Breed of shorthaired cat, a short-coated version of the Persian cat. The exotic shorthair was developed accidentally by an American breeder in the late 1960s who was trying to produce a chocolate-coloured Persian. Abyssinian, American Shorthair, Burmese, British Shorthair, and Russian Blue cats were crossed with Persians during this attempt, which resulted in the exotic shorthair. Breeders later began crossing only American shorthairs with Persians to produce the exotic shorthair.

The exotic shorthair has a short, somewhat stocky body with short, muscular legs. The chest is deep, and large shoulders and hips add to this cat’s well-rounded appearance. The medium- to large-sized head is round, with full cheeks. Wide-set eyes are large and round. Small, round-tipped ears sit low and tilt forward. Like the Persian, the nose of the exotic shorthair is broad and snub. This cat carries its tail below the back.

The coat of the exotic shorthair is soft and plush. The thick fur, while short, is longer than that of the American shorthair. The white, black, blue, red, or cream colouring appears as a solid colour, in a multi-coloured pattern, or in a colourpoint (characteristic large spots of darker fur on the face, ears, legs and tail, contrasting with a lighter body colouring).

The exotic shorthair is one of the most popular breeds at cat shows. It requires less grooming than a Persian, making it a pet easy to care for. .

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