Breed History

Back in the 1950s, several West Coast Persian breeders crossed their cats with American Shorthairs. Since short hair is dominant over long hair, the result was a number of unusually charming shorthaired kittens with the rounded heads, expressive round eyes, and short, cobby bodies associated with Persians. Back then, these hybrids were considered extremely controversial. However, they proved so popular that in 1966, CFA decided to establish them as a breed. Because so many of these new shorthairs were shaded silver or chinchilla—colors which did not, at the time, exist in any shorthair breeds—the name chosen for the new breed was the Exotic Shorthair. The word “Shorthair” caused confusion and was eventually dropped; today the breed is simply known as the Exotic.