Most feline organisations define the Siberian and Neva Masquerade breeds as one breed, the only difference being the so-called points. The Fifé (Fédération Internationale féline), to which our club also belongs, separates them into two breeds approved for crossbreeding.
Body
According to the standard, Siberians and Neva Masquerades are medium to large sized cats. The normal weight of males is 6 – 9kg, for females 4 – 5.5kg.
Their body is strong and massive on powerful legs of medium length.
The paws are round and have tufts of hair between the toes, these “snow shoes” are designed to make the cats sink less in the high snow.
Head and eyes
The head is large and has the shape of a broad, rounded trapezium. The ears are medium sized and rounded; they rarely have – although desired by the standard – tufts at the tips (this makes the rounded ears appear rather pointed).
The eyes of the Siberian and Neva Masquerade cats are medium sized, rounded and expressive. The eye colour of the Siberian (all shades of green and yellow are permitted) does not depend on the coat colour.In Neva Masquerade cats the eye colour is blue with varying intensity, but the darker the more popular.
Fur
The most characteristic features of these breeds are the abundant, double and water-repellent undercoat and the semi-long outer coat with a grippy texture. The amount of undercoat depends on the season, in spring it is shed (coat change) and in late autumn it grows back luxuriantly. The standard is mostly oriented towards the winter coat and states: The collar on the neck, the knickers (similar to knickerbockers) on the hind legs and the tail are very fluffy.
Development
They are usually not fully developed until they are three years old. From this age, they have fully developed their eye and coat colour and their great coat quality and are magnificent to look at.
