Yes. He's basically a Siamese with the white spotting gene.
The "himalayan" gene is thermorestrictive, which means, the parts of the body that are cooler (the extremities: ears, nose, feet and tail) are darker than the torso. Selective breeding is employed to modify the contrast between warm and cold...or dark and light. Kittens, being smaller and also being more protected from cold, are very light compared to an adult. If you shave a part of the "warmer" body (as, for example, the belly of a female when spayed), the hair tends to grow back darker as the skin was cooler where there was no fur. If you bandage a shaved "cool" body part (a leg, for example), the hair grows back lighter, because the bandage keeps the warmth in.
This gene is also one of the albinistic genes in cats, which is why Siamese cats' eyes glow red instead of yellow-green. It is incompletely dominant to the burmese gene; when you breed a Siamese with a Burmese, you will get, on average, one Siamese, one Burmese, and two Tonkinese.
The white spotting gene is a separate characteristic, and it is the same whether you see it on a Siamese, a black-and-white "tuxedo" cat, or a Japanese Bobtail.
There is a formalised breed called the Snowshoe (http://www.breedlist.com/snowshoe-breeders.html), which actually started from random-bred Siamese-with-white cats. I had one in high school (exactly 10 years older than Harri) called Sgt. Pepper who would have been able to be registered as a Snowshoe except he had too much white spotting (about 45%)!
More than you ever wanted to know about cat genetics can be found here... (http://members.tripod.com/~siamkatze/cca/genetics.html)
Gratuitiously cute, yes, but there seems to be a glint of crazed anarchy in those eyes...truly, a cat to exuberantly wreck a sewing project! Ya gotta love 'em.
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timeasmymeasure
AWWWWWWW!!!
Date: 2004-10-29 05:21 pm (UTC)http://63.195.53.155/~fuzzbuckets/fuzz_004.html
my Himalayan darkened with age, as well.
but Galen looks more Burmese...burmeowse? Whitefooted, anyhow!
=^.^=
Re: AWWWWWWW!!!
Date: 2004-10-29 05:23 pm (UTC)Re: AWWWWWWW!!!
Date: 2004-10-29 06:14 pm (UTC)The "himalayan" gene is thermorestrictive, which means, the parts of the body that are cooler (the extremities: ears, nose, feet and tail) are darker than the torso. Selective breeding is employed to modify the contrast between warm and cold...or dark and light. Kittens, being smaller and also being more protected from cold, are very light compared to an adult. If you shave a part of the "warmer" body (as, for example, the belly of a female when spayed), the hair tends to grow back darker as the skin was cooler where there was no fur. If you bandage a shaved "cool" body part (a leg, for example), the hair grows back lighter, because the bandage keeps the warmth in.
This gene is also one of the albinistic genes in cats, which is why Siamese cats' eyes glow red instead of yellow-green. It is incompletely dominant to the burmese gene; when you breed a Siamese with a Burmese, you will get, on average, one Siamese, one Burmese, and two Tonkinese.
The white spotting gene is a separate characteristic, and it is the same whether you see it on a Siamese, a black-and-white "tuxedo" cat, or a Japanese Bobtail.
There is a formalised breed called the Snowshoe (http://www.breedlist.com/snowshoe-breeders.html), which actually started from random-bred Siamese-with-white cats. I had one in high school (exactly 10 years older than Harri) called Sgt. Pepper who would have been able to be registered as a Snowshoe except he had too much white spotting (about 45%)!
More than you ever wanted to know about cat genetics can be found here... (http://members.tripod.com/~siamkatze/cca/genetics.html)
Re: AWWWWWWW!!!
Date: 2004-10-29 05:24 pm (UTC)Thanks - that link gave me a huge giggle.
Her Name is Aeron Arianeira...
Date: 2004-10-29 05:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-30 07:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-30 11:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-10-30 07:37 am (UTC)So how many cats do you have? Maybe post a group photo?
Signed,
cat junkie
multiple cats?
Date: 2004-10-30 11:41 am (UTC)We'd kind of like to get him a buddy to wash and fight; but the space restrictions may force us not to until we move.
Re: multiple cats?
Date: 2004-10-30 11:53 am (UTC)