Everything That You Need to Know About Siamese and Himalayan Cats

Siamese is a breed onto itself. The Siamese cat, called the Meezer or Siameeeezer by people involved in the breed, is the sixth most popular cat in the United States, according to the Cat Fancy Association. They are known for their "dog-like" personalities and for being very people-oriented. The Siamese has a distinct yowl-like meow, and uses it often at great volumes. Siamese cats have points, areas of their bodies that have distinct darker shades of coloring than the rest of their bodies. The areas of shading include the face, ears, tail and all four legs and feet. Their eyes are almond-shaped and deep, captivating blue.

The Himalayan, called a "Himmy" by Himalayan aficionados, is not exactly a breed of cat recognized by the CFA. Rather, the Himmy is a type of Persian cat and falls under the breed standard for the Persian. According to the CFA, the Himalayan is the most popular type of Persian cat. They also come in color points, and the shading is similar to that of a Siamese. They were developed by breeding the Siamese and Persian together to create a long-haired Siamese-looking cat. The Himmy's eyes are round and a vivid shade of blue, similar in color to the Siamese, but not the shape.

The Siamese is a short-haired cat that comes in four recognized color points. The points refer to the coloration on the mask (face), legs, tail and ears. The seal point was the original color and remains the most common type of Siamese. A seal-point Siamese has a warm, cream-colored body with noticeably lighter fur on the tummy and chest. The points are a deep seal-colored shade of brown. Their nose and paw pads are the same brown as the points.

The chocolate point Siamese has an ivory-colored body that is the same shade all over except for the points. The points are a lighter shade of brown, like milk chocolate. The paw pads and nose are pink.

The blue point has a cool bluish-white body that becomes lighter around the belly and chest. The points are a deep shade of blue-gray with the pads and nose the color of slate. The lilac-point is a solid white with pinkish-gray points. The paw pads and nose are pinkish.

The Himmy also has recognized point colors. The Himalayan is a long-haired cat with the pushed-in face of the Persian. They share some of the same color-point traits with their Siamese counterparts. The seal, chocolate, lilac and blue are all just like the Siamese points. But the Himalayan can also be shown in many other points as listed by the CFA: "...red, cream tortie, blue-cream, chocolate-tortie, lilac-cream, seal lynx, blue lynx, red lynx, cream lynx, tortie lynx, blue-cream lynx, chocolate lynx, lilac lynx, chocolate-tortie lynx and lilac-cream lynx." Their bodies are solid shades of fawn, or white. Their points are categorized and there are many color combinations in each category. One major distinction between the Siamese color points and the Himalayan color points is that while the Siamese points must be a solid color, the points on the Himmy can be striped, ticked or splotchy.