The British Shorthair cat is a typical domestic cat, but it only has three coat types: foreign coat, semi-foreign coat and shorthair. The breed was originally bred in Britain in the 1800s to have a long flowing tail and be easy to care for. Now, is the British Shorthair cat breed hypoallergenic? It is not hypoallergenic as some breeds claim to be because it does shed.
The British Shorthair can also have blue or green eyes with brown or black points on their coats. They are medium sized cats that weigh anywhere from four pounds all the way up to eighteen pounds when fully grown according to the breed standard by FCI (Cat Fancier’s International).
The British Shorthair is an indoor cat. That is why they readily adapt to the owner’s environment. They are not as active as most cats; they are not very vocal and they mature a little later than other cats. As with any breed, age of maturity varies and is not absolute.
Related Article: British Shorthair Female. What You Need To Know….
Is the british shorthair cat breed hypoallergenic?
The British Shorthair cat are not hypoallergenic because it does shed. They are gentle and well-behaved cats that love to be with their families.
The british shorthair is a small sized cat that weighs between five and fifteen pounds when fully grown. They have long ears and tails that can reach up to twelve inches in length, which is longer than the domestic shorthair cat.
The British Shorthair has a foreign double coat, which means that it is composed of fine guard hairs, an oily undercoat and a glossy topcoat. This coat helps to protect the cats from fly bites or from getting wet in the rain due to its water resistant properties.
The coat of the British Shorthair is made up of long, silky hair that can grow all the way down to the paws and down to the tip of the tail. The coat only sheds twice per year when it is shed by the cat in order to clean its coat and oil glands.
On the question of “is British Shorthair cat breed hypoallergenic” has brought up a subject of the hypoallergenic, and I found it absolutely fundamental to answer that in order to show those asking a question how important is this concept.
The answer is not whether or not the British Shorthair cat breed is hypoallergenic, they are not. These are two different questions.
To say whether or not the British Shorthair cat breed is hypoallergenic, it is necessary to know if they are conventional cats, that’s all. So what is a conventional cat? An allergic individual will do the same things with their pets.
They will be afraid of those that have saliva covered paws and saliva covered tongues, they will be scared of cats that have hair everywhere, but this does not denote a “hypoallergenic” cat.
To differentiate these two concepts it is necessary to know exactly what are the characteristics of a hypoallergenic animal; an animal from which no tolerance comes from an allergic individual.
The British Shorthair is an easygoing breed of cat. It has a friendly, even temperament and it is also good with children. People will get along with the cat well due to its friendly nature and it won’t try to run away when they are trying to pet it.
The British Shorthair has lots of intelligence. It can be trained to perform simple tricks like fetching a ball or jumping through a hoop like other cats do in circuses. British Shorthairs are very neat, clean creatures that spend most of their time grooming themselves and staying clean while being indoors.
They love to play in water and are avid swimmers. They even love to drink out of running faucets like fast-running streams. The British Shorthair can be a bit temperamental and will not tolerate someone who is trying to pick it up or handle it roughly.
The British Shorthair has a very deep vocal range, but most of the time it is rarely heard because its voice is often lost in the hustle and bustle of busy households. The breed also has a long, flowing tail with a slight curve at the tip, which makes it easy to identify. Not many cats have tails like this anymore. They are usually bred out of the cat or docked in early life.
What Are Hypoallergenic Cats?
A cat that is hypoallergenic has five characteristics that differentiate it from any other cat. These are the following:
- The absence of allergens: All cats have allergens, and these allergens are in their saliva, in their blood, on their fur and on their skin. The only way to avoid all contact with these allergens is to not have pets at all. Hypoallergenic cats do not have these allergens, therefore they cannot transmit them to a person who is allergic to them. A hypoallergenic cat cannot transmit its hair, its saliva or its dander.
- The absence of dander: Dander is a term used to describe all the dead skin cells that are shed from the body. All cats have dander, but these cats do not.
- A non-shedding coat: All cats shed, but not these ones. Their hair does not fall out of their bodies like other cat’s hair. It grows and falls out with its own growth cycle, which prevents any allergen from getting into the air and into other people’s noses or mouths. These canopies are less fluffy and do not have a white marking on them.
- The absence of saliva: All cats have saliva, but these ones do not; they contain no hair, dander or dander. They are being groomed only by the whiskers in front of their face and not by the rest of their bodies like other cats.
- A silky coat: If you pet a cat’s fur with your fingertips, there will be thousands of individual hairs on your fingers and not only the ones in its fur.
Related Article: American Shorthair Vs British Shorthair Cat
Many questions regarding to “is the British Shorthair cat breed hypoallergenic” has made many feline owners skeptical about having cats as pets. Many do not hesitate in recognizing that their allergies are caused by these creatures, but the truth is that there are different forms of allergies and also both humans and animals have them. But there is a solution to this problem.
According to veterinarians, it is not by merely saying that one cat is hypoallergenic or another one is not; the solution depends on how allergic a person is to cats. Everyone can live with a cat, but it all depends on how they react to them.
If you or someone in your family suffers from an allergic reaction, tell your doctor and get some help. But there are also people who do not react to cats, so they can keep a cat as a pet.
The difference is that while allergic reactions are influenced by genetics, the symptoms of any touch with a cat will be different in every case. There are many questions that have been asked along these lines and the answers are very similar in most of them and all take into consideration the different characteristics of hypoallergenic cats.
They are naturally curious and happy. They can adapt to different situations and different environments with ease. The british shorthair is very well adapted to life in the human family. They enjoy the companionship of people, other animals and their environment around them, which is why most of them live long lives with their owners.
They love being patted, touched and loved on, but they should not be mishandled or forced into doing things they aren’t comfortable with.
They are easy to train, but they don’t respond well to people who force them when they are not trained yet. The british shorthair is an excellent radar for danger and will tell you if there’s something wrong around you before you even know, so it is important to listen.
Their fur helps them keep warm in cold weather and dry in wet conditions. It is also their natural defense against the elements; their hair does not have barbs or feathers that can get caught in their prey. It also allows these cats to run through tall grasses and bushes without getting stuck or tangled up.
Conclusion
So, is the British Shorthair cat breed hypoallergenic? The answer is no, as we have said before, it varies from person to person. But regardless, they are still beautiful and smart companions.
They are very strong yet gentle and they are always ready to play and have fun. In the end, no matter what the breed is there isn’t a cat who cannot be cared for and loved by a human.
There are many cat breeds with no or little allergens. Some are as resistant to allergens as the british shorthair cat breed, but there is not any one breed that is 100% allergy-free. The only way for someone to be totally allergy-free is not to have a pet of any kind at all.
But even if someone has an allergy from cats, there is a solution for them; the solution depends on how allergic they are. They should inform their doctor about their symptoms and get some help from them. There are also people who do not react to cats, so they can keep a cat as a pet.
Related Article: 20 Flame Point Siamese Cat Personality