Originally known as the "Golden Siamese" the Tonkinese cat breed was developed by crossing the Siamese and Burmese cat breeds. An American hybrid, the Tonkinese holds the nickname "Tonks" by American owners and is known as the "Tonkinois" in France and the "Tonkinesen" in Germany. The name derives from the Gulf of Tonkin which borders Vietnam and China.
History
During the 1950s, American breeder and cat expert Milan Greer began a breeding program to create a breed that he referred to as the "Golden Siamese". The original breeding started with a male Burmese and a female Chocolate-point Siamese cat. At his center known as "Fabulous Felines", Greer continued with this program through five generations. After Greer was comfortable with the results and felt assured that the breed was stable, he passed the breeding onto other professional breeders.
Cat breeder Edith Lux was one of those who took over breeding of the Golden Siamese and was also responsible for the name change to "Tonkinese". Milan Greer has stated about this breed, "After developing this breed I discovered that I had created a prodigy in fur". Canadian breeder Margaret Conroy took great interest in the Tonkinese and helped gain acknowledgement for the breed. In 1965, the Tonkinese was registered with the Canadian Cat Association by Conroy which has led to the breed being mistakenly referred to as a Canadian breed.
America would soon follow suit and the Tonkinese was slowly being accepted by American cat clubs and societies. It wouldn't be until the 1990s before this breed would be accepted by all American societies. In 1991, the Tonkinese was accepted in Britain by The Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (GCCF).
Acceptance of this breed was refused by many feline experts because of the breeding program. When a Burmese is bred with a Siamese, the result is a Tonkinese. However, when a Tonkinese is bred with another Tonkinese, the result is half the kittens being Tonkinese, one quarter are Burmese and the other one quarter are Siamese. Interestingly though, the original Burmese cat that arrived in the United States during the early 30s (named Wong Mau) was not a pure-bred Burmese but was in fact part Siamese. Breeders argue that because of this, the original Burmese cat that founded the Burmese breed in America was what is referred to today as the Tonkinese.
Appearance
The Tonkinese has a medium sized build that is not as elongated as the Siamese. The body has well defined muscular development but the overall appearance should be proportionate. The coat hairs are medium-short in length with a silky texture and a vibrant sheen. The Tonkinese is accepted by The Cat Fanciers Association (CFA) in a variety of coat colors that include champagne mink and blue point, among others. The eye colors also range from aqua, blue, green, and yellow-green depending upon the color of the coat.
Personality
This breed's personality has been described in a variety of fashions including witty, playful, mischievous, lively, and affectionate. Tonkinese owners state that this breed owns the human, the human is there to serve them. This cat is very loyal and enjoys human companionship making the Tonkinese a devoted companion and wonderful pet. This breed appears to have taken on all of the wonderful qualities of the Burmese and Siamese and left the not-so charming qualities behind.
This breed should be an indoor only cat but doesn't have any special care needs, requiring only normal cat nurturing with some extra attention given to keep her out of mischief. Owning a Tonkinese has been described as possessing a "rare treasure". The beauty along with their sociable personality has made this breed popular among cat enthusiasts and breeders throughout the world.
References:
CAT BREEDS OF THE WORLD, by Desmond Morris, copyright 1999.