JAVANESE
Javanese are to Colorpoint Shorthairs what Balinese are to Siamese: the longhaired counterpart. The Javanese, accepted for championship competition beginning May 1, 1987, is one breed for which “new” implies no mistique, no clouded or gray area, and surely no chance for fantasizing. Nor does the name have anything to do with the cat’s place of origin. It is obvious how and why this breed should have appeared. When breeders crossed American Shorthairs to Siamese in order to produce new Siamese colors, a number of those Americans had long hair in their backgrounds. Consequently, Javanese have long hair in theirs. Four registries do not make any distinction between the Javanese and Balinese breeds. In these registries any Siamese with long hair is called a Balinese. Efforts to combine the Javanese and Balinese breeds have always voted down in the Cat Fanciers’ Association and the Canadian Cat Association, however, because some Balinese breeders like to think that their cats are as pure as the Siamese. Therefore, they will not consider a merger of any kind, even though the coat texture, length, and feel of the Balinese and Javanese coats are identical.
