Educating your eyes on Siberian type

We start this page with Siberian breed standard by Fife. Fife Standard Here is the article by Alexander Kolesnikov that talks about “Siberian archetype” and this is an important article to read to understand  Siberian phenotype. https://siberiancatbreederscentral.com/how-long-the-isolation-is/ I also made some photos myself that are very practical and simple to understand. I made these photos because by personal experience, I can tell that it took me a couple years to educate my eyes on Siberian type and it could have been much faster if I had seen photos like these ones above made using body parts. First of all keep in mind that a Siberian cat is considered adult by around 3 years. There are some dramatic changes in certain bloodlines especially on males but also in a less spectacular way on females.  I advise strongly to observe parents and grand parents when choosing a cat. Some “flaws” in kittens will be improved when the cat reaches maturity but depending on the extension of the flaw, the problem will remain the same. Siberian profile Here are some good rounded Siberian profiles and a couple of shots made with my kittens that show a good profile and a profile that too straight. Good rounded profile, nose indentation on eye level and nose Two good profiles on photo 1 and 2 but on photo1 you can see a better nose indentation . On photo 2, the forehead is well rounded but nose indentation less marked.

Here is a kitten with a rather straight profile When buying a kitten, I personally ALWAYS ask for several profile photos at different stages and ages and parents profile as well. Ears There should be a distance equivalent of a third ear between the ears. Siberian ears are MEDIUM size, not dominant like in Maine Coons but not small like in Persians. Ears should be well rounded on the top edges. The ears can change greatly depending on the bloodline and particularly in males but ATTENTION high ears may remain high if the are very close together. Here are some examples the best being my 4 years old male Irvin Rossity. Rossity lines being one of those lines that take time to mature and develop.

 Muzzle The muzzle seen from above, should have a trapeze shape.

Muzzle and cheek bones should be rounded and the chin not dominant but PRESENT to “complete” the muzzle. You can also see in both cats a large, harmonious nose bridge (distance between eyes).

Body

I particularly like Siberians who have a barrel rounded muscular body with shorter legs but the most important is to observe bone density and a broad muscular body.

Fur texture Siberian fur should be thick, hard and glossy on the back and more abundant on collar, undersarms and chest area.