SILVERSAFARI BENGALS
We
were the first breeders to import and breed silver Bengals in the UK in
2003 and have written or contributed to many published articles
on Silver Bengals. At the moment Silvers are very much "in
development" and we have seen a large variation in quality between
the many silvers which have subsequently been imported or bred. True
completely untarnished cats are very rare indeed (despite many claims to
the contrary!) and one of the major challenges which breeders face is to
ensure Silvers develop the all important Bengal Type. Breeders must be
selective for this when importing and subsequently breeding silvers and although silvers are
now readily available for import there is a wide variation in the quality of
these cats.
Why did we choose to import Silvers?
When we first encountered Bengals our main
attraction was the brown spotted cats - though we have
owned and bred snows,
only very recently have we seen snows with anything like the depth and clarity
of markings which we are happy with. However, we were fortunate at one point to
see a photo in an international Bengal publication of
one of the "Silvergene"
silvers in the USA developed by the geneticist Linda Evans MD. Nothing could
have prepared us to see a cat with such a very light silver/white background and
beautiful huge black rosetted spots. Quite simply they are breathtaking. Even
the very finest snow Bengals available cannot match the depth and
quality of markings a good silver Bengal has. After much research we eventually went on the waiting list for a silver from
the highly respected Silvergene line. As the silvers are rapidly gaining
popularity in the USA at the moment we had a
long wait before a kitten became available to bring over to the UK as many US
breeders were already ahead of us on the list. However our patience was rewarded and in 2003 we became the first UK breeders to import these
new silver lines into the UK with our silver girl
"Silvergene Angel". We have also registered a new
"prefix" (cattery name) to be used for these silvers -
"Silversafari". Angel has now had several litters and so far we
have kept Silversafari Eliane - a gorgeous female with superb rosettes,
type and clarity. We have also bred Silversafari Cassanova - an absolutely
stunning boy with some of the best full rosetting we have seen on any
Bengal regardless of colour.
What is a Silver?
Silvers are not a new colour to Bengals - as a result of outcrosses at the start of the breeds' development they have been cropping up occasionally since the breed began. However it has been bred out of the breed and hasn't been developed as a colour until very recently in the US. The Silver Bengal is really a fully coloured Bengal which has the "I" gene - this gene causes the colour to be inhibited leaving just a whitish coat with the black/charcoal markings in place. We have seen nothing to compare with this depth of marking on the traditional Snow Bengals and decided that we simply had to play our part in the development of Silvers in the UK.
The quality of Silvers.
As the silver colour is really a normal coloured bengal with the colour inhibited by the "I" gene, the quality of the coat is dependant on the effectiveness of the "I" gene in inhibiting the colour. As a result breeders in the US have used outcrosses to pursue the most effective "I" genes. Where these "I" genes are less effective we get tarnishing, this is when the original colour/rufousness is still present in varying degrees. Our aim is to develop lines which consistently breed clear silvers with good Bengal type - this is still very much work in progress though there are some very good silvers around now.
A Breeders Dilemma? What Effect Will Silvers Have On A Brown Line?
Well!
Look at this Brown Rosetted boy Silversafari Son of Khan on the left. A TICA
double grand champion at his first adult show at just 10 months of age! He is a
brown out of Silvergene Angel!
The Silver "I" gene is a dominant gene. Where a cat inherits the silver "I" gene it is silver.
As Silver is a dominant gene, if you breed a silver with a brown you will get some kittens which inherit the "I" gene which will be silver, and some kittens which do not inherit the "I" gene which will be brown. These browns cannot carry the "I" gene and pass it on to subsequent generations- if a cat has inherited the "I" gene it will be a silver. (It can however carry the Brown gene so occasionally two Silvers which carry the Brown gene can produce some Brown kittens!)
Many Silvers may also carry what is known as the wide band gene which is possibly responsible for clearing unwanted ticking from the tips of the hair shafts and improving clarity and colour. Thus, Silvers can produce glorious golden brown kittens with stunning colour and clarity. We have seen many wonderful browns off silvers, we have also bred several browns off silvers ourselves and have found them often to be of excellent quality.
Silvers are recognised by TICA in the USA and Europe (the first TICA shows in the UK have already been successfully held in the UK with International judges)
E-mail Peter@bramblewood.co.uk
Peter & Christine Edwards
telephone 01746 710498
or 07815 993590