Swaldiphary - Standards

The Comparative Table of the Contemporary Standards of the Russian Blue Cat

	The Cat Fanciers Association (CFA)	Fédération Internationale Féline (FIFe)	The International Cat Association (TICA)
Head	smooth, medium wedge, neither long and tapering nor short and massive. Muzzle is blunt, and part of the total wedge, without exaggerated pinch or whisker break. Top of skull long and flat in profile, gently descending to slightly above the eyes, and continuing at a slight downward angle in a straight line to the tip of the nose. No nose break or stop. Length of top-head should be greater than length of nose. The face is broad across the eyes due to wide eye-set and thick fur. MUZZLE: smooth, flowing wedge without prominent whisker pads or whisker pinches NOSE: medium in length. CHIN: perpendicular with the end of the nose and with level under-chin. Neither receding nor excessively massive	Shapeshort wedge, skull long and flat. In profile forehead and nose form a convex angle at the same level as the eyebrows. Forehead straight, nose straight, whisker pads prominent, Chin strong.	A modified wedge with seven planes: an upright line is from the tip of the nose to the lower point of the chin, the profile is from the tip of the nose till the forehead, a straight line is from the front line of the forehead to the top of the head, two planes are in the muzzle (one plane is on both sides), two planes formed with the help of high wide cheek-bones (one cheek-bone on both sides). The profile: a straight nose and a flat forehead that form two planes. The muzzle if of the middle size. The top of the skull is flat and narrow.
Neck	long and slender, but appearing short due to thick fur and high placement of shoulder blades.	Long and straight	Long and slender but it seems to be shorter due to thick fur.
Ears	rather large and wide at the base. Tips more pointed than rounded. The skin of the ears is thin and translucent, with little inside furnishing. The outside of the ear is scantily covered with short, very fine hair, with leather showing through. Set far apart, as much on the side as on the top of the head.	Shape large and rather pointed, wide at the base the skin of the ears is fine and transparent, the inside hardly covered with hair. Placement set vertically to the head.	The width of the ear foot is a little bit less than its height. The ears seem to be pointed though they are somewhat rounded on the tips. They are quite big, widely placed. The upper edges of the ear foot are almost on the crown, the lower ones are on the side surfaces of the head. The width of the ear at the foot is almost equal to its height. The outer part of the ear is covered with short and thin hairs, small brushes take approximately half the inner ear.
Eyes	set wide apart. Aperture rounded in shape. Eye color: vivid green.	Shape large and almond in shape; set wide apart. Colour vivid green.	Quite large, almost round, somewhat oval, sideways in the Eastern manner, placed at the edges of the head far from each other. Adult cats have bright green ones, as for kittens, their eyes change their colour from yellow to green after the 4th month.
Body	fine boned, long, firm, and muscular; lithe and graceful in outline and carriage without being tubular in appearance.	Long body, medium bone structure, but graceful in outline and carriage.	The body is of a foreign (light) constitution, long, the bones are thin, the muscular system is light, developed but it is not massive. The animal may seem to be more thickset because of the thick fur. Cats are larger than cats.
Legs, feet	LEGS: long and fine boned. PAWS: small, slightly rounded. Toes: five in front and four behind. Paw pads: lavender pink or mauve.	Fine and high. Paws small and oval.	The legs are long, thin, muscular, light. The feet are small, well-rounded. The cat seems to stand on the tips of the toes.
Tail	long, but in proportion to the body. Tapering from a moderately thick base	Fairly long and tapering to a point	It is straight, grows narrow from quite a thick foot to a thin tip.
Coat	short, dense, fine, and plush. Double coat stands out from body due to density. It has a distinct soft and silky feel.	Short, dense and very fine; standing up like plush; soft and silky double coat. The texture and appearance of the coat is very different from those of any other breed.	It is short, tender, thin, silky. It is thick, plush, double.
Colour	even bright blue throughout. Lighter shades of blue preferred. Guard hairs distinctly silver-tipped giving the cat a silvery sheen or lustrous appearance. A definite contrast should be noted between ground color and tipping. Free from tabby markings.	Blue-grey, even and clear, with a distinct silver sheen medium blue-grey with a silver sheen preferred.Nose leather blue-grey. Paw pads dark lavender.	Smooth, bright-blue colour all over the body. Light colours are preferable. The hairs are tipped. This gives a silvery radiance to the fur. Kittens may have the elements of the marble picture. The skin of the nose is coal grey, the cushions of the paws are pink-corporal.
Disadvan- tages	kinked or abnormal tail. Locket or button. Incorrect number of toes. Any color other than blue. Long coat.	General: oriental type. Head: square head, round head. Eyes: round eyes, yellowish tone in the eye colour. Body: cobby or thick set. Coat: flat lying coat, tabby markings, bars or shading ("ghost markings"), all other colours than blue.	A weak chin, the eyes are insufficiently green, a little bit irregular bite, white spots or medallions.

The Comparative points scale for the estimation of the Russian blue cat

	CFA	FIFe	TICA
Head	25	25	15
Neck			3
Ears			5
Eyes	15	10	10
Body	20	30	15
Legs			5
Feet			2
Tail			5
Coat	20	30	20
Colour	20	30	20
Condition		5