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Is cinnamon an additional variant of the red coloured coat ?
No, the colour Cinnamon has nothing in common with Red. The colour RED of a cat is link to the sex of the cat and will be inherited by the gene O. Red, Cream and Tortie is part of a Red-series. Cinnamon is a colour of the Series of dark colours. It is bound to the gene bl and is not depending on the sex of the cat. Cinnamon is related to the colours Seal and Chocolate, but not to Red in this regard.
Are the colours Cinnamon and Sorrel identical?
Yes and No. Both are based on the gene bl for Cinnamon. While Cinnamon is a Solid colour (colour without tabby pattern) the colour sorrel is an abessyn typical tabby pattern. Sorrel means in this case a tabby colour description. This so called ticked tabby alters of course the colour tone. The shade of this colour is diluted by the light agouti-band and looks to have more red shade than the solid colour. In the end you can not draw the conclusion the colour sorrel being cinnamon at the same time as a genetic b
Can I mixed up Cinnamon-Point with Red-Point?
No, they can' t be mixed with each other. Cinnamon has a stronger shade of brown than Red. The genetic origin of Red is totally different. Cinnamon doesn' t show a tabby pattern on a solid colour like for Red. Even for non experienced people it is not likely the mix up these colour. In addition the nose leather and pads of the feet are totally different in colour.
Does Cinnamon have a Ticking?
No, ticking is the description for a special tabby-pattern. Cinnamon can be seen together with a abessyn/somali typical tabby-pattern, but the base colour does not show a ticking or other tabby-pattern.
Are there any problems with coat/fur for the new colours ?
No, the coat does not show any problems. The first generation (F1) already showed the coat like for birman cats. To quote an experienced birman breeder and international judge when judging the kitten: "Simply excellent - a coat like this not been shown since years. Exactly this way a coat has be shown for a birman cat."
During our breeding project we found it is no problem to breed in a longer hair. Due to our experience it is much more difficult to eliminate hair being to long or a coat that is too 'dense'. The gene that is responsible for the 'thatch' seems to be dominant against 'regular' hair. At the same time the length of the hair could be reduced to a regular size. In the end a birman cat should not have the same texture and length of hair or coat like a persian cat.
Do the new bred cats have a straight nose like siamese cats ?
No, the line of the nose is NOT straight even for the first genaration. All siamese breeders would spent a long time to get a straight nose line would NOT like it spoiling the work of years. The occurance of this behaviour is of course a good effect for birman breeders.
Was it needed to breed in two new colours ?
Who knows what is really needed or not. If breeders would have thought that no changes are needed a birman cat would not exist. At the same time we would just have the dark base colour Seal-Point and the diluted colour called Blue-Point. All other colours or pattern would not exist, if breeders would not have spent their time to breed in new properties. At the same time the new properties are controversial discussed by other breeders.
The reason to breed in Cinnamon was to get the last possible base colour for birman cats. In addition Fawn is logical consequence being the diluted colour against Cinnamon.
Do I have to expect shorthaired kitten in the next generation, because Cinnamon was bred in by siamese cats?
No, there is no chance to get shorthaired kitten. these kitten can only be born, if one of the parents is shorthaired.The genetic information for shorthair can NOT be carried covered. If this generation is crossed with birman cats the hair will always be of semi(long) type and NOT shorthaired.
Would it have been possible to breed in other races than balinese cats ?
The colour gene for Cinnamon is restricted only to a few races. For all other races it is NOT known or being in process.
The origin of the colour Cinnamon are Abessyn and Somali cats. We did not consider this race to be suitable because of the ticked-tabby. Also the colour of the eyes would need big efforts to get up the dark blue. From other breeders of oriental cats we also learned it being very difficult to get out the typical temperament which was totally from the 'target'. We do NOT exactly know what influence the abessyn/somali type of cat would have on the birman cat, but we do NOT think they are strongly related ....
In the meantime also the race British Shorthair is bred in Cinnamon and Fawn. Despite some breeders would like to start a crossing with the race due to the suitable form of the head, the short nose and the compact body we do NOT think this a feasible solution. The colour of the eyes would have been to be improved and the form of the head would lead to another extreme which would not be like birman type. The body of this new generation would probably get too compact. One of the main issues is the low amount of point cats available in the colour. In addition the Rufism effect is not developed strong for this race. In summary a lot more of breeding work would have to be done.
The next possible solution is to breed in with balinese and siamese cats. These are close relatives to the birman cat. They are of point type, but have a 'long' head, long ears and a 'slim' body. The Balinese cats nearly have the same length of the hair like birman cats. The made the decision clear to choose these races for the outcross. The first generation shows a good proportion of head, ears and body: they do NOT look like siamese kitten. The texture of the hair is the way like we think it to be: no felt to be seen. Of course the influence of the balinese and siamese cats can be seen on some kitten, but is up to us to choose only those properties that will be inherited as to be suitable for a birman cat.
What will be the result at the end of the project?
The reduction of the length of ears and to get a round form of a head will only be a question of time. Also the type of the coat will be improved very soon. But one of the targets is to breed the old type of birman cat which makes the difference between the other races. We do want to have NEITHER a strong influence of a balinese/siamese type NOR of a persian based type of cat. We are sure people will like this type of cats the does not show an extreme type of cat.
What to do about not non fully coloured masks ?
This problem is seen for many cats that are carrying or having the colours Chocolate/Lilac and Cinnamon/Fawn. In general we made the experience that the basis is given independent from the colour.
Some details about the genetic basics: The colour Seal as well as Chocolate and Cinnamon are based on the 'dark' colour pigment Eumelanin. The colours Chocolate and Cinnamon are a mutated form of the gene for Seal. It is shown that the mutation not only leads to an optical new colour, but also the colour pigment Melanin is changing it's shade with low temperature. Being a sort a colouring because of low temperature the points show the colour in all location like it should be. But sometimes it is not this way: Birman Cats in Chocolate and Cinnamon or carriers of these colours do NOT have a complete mask. What is coloured is the ears and the nose. The chin and parts around the eyes are not coloured well.
To get this issue solved it is needed to breed with cats which do NOT have this 'thermo-sensible' colouring. In order to get it working for all colours we are already starting to do this in our breeding project.
Can Cinnamon be mixed up with another colour ?
No, if you have seen a cat in this colour you will never mix it up. This colour is unique against all other colours. Even for kitten it can be clearly told apart.
What is Rufism ?
This is the expression for red shading of the basic colour what makes it shown as a 'warm' colour. Especially for Cinnamon this is part of the appearance itself.
The genes for 'Rufus' should not to be mixed up with Red. They do NOT lead to a basic colour, but change the base of each colour. For breeding silver a high share is unwanted, because it is showing a yellow shade (not to be mixed with golden!).
Is Fawn-Point lighter than Lilac-Point ?
It is not lighter, but has a different shade. The colour Fawn looks like 'sand beige', Lilac is in comparison a light Grey with a touch of Pink (see “parade of ears”). A good contrast between Points and colour of the body is also given for Fawn being fully developed. This takes for both colours nearly the same time to complete.
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