Russian Blue Cat Breed: Information, Health, and Facts

Russian Blue’s are sweet and loyal cats. They are loving with their owners. And will often follow owners around the house. Owners can expect to be greeted at the door when arriving home.

Because of their calm nature, they are not clingy. They can become lap cats when they are happy in their home.

When comfortable and confident in their home and routine, they become more independent and playful. 

Although they are happy to be left alone when their owners are home, they will need a lot of attention to make up for it.

These cats love routine and struggle when there are changes in the household. 

If owners have the patience to socialize the Russian Blue, they will be awarded an abundance of affection. These cats tend to be shy and cautious. They will struggle with new visitors. 

Russian Blue’s are fantastic with their families and love kids, seniors, other cats, and dogs. 

They are medium-sized cats with dense, plush coats. This makes them appear larger than they are. 

They tend to be soft with silky coats. Russian Blue’s are a dark charcoal grey with light shimmering silver on the tips. 

They are low shedding cats and are considered to be hypoallergenic. 

Russian Blue’s eyes are interesting as they are all born with blue eyes. When they reach four months, their eyes will turn yellow with a ring around them. 

Once they mature into adults, their eyes turn a bright green.

Russian Blue cats can be vocal, but they have a soft and gentle voice. They will gently let owners know if they need water, food, or affection.

Because the Russian Blue is highly intelligent, they need stimulating play. It is important to provide them with toys that physically and mentally challenge them.

They are active and energetic when young but become calmer with age.

Russian Blue cats are low maintenance and only need to be brushed once a week. 

They need regular teeth cleaning, nail trimming, and ear cleaning.

These intelligent cats are easy to train.

Owners need to make sure they feed their Russian Blue’s a controlled diet of good quality food. They tend to become obese.

Russian Blue’s tend to live between 15 to 20 years. This has been linked to the fact that they are a natural breed.

They are prone to progressive retinal atrophy (PRA). This is a deterioration of the retina or the vision at the center of the eye.

They can develop polycystic kidney disease (PKD). This is when the kidneys become full of fluid so that all of the space is filled with liquid. This will stop them from working.
 

Origin

Russia

Health

Dr. Adedapo Adisa:

Like their name, the Russian blue cat, referred to by many breeders as the Russian blue, is a cat breed native to Russia with a distinctive bluish-grey haircoat.

The Russian blue cats are an affectionate breed that gets along with family and is known to be healthy with a long life expectancy that averages between 12-20years.

Although a healthy breed, the Russian blue is quite prone to certain inherited conditions due to a mutated gene that has been passed from parents to the kittens. 

An inherited condition observed in the Russian blue cats is progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), affecting the eyes.

Another inherited condition seen in the Russian blue affects the kidneys from excretory activities, known as polycystic kidney disease (PKD).

Progressive retinal atrophy in the Russian blue is a condition affecting photoreceptors of the retina. The retina is a thin layer that houses the photoreceptors (rods and cones) that are important in the cat’s vision. 

However, cats with Retinal progressive atrophy are faced with the degeneration of the retina, leading to gradual loss of vision in the Russian blues. In some situations, this condition might result in the Russian blue cats completely losing their sight.

Russian blue cats with progressive retinal atrophy would exhibit some of the signs below.

 

● The cat may appear nervous when in areas with dim light.

● Gradual loss of vision.

● Bumping into static objects on the cat’s pathway.

● Difficulty in seeing clearly at night.

● The pupil may appear excessively dilated.

Once the Russian blue begins to show one or more of these symptoms, it is essential to speak with your veterinarian, who would carry out a couple of eye tests to identify the cause and also work out a management plan.

Your vet might also want to screen the Russian blue for the mutant gene causing progressive retinal atrophy. If positive, the Russian blue cat should be discontinued from breeding.

Another inherited condition seen in the Russian blue cat affects the kidneys, and it’s called polycystic kidney disease. The kidneys perform excretory functions by cleaning the blood from toxic waste and passing them out as urine. 

However, fluid containing pockets known as cyst forms on the kidney from birth in affected Russian blue cats. The cyst increases in size and multiplies as the Russian blue grows, which eventually affects normal kidney functions and kidney failure.

A couple of symptoms that might be found in Russian blue cats with polycystic kidney disease include,

● Vomition and loss of weight in cats.

● Cats have uremic breath.

● Blood may be present in the urine.

● Increased thirst and water intake. 

● Increased passing of urine in the cats.

Russian blue cats that show these signs should be taken to a veterinarian for an examination. 

The vet might run some blood tests and an ultrasound of the kidney to identify cysts. 

It is essential to always screen for the defective gene that causes polycystic kidney disease in the adult Russian blue cats to avoid kittens from inheriting this medical condition.

Adult Russian blues diagnosed should be discontinued from breeding programs.