Expert: W - 9/11/2008

Question
1.Can you get himalayan babies when breeding a himalayan to a domestic cat?
2. Can a black tabby persian have blue eyes or will they change as they get older?

Answer
Hi Melissa
Let me answer your questions in order

Question 1.
Answer
Kittens get 50% of their DNA from their mum and 50% from their dad, so they could never be Himalayan as they would only be 50% in the first breeding.

This action is often referred to as an out cross and produces kittens listed as F1. They may look delightful but they are not pedigree. Breeders who do out crosses do so to increase the gene pool in their breed. From F1 breeders would mate these cats back to other Himalayans to produces F2. They would repeat this type of mating back to different Himalayans through F3 and F4. At this stage they would be 75% Himalayan and then they could be listed as Himalayan from here on.

Question 2
Kittens eyes change as they grow. It is the colour of the iris which can deepen to give a different colour back to you.

It is possible for a black tabby to have blue eyes but it would depend on its background pedigree. One parent would need blue eyes to pass this on to the kitten

Regards

Ray