History
The Burmilla is a breed of domestic cat which originated accidentally in the United Kingdom in 1981 as a result of a love story between a young Chinchilla, Jemari Sanquist (male), and a Burmese, Bambino Lilac Faberge (female) each of them waiting for a partner of the same breed in different rooms. One night the cleaner forgot to close the door and the romance resulted in a litter of four black shaded female kittens of amazing beauty. The kittens had the dazing silver colouring and the tipped markings of the Chinchilla and the inquisitive and friendly temperament of the Burmese. The kittens were so beautiful that the breeder, Miranda von Kirchberg, immediately realized that the accidental crossing could be the root of a new breed. She submitted one of these kittens, Astahazy Gemma, to an experimental breeding programme and Astahazy Gemma eventually became a foundation queen for the development of the Burmilla breed.
Description
The Burmilla is an elegant, medium-built cat of foreign type and modified Burmese conformation, with a shimmering coat that comes in more than 30 colours, ranging from a pale cream to black. The female is much smaller and more delicate than the male. The Body is fairly compact and medium in size and in length, with a rounded chest of medium width. The back is straight and strong and the legs are slender, strong-bonned, with neat and oval paws. The back-legs being slightly longer than forelegs. The head is slightly rounded with medium width between ears. The jaw is wide at the hinge tapering to a broad, blunt muzzle and a firm chin with good depth. The short, brick red, nose shows a gentle break. The large, full, expressive and lustrous eyes are placed well apart at a slightly oblique setting; eye colour can be any shade of green.The slightly round-tipped ears, medium to large in size, are broad at base and slightly tilted forward. The tail is medium to long in size, with a medium thickness at base, and tapering slightly to a rounded tip. The coat is short, dense, silky and smooth with sufficient undercoat to give a slight lift. Burmillas, having inherited the colour variations of both the Chinchila and the Burnese come in a large variety of colours.
Behaviour
The Burmilla is a very intelligent, curious and friendly cat, less noisy or demanding than the Burmese but mellower than a Chinchilla. This breed is very “people-oriented” and love being part of the family activities. They are very affectionate and need human attention. The love the comfort of their homes, but their curiosity and sociability may lead them to investigate the surroundings and the visitor’s cars that are left open; so they will be safer if confined to the house or a secure garden. They are very playful and should be given plenty of toys and a scratching post but these do not compensate for the human interaction. This breed is generally good with other animals and with children and when roughly handled by the children it tends to walk away instead of retaliating. Besides their amazing colours, Brumillas have a delightful, great-natured temperament, are very sensitive to their owners’ feelings and make excellent pets.
Variants
Health & Care
The Burmilla is a generally healthy bread. Some may suffer from allergies.