About Tonkinese
A Quick History
The Tonkinese is often thought to be a new breed, however, they are simply a "revival" of a much older breed. Many believe that Wong Mau, known as the mother of the Burmese breed, was in fact, a Tonkinese and that Burmese came to be by selecting kittens from her litters who displayed the dark, almost solid coat pattern with the associated gold/green eyes. The Tonkinese with the intermediate coat colour was for a time forgotten while the Burmese and Siamese breeds were pursued and developed to what they are now.
The Tonkinese we know today, are the result of crossing the Siamese and Burmese breeds, however, most breeders are now only breeding Tonkinese to Tonkinese. There are exceptions to this, most especially in countries where the Tonkinese gene pool is not yet large enough.
Tonkinese Temperament
Tonkinese are outgoing, affectionate and communicative. They make perfect companions for those that enjoy a cat who wants to be with them. Tonks will seek your company whether it be for play or a snuggle in your lap. They quickly learn to bring you their favourite toys when they wish to play a game. You will find they prefer to share their attention with the whole family rather than one individual. It has been suggested to me that they figured out they get more attention this way. I truly believe this!
To keep your Tonkinese happy & content I recommend having two or at least another pet with a similar personality. Tonks are not wallflowers, they love to be involved in our lives and you should consider this if you are thinking of being owned by one.
Tonkinese Coat Patterns
Tonkinese cats come in three coat patterns and are worn on a cat of the same body type. These three coat patterns occur because the cs and cb genes are incompletely dominant. There are pointed cats like that of a Siamese or Himalayan Persian. These cats display almost white bodies with dark points and Blue eyes. There are solid appearing cats like that of a Burmese or a Korat. These cats display their colour all over with very little contrast to the points. They have green to gold eye colour. Then, there are the Mink coated cats that are in between both the former coat patterns. The Mink Tonkinese shows Dark points with a lighter expression of the point colour all over it's body. They have incredibly beautiful aqua eyes. Some people think they are called mink because of the feel of the coat. While the coat does have a lovely feel (in all the three coat patterns) this is not true. The term was applied as the original Tonkinese had the same coat pattern as the American wild Mink.
Most associations will only allow the mink Tonkinese to be shown, however, the pointed and solid coat patterns are used in breeding programs and are of equal beauty and value.
Tonkinese Colours
The Tonkinese come in many colours though not all are recognised everywhere. The colours are Seal/Natural, Chocolate/Champagne, Lilac/Platinum, Blue, Red, Apricot, and Caramel. You will find Tortie Tonkinese and also Tabbie Tonkinese in some countries.
TonkineseType
A Tonkinese should fall between the type of a Burmese and Siamese and not lean toward either. The words most often applied to a Tonkinese type are medium and moderate. They are an athletic looking cat and often weigh more than you would have thought. You can find the ACF Standard Of Points at their site.
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