The Turkish Van is a breed of home cat that was developed within the UK from cats that had been imported from Turkey. It’s famous for its van sample, the place the color on the cat is restricted to the pinnacle and the remainder of the cat is white. Historical past In 1955, two girls got some native cats whereas on a visit to Turkey and determined to deliver them again to England to breed them. Laura Lushington and Sonia Halliday introduced cats from throughout Turkey over plenty of years together with from Hatay Province, Istanbul, Antalya and Burdur between 1955 and 1959. The breed unfold to the US in 1982 and was accepted by the Cat Fancier’s Affiliation (CFA) in 1994. Nonetheless, it stays a really uncommon breed with solely 100 cats born annually within the nation. As a result of cats can nonetheless be imported from the Lake Van space, the genetic range of the breed may be very robust and these are the one cats allowed to breed with the Turkish Van to keep up purity. All cats at the moment have some connection again to the unique cats delivered to England within the 1950s. Initially, the cats have been generally known as the Turkish cat in 1969 when the breed was first recognised. By 1979, this had been modified to the Turkish Van to distinguish it from the Angora, the opposite Turkish cat breed. Description The Turkish Van has a semi-longhaired coat with solely one of many three forms of coat hairs. Usually, a cat has guard hair, awn hair and down hair making up their coat however the Van solely has one with no evident undercoat. This implies their fur may be very comfortable and looks like rabbit fur or cashmere in addition to giving them a really smooth look. Regardless of this, it’s a very water repellent coat which means that bathing these cats will be tough. When it comes to measurement, the Van is likely one of the bigger cats and has broad shoulders with a protracted physique and again legs which can be barely longer than the entrance ones. Male cats can weigh 16 kilos whereas females are be 12-14 kilos and have massive paws. Their muscular construction is powerful which means they’re very agile jumpers however can take a very long time to mature, as a lot as three years in whole. Character Early of their growth, the Van might be an aggressive cat however the fashionable breed may be very social and pleasant in direction of individuals. They bond strongly with their house owners and are very lively and playful. They are going to typically study tips similar to fetching a toy. They’ve retained a fascination with water which will come from their ancestor’s lake dwelling location and a few will take pleasure in enjoying in water. Breed customary To be certified as a pedigree Van, not more than 20% of the cat’s coat will be colored although some random spots are accepted so long as they do not give the looks of a bicoloured cat. The remainder of the cat is white. The normal colors for the sample embody pink, cream, black, blue, tabby patterns in these colors, tortoiseshells and some other color so long as it’s not a results of hybridisation with one other breed, similar to Siamese level markings.