The Siberian: A Great Cat For People with Allergies?
This breed of cats has appeared in Kievan Rus in 9th to 10th century. Perhaps, all house cats in Russia are direct descendants of the first furry kitten brought back from Byzantium by a monk as a gift to the Kievan duke. Many such gifts were given later, as well. This cat breed has characteristics of the Norwegian Forest cat and the Steppe cat and of the Persian breed.
Before Peter the Great, Siberian cats lived mostly in the wild forests. The Czar ordered to “have cats in all barns to safeguard against rats and mice”. Elizaveta Petrovna ordered on October 13th, 1745 to bring 30 best cats to serve in the Hermitage, which now houses more than 300 Siberians.
There is an assumption that cats appeared in Siberia due to migration of Cossacks (mercenary warriors).
In the US, Siberians were represented thanks to Elizabeth Terrell from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She exchanged four of her Himalayan cats for three Siberians in 1990. She later created the American Siberian breed standard, as well as founded the “TAIGA” international club.
It’s unknown when the Siberian breed appeared in Europe. However, it was mentioned in Harrison Weir’s “Our cats and all about them” at the end of the 19th century. The breed took part in the first cat show in England in the 18th century in the longhair category.
I am a proud owner of a Siberian cat named Bars. He’ll be 7 years old in August.
The story of how we got the cat is simple: my wife wanted a cat after we just gotten married. And so I went in February of 2011 to a local pet shop near my house. There weren’t many cats to choose from, and I didn’t have a lot of money at the time. My wife insisted on buying a male cat, but there was only one on that day. There were many females, however, around 10 probably. I didn’t have a carrying case, and so the store owner gave me a cardboard box, in which I carried the cat to the bus stop. The store owner was afraid the kitten will run away, so she told me to keep the box closed with the top opened a bit for air. But ultimately, I ditched the box and just held the kitten in my arms. I bought him anti-pest medicine and shampoo at the local pet-shop, since the cat had no certificates, so I had to make sure. At home he hid under the couch and didn’t come out until the next day. I had to place food and water bowls right under the couch. The kitten behaved like that for three days. Then I decided to place the bowls in the kitchen, so he had to come out from his hiding spot. Although he had litter training, it took me while to get him to use the litter box. The Siberian is a peaceful and gentle breed overall, from my experience, unless my toddler bothers him too much. Bars is a horrible rat catcher. Once a rat got into the house, and all he did was to run away. So I had to deal with the rat by myself. He’s a big scaredy cat, afraid of the vacuum, the guests. When my friends come over, he hides in the wardrobe. One time I though he ran away, while he was behind the refrigerator. Perhaps he isn’t a purebred, but that is not that important to me. I value the cat’s character, that fact that he is kind, calm, playful, and waits for me to come back from work. He likes to sit on my slippers. He is an aboriginal breed for my country, and is naturally colored.
Not all Russian cats can be called a Siberian, however. There are multiple breed standards. The growth of felinology in the USSR in 1980 and Russia in 1990 demanded for creation of standardization. The first standard, “SIB”, was introduced in 1990 by SFF (Soviet Felinology Federation). The breed was recognized worldwide in 1992 and included in the World Cat Federation (WCF) standard. In 1992 the breed is part of FIFE standard; in 1996 - ТICA, in 2000 - CFA. In 1997 an entire cat-lover society was created in Russia.
My cat never took part in cat shows. And didn’t pass standardization procedures, but, nevertheless, he was sold to me as a Siberian. If you look at all the photos, Bars looks very similar to the IFSJ (International Feline Society of Judges) standard below Source .
General history: aboriginal breed, established in Siberia and Far East. Known in Russia for more than 200 years.
General characteristics: strong, muscular, massive animals, with a strong backbone, medium to large in size. Pronounced sexes. Males weigh 4,5 kg and above, females – not less than 3 kg.
Head: relatively large, in form of a short wide trapezium. Short and strong neck.
Ears: medium in size, wide base, placed far apart
Eyes: medium, in form of a wide oval, widely placed and slightly slanted. Eye color – green or yellow of any shade.
Body: stout, massive, muscular, with a wide chest, on strong, medium-length legs. Medium-length coat, firm, with pronounced levels of fur.
The Siberian breed landed the 7th place in the top 10 hypoallergenic cats Source:
1st place - Canadian Sphynx
2nd place - Don Sphynx
3rd place - Perbold
4th place - Cornish Rex
5th place - Devon Rex
6th place - Lycois
7th place - Siberian
8th place - Javanese
9th place - Oriental
10th place - Balinese
It is said that 75% of people with allergies don’t have an allergic reaction to the Siberian. But it must be remembered that the word “Hypo” – means “less than”. Not “none”! See the difference? There are no “non-allergenic” cats! At all, unfortunately.
There are two types of allergic reactions to cats: reaction to hair and reaction to saliva. The reaction to hair is quite rare. And the second reaction appeared because cats groom themselves. And their saliva contains the FEL D-1 protein.
When the cat grooms itself, this protein coats hair together with saliva, which afterwards dries up, and protein particles so small get into the air, that even air purifiers cannot get rid of them. If these particles fall on eyes and in mouth, they cause allergic reactions. The Siberian’s saliva contains trace amounts of FEL D-1, which means almost none! FEL D-1 protein is the reason for 85% of allergic reactions to cats.
This is why the Siberians are good pets for most people with allergies, but some cannot live even with these special cats.
Science is still hazy on the subject. Today, the data is supported by empirical analysis alone. After seven years of research it was found that most people with allergies can indeed keep Siberians as pets. In one known case, a person suffering asthma owned a Siberian. He frequently visited the hospital to treat his illness. There he mentioned that he had a Siberian cat at home. This piqued the doctors’ interest, and they conducted tests, which ascertained that the Siberian breed does not produce particles responsible for allergic reactions. Scientists are still amazed, but had agreed that Siberian cats are a special case.
In 1995, Lynda Nelson, who owned a Siberian cattery, met Greg Neil, a developer of environmentally friendly fillers for cat litter. Lynda asked Greg for some trial fillers. Greg’s fiancée, Debby, suffered from severe allergy, so Greg couldn’t keep a cat at home. When Greg and Debby brought the fillers to the cattery, Debby didn’t notice any allergic reactions. The first time, they attributed this to the air purifier, the second – to an open door. By the third time, Debby hypothesized, that the Siberian cats are different somehow, and proposed an experiment. She, for half an hour, sat and played with 20 Siberian cats, took them in her arms, and then rubbed her eyes. As a result, Debby did not have an allergic reaction and she bought herself a Siberian kitten.
If you have an allergic reaction to cats, the Siberian is a great option. However, you must remember that all cats have fur of some kind, and make an educated choice!
Here more Bars:
