Turkish Van Cat Breed - Overview and History

Dog Breeds

The Turkish Van cat breed is one of the larger, more heavily-built domestic cat breeds. Males average between 10 and 20 pounds, and females weigh substantially less.

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Introduction

The Turkish Van is one of the larger, more heavily-built domestic cat breeds. Males average between 10 and 20 pounds, and females weigh substantially less. They have long, strong legs, massive rounded paws and well-defined muscles, which allow them to be very strong jumpers. Their head is blunt and wedge-shaped, with a short muzzle and large, prominent tufted ears. The overall appearance of the Turkish Van is one of sturdiness wrapped up in a luxurious fur coat.

The Turkish Van is considered to be a semi-longhaired breed. Most cats have three distinct types of hair in their coats: outer guard hairs, awn hairs in the middle and downy hairs underneath. The Turkish Van lacks the guard hairs and the wooly undercoat. The plush single coat of this breed feels like cashmere or rabbit fur. The area of their origin – the Lake Van region of southeast Turkey - is a land of temperature extremes. These cats have developed an environmentally appropriate wrapping. In the winter, they have a dense, long, thick single coat that provides protection against the bitter winters of their homeland and is fairly waterproof. They also develop a substantial ruff around the neck and a long, magnificently plumed tail. When warmer weather comes around, they shed their coat and actually appear to be a much shorter-haired animal. However, the full bottle-brush tail is kept year round. As the Van matures, its coat gets increasingly lush.

The Turkish Van has a distinctive chalky white coat, which should show no signs of yellow. Ideally, the only darker markings are restricted to the head and tail, although sometimes localized thumbprints of color do appear on the body. On the head, the markings should be localized to the area above the eyes and should not extend below or behind the base of the ears. Most Vans have a white blaze. The other distinctly darker area is the fluffy, plumed tail. The most common base colors are Auburn and Cream (these are the only colors recognized in Great Britain). Each of these exists in three separate varieties based upon eye color, which can be blue, amber, or an odd-eyed combination of one of each. In all cases, the large, oval, expressive eyes of the Turkish Van are rimmed in pink. The odd-eyed variety is preferred by many fanciers of this breed.

History

The Turkish Van is a rare, naturally-occurring breed that originated in a remote, rugged region of southeastern Turkey, around that country’s largest inland body of water, Lake Van, which spans more than 1400 square miles. These cats were originally brought to Europe from the Middle East by returning crusaders. They have been known over the centuries by various names, including the White Ringtail and the Russian Longhair. They developed in central and southwest Asia, in areas that are now Iran, Iraq, the former southeast Soviet Union and eastern Turkey. For Turkish Vans, the word “Van” refers to their color pattern, where the color is restricted to the head and the tail, and the rest of the cat is white. This name was given to them to distinguish them from the Turkish Angora.

Concerted development of this beautiful breed began in Great Britain in 1955, after two English photographers, Laura Lushington and Sonia Halliday, brought a pair of Vans back with them from a trip to Istanbul. They brought a stocky white female with flashes of auburn head color and a full auburn tail, and a male with similar markings. After four years, they were successfully breeding litters of consistently marked kittens. The two English women returned to Turkey and acquired another male and female, to broaden the gene pool of the English Vans. The breed was officially recognized in Great Britain in 1969, as the Turkish Cat. The name was later changed to the Turkish Van. The International Cat Association (TICA) granted the Turkish Van championship status in June of 1979. This breed was independently imported into the United States from Turkey in 1982.

Despite some similarity in appearance, coat and coloring, there has been no established link between the Turkish Angora and the Turkish Van. These are distinct breeds that developed in different geographical regions of Turkey and that have distinctly different body types, size, bone and coats. The Turkish Van is considered a regional treasure in Turkey and is not readily available for export to breeders outside of that country. This is a very rare breed indeed, even in its country of origin.

Health Predispositions

Blue-eyed Turkish Vans are prone to deafness. Odd-eyed cats may also have hearing deficiencies on the side of their blue eye. This breed is slow to mature and may not reach full adulthood until 3 or 4 years of age. Vans are not prolific breeders, with litters averaging only about four kittens each.

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