inbreeding

The Birman Breed Advisory Committee

allows us to use the following registered breeds and colours in outcross breeding programs

COLOURPOINTS	PERSIANS
Chocolate Point 13b3	Chocolate Self 50b
Lilac Point 13b4	Red Self 4
Red Point 13b5	Cream Self 5
Cream Point 13b7	Cream Self 5
Tortie Point 13b6	Tortoiseshell 11
Blue-Cream Point 13b8	Blue-Cream 13
Seal Tabby Point 13b11	Brown Tabby
Blue Tabby Point 13c12	Red Tabby 9

THESE COLOURS NOT LISTED FOR USE IN OUTCROSS BREEDING PROGRAMS WITH BIRMANS
COLOURPOINTS	PERSIANS
Seal Point 13b1 Not allowed	Black Self 1 Not allowed
Blue Point 13b2 Not allowed	Blue Self 3 Not allowed
Chocolate Tabby Point 13b13 Not allowed	Chocolate Tabby Self 8b Not allowed
Lilac Tabby Point 13b14 Not allowed	Lilac Tabby Self 8c Not allowed
	Blue Tabby Self 8a Not allowed
The restriction also includes all the Tortie Tabbies

To widen the choices early last year I wrote to the BAC asking them to consider allowing the use four of the other colours from the above breeds for mating to Birmans.

Seal Point Colourpoints, Blue Point Colourpoints, Black Self Persians and Blue Self Persians. Sadly there has been no change to the breeding policy.

I began outcross breeding programs using Persians and Colourpoints in 1998 to reduce the amount of inbreeding I had seen and also widen the Birman genepool. I produced cats by using Seal/Blue Birmans, as these were the traditional colours, mated to a Red Persian and a Cream Colourpoint as these are breeds we can outcross to. Last year I began two more outcross programs using a Classic Brown Tabby Persian and a Lilac Colourpoint.

A note about inbreeding

In breeding is the mating together of related animals. Line breeding is another term used but it means exactly the same as in breeding according to geneticists. Mating of related animals should be avoided when ever possible. If a close mating is carried out the progeny from that mating should be mated to a non related animal. This is a screen from World of Birmans which will show in colour all the cats that are related in one of my cats pedigrees.

WORLD OF BIRMANS PEDIGREE DATABASE

AVAILABLE ON LINE

By studying pedigrees using this pedigree program, available on the internet, breeders are able to do trial matings and select the stud they would like to use to help reduce the amount of inbreeding in their breeding programs. If using one particular stud the inbreeding goes up try doing another trial mating using a different stud. On the home page there is a basic tutorial with diagrams which explains the many features you are able to use. If your cat is not in the database we will be happy to add it for you.

To go to the pedigree program click on the logo.

You can always e mail me if you need help or cannot find the relevant information