the TICA into Burmese section. Tiffany numbers were still small and the ACA decided to drop the breed from recognition. Eventually, the Tiffany cat found itself close to extinction.

Chantilly Tiffany Cats - Saving the Breed

Happily a Tiffany fancier, Tracy Oraas, helped the breed survive. A new breeding program was initiated with the use of European Angoras, Somalis, and some other feline breeds. In 1992, the breed was renamed. This was done to avoid confusion with the Tiffanie breed that was developed in Europe and had not relation to the North America Tiffany. The cats started to be referred to as Chantilly cats. Chantilly/Tiffany cats are still rare yet tend to gain in numbers.

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