Tonkinese

Character:
The Tonkinese is an extravert and affectionate cat. He loves company and adventures. Qua figure and character he exactly fits between the Burmese and the Siamese. The Tonkinese is a rangy, but muscled cat of the Eastern type. He is heavier than he looks.     In Great-Britain and outside Europe the Tonkinese is very popular and has especially been bred in the USA for many years. In 1933 the first (genetically proved) Tonkinese was imported in the USA by Mr. J.C. Thompson. Her name was Wong Mau and she has played an important role in the development of the modern Burmese in the USA. Long before 1930 Tonkinese-colored cats had been seen in South-East-Asia; these cats were called Tonkinese cats since the Gulf of Tonkin was positioned on the same degree of latitude as Burma and Siam (Thailand). Since a couple of years the Tonkinese has also been acknowledged in the Netherlands by the independent associations. Unfortunately they haven’t been acknowledged yet by the FIFE associations. The Tonkinese is sometimes, wrongly, called the hybrid breed, although this isn’t true. The famous geneticist, Roy Robinson, has said that the Tonkinese isn’t a hybrid, since hybrid is the result of a crossing between two different breeds. He thought that the Tonkinese had been developed out of crossings between two existing breeds, enabled by a “freak of nature” in the genetics of the fur color. Since the modern Tonkinese is a kind of “reconstruction” of Wong Mau, only the first generations are Tonkinese crossings. The fact that the breed produces 3 different fur patterns isn’t a “failure” but “unique” and doesn’t mean that the Tonkinese wouldn’t be purebred, on the contrary, the “type” is just as purebred as the type of another purebred cat.  

There are three Tonkinese fur patterns: 
1. The “mink”, also called Tonkinese colored, these cats have an interme-diaire color (cbcs)
2. The “sepia” (solid), these have the least visible points and the darkest fur patterns. (cbsb) (left on the photo.)
3. The “pointed”, these cats have clear points and the body has the lightest fur pattern. (cscs)

It is important that all 3 fur patterns are accepted. Unfortunately, critics still make the mistake to say that Tonkinese x Tonkinese, will bring Tonkinese, Burmese and Siamese kittens. This isn’t true. The Tonkinese isn’t only determined by the fur pattern but also by the “type”.
Clarification: The Siamese has the gene pair cs-cs, but that doesn’t mean that each cat with cs-cs is a Siamese, let’s for example look at the Balinese, H. Burman and Himalayan, these cats also have the gene pair cs-cs, but aren’t Siamese because of that. The cs and cb only aren’t completely dominant with respect to each other and produce the unique Tonkinese cb=cs variations of the Tonkinese. Because the appearance (type) of the Tonkinese is different than the appearance of the Siamese or Burmese, it is genetically and phenotypically wrong to give the Tonkinese with the gene pair cs-cs or cb-cb another name than Tonkinese. It is therefore important that all 3 fur patterns are acknowledged and used for breeding.

The most known fur colors are the “classic” colors:
natural (brown, seal)
blue
chocolate (champagne)
lilac (platinum)
Outside the USA other colors are also allowed like: Caramel, red, cream, cinnamon, fawn and apricot and all relevant colors in Tortoise and Tabby patterns. Concerning the eye color:
”Minks” have aquamarine colored eyes, varying from blue-green to green-blue.
”Sepia’s” have green/yellow eyes.
”Points” have a clear blue eye color.   

Appearance
The Tonkinese is medium-sized and is an Eastern type. The body should be solid and muscled; the head, body, paws and tail must be in proportion, so that it forms a balanced whole.

The fur pattern is unique. The ears, the mask, paws, feet and tail should be darker, switching to a lighter tint of the same color on the body. The cat should be friendly and must look heavier than he really is. Tonkinese cats can develop themselves late. Around their second year they have been fully grown.

Color
The Tonkinese fur pattern is unique. It is a subtle color mixing of tints, from the darker eyes, mask, paws, feet and tail to the lighter body color. There are uniform and pointed markings. The feet and paws may be lighter than the other points, but they must fit with the cat’s color. The body color should become slightly lighter towards the bottom.
The body may not show a tabby marking with not-tabby adult cats. The hair color must become lighter towards the hair-roots. The development of the fur pattern with kittens may take place slowly and may show a slight tabby marking, which may not be considered a failure.  

Pictures & breedinformation by Tonkinese cattery Boonestaakjes