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About mid 2006 I saw a photograph on the Internet of an 'Oriental' type cat but wearing the most elegant black-and-white plush coat. I was smitten! I knew nothing about this breed but, by his looks, I knew he had to be a kind of Oriental. I then began doing a little more reading around this, to me, 'new' cat, discovering that Bicolours in the UK were about as plentiful as hens' teeth but, nevertheless, are a recognised breed elsewhere. To find out more, I had to research European breeders, discovering in the process, that these cats came in all sorts of colours but always with white. The more I saw of them, the more I fell in love, and the more the urge grew within me to invite one (or two or three or … ) of these magical cats to share my home and family (cats, dogs and husband - notice his position in the scheme of things!). Then, still not finding, in my haphazard research of the 'Net, anyone in this country breeding them, at the very next show I attended, there in the Oriental section was a 14 week old boy who looked like a Siamese but was Seal & White. I could not believe my luck and I could not take my eyes off him! That afternoon, I spent a great deal of time just standing watching him which was, if I'm honest, rather like watching paint dry because, after all, he was just a baby and the day must have been very hectic for him, so during the long reaches of the afternoon, he just could not keep himself out of the land of Nod. I came home fired with enthusiasm and renewed my search for local owners of this breed. Eventually my efforts paid off and I discovered that a GCCF affiliated Bicolour Cat Club had just been instituted. I immediately joined the club and slowly started discovering British breeders. However, as it is a fairly new breed here, there are very few people with them. I tried and tried to buy a kitten but to no avail so decided to breed my own out of my own lines! Easier said than done though. Most breeders of these new cats will not let their boys stand at open stud. Eventually I came across the owner of the Siamese and White I had fallen in love with last year, and my maiden Black Tortie, Bella, spent a honeymoon with him in February and at the end of April she had three kits: 2 Bicolours and a Black. Unfortunately the Bi's did not thrive and within 36 hours both had died! The Black Boy thrived, having no one to compete with him at the milk bar and the care of a loving mother, a doting great grandmother, a motherly step-gran in the shape of Phoebe, my mini Daxie, and, of course, two charmed human slaves. I had by then discovered more breeders in this country of this even more (now) desirous cat and emailed every one of them asking about forthcoming litters. Then, by sheer accident while trawling the net, I came across Mimi. On the off chance, I contacted the breeder to see if she had been sold. Two weeks' later a small Seal and White Pointed girl joined our clan (who is related to that first Bicolour I ever saw). I had my first Bicolour … at last! Three weeks after Mimi came to live with us, I had phone call from one of the people I'd emailed. Was I interested in a Cinnamon and White Pointed girl? Was I interested? I had also fallen in love with the colour Cinnamon and had been looking for an Oriental of that colour. Now, here, all in one package was a Cinnamon Bicolour being offered to me. Ten days later Gigi joined our family as well. Two Bicolours within a month of each other! I (in a Victor Meldrew voice) couldn't believe it !!! A year on and I bred two Pointed Bicolours out of Gigi, a Black and White little boy Cwmkatz Hercule Poirot and a little girl Cwmkatz Oh SweetPea, who is so sweet and beautiful that I had to keep her. |
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