C is for CHINCHILLA

We actually owned one of these cats for a short while and therein hangs a tail.  A couple in Wembley were selling their house and also the contents of their home.  I was about 11 or 12 and had gone with mum and dad to the auction of the house contents.  While there I wandered into the back garden and came upon this beautiful cat.  It was a silver-grey colour with very long hair.  The lady of the house saw me with the cat and asked mum and dad if she could give it to me.  She explained that the cat had belonged to their son who, several weeks earlier, had been drowned in Lake Monger; I think he was perhaps about my age when that happened.  This was the reason they were selling up and moving to another neighbourhood.  Looking back I think perhaps the cat was too much of a reminder of the young son they had so tragically lost.

Silver was quite an old cat as I think he had arrived at about the same time as their baby boy but mum and dad said yes we could take him home and care for him.  Sadly I don't recall how long he was with us, perhaps only a year or two, but I do remember because of his long hair his teeth had detiororated to the extent that he couldn't chew meat.  I think mum and dad did all they could for him but may eventually have had to have him to put to sleep on the advice of the veterinary surgeon.  I remember him as being a lovely cuddly fellow and very affectionate.  I think he also perhaps pined for the little friend he had lost but we gave him all the love we could for the short time he was with us.  Another fond memory of a beautiful feline friend.

The Chinchilla is a longhaired breed of cat which is actually a type of Persian.  They have a thick, long and silky coat with a cobby body and round face with large eyes.  They are a very elegant cat.  The undercoat of the cat is normally white with black, silver or gold tips.  Chinchilla cats that have darker silver markings on their bodies are referred to as shaded silvers while those with gold tips are referred to as shaded goldens and are quite rare.  Chinchilla cats have emerald or blue-green eyes with a distinctive black eye-liner rim.  The nose is red while having black pencilling.  Their feet pads are coloured black.

These cats are named after a South American rodent which also has two-toned fur.  They are one of the most popular longhaired cat breeds (but are also very expensive).

Chinchillas are normally happy to lie around the home to display their decorative qualities and are very placid and quiet.  They do enjoy attention and are very affectionate, often becoming attached to their owners.  They are ideally suited to flats or houses as many prefer to spend much of their day inside.  The long coat does shed a lot of hair which will become worse when the winter coat is dropping.  While daily brushing will reduce the amount of hair shed, it will still cover furniture and floors.

(I have the shedding problem with Precious and have often wondered why she grows thick hair in winter and then sheds (rather like goats do) as summer approaches.  We find little chunks of hair on the carpet and when I brush her the brush is full of hair in only a few minutes.  We feel she has some unknown breed in her as she is not just an ordinary moggie so perhaps some Persian escaped one day and Precious is the result.   Who knows?  All I know is we do have this surplus hair problem and she is classed as a Domestic Longhair).