Turkish Van Cat Breed
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The Turkish Van is a large muscular cat, with adult males sometimes weighing as much as 18lb, though often not reaching full maturity until they are three years old. Traditionally their coats were auburn/white or cream/white, the white being a pure ‘chalk’ white with no trace of yellow against the striking colour of the head and tail, and occasionally a spot of colour on the shoulder. However, although the basic coat colour is always white, other colours and patterns have gradually been introduced since 1969, including black, blue, tortie and tabby. The coat is soft and silky, with no woolly undercoat, although the winter coat is denser than the summer coat, and it has a full ruff, which becomes more pronounced with age. The tail is a magnificent full brush, and there are dramatic tufted ears. The eyes are large and oval, with colour varying between blue and amber, or they are often odd-eyed with one eye of each colour.