Russian Blue is my favorite cat breed of all. This article is for all cat lovers who want to get themselves a fury friend but still hesitate on the breed choice.

Russian Blue Kittens

Russian Blue kittens have something special: they have a different look from adult cats: their eyes are blue, not green, with an oval, funny shape which makes the little cute things simply adorable. As they grow up, their face starts to change, and when they are about three months of age they already look like their parents. However, the transformation is not complete: their fur isn't uniform gray yet: it has dark stripes which will fade over the following months.

By the age of three months, kittens look already like the two cuties in the photo above. The breed shows sexual dimorphism: female cats are smaller, while males are bigger, longer and more athletic.

The Russian Blues' ears are fantastic: they are covered with very fine, small hairs, which make them appear transparent when you look at them into the light. It's amazing how visible all those tiny blood vessels are and how delicate the "material" of the ears seems to be. They look so fragile, that I always hesitate to touch my kitty's ears.

The paws are dark brown, small and delicate. Occasionally, your blue cat may allow you to give her a paw massage - it's very relaxing for both parties. This is how you can convince the kitty that cutting her nails is a good thing. You have to trim her claws weekly if you want to enjoy your playing sessions to the full, without human blood spread on the floors.

Russian Blue's Personality

If you imagined a cat that would sit in your lap for hours, begging for petting, you couldn't have been more wrong. Don't get yourself a Russian Blue, or you'll regret it. This cat is always alert, she wants to play, she needs amusement, she breathes entertainment. No matter how big your house may be, it's not big enough for the young Russian Blue cat who's in the mood for playing. Also be informed that kittens go in the playing mood about six-seven times a day (nights included), while adult cats do it three-four times a day only (again, nights are included).

That's my kitty in the photo: did you think I was joking maybe? It's really a cat, not a big, gray spider. It's true that she was about 6-7 months old when she did those jumping tricks - now she's three years old and two kilos fatter, so she doesn't dare doing that anymore. Yet, she now has other tricks more suitable for her age. As you can see, she's got a fascination for keyboards (and for my purses, but that you won't see, because I can't just take photos while she's scratching my Mango purse).

If you're thinking of training a Russian Blue, you should rather see yourself in one year's time speaking "kittish" - she's the master in training humans. I tried clicker training and she ignored the treats after only two days of clicking and feeding the beast. I tried leash training: it took me about two weeks to convince her that she will survive with her leash on. There were lots of funny moments, but I was too scared to take photos - I thought she'd get strangled with that leash while jumping around all over the place, hoping to get rid of it. When I tried to give her a bath, I bet my neighbors on 6-7 floors hated me deeply. It's enough to say that I don't dare to wash my cat ever since that day. As long as she doesn't stink, I don't mind it.

But on the other hand, if you want a pal always ready to play with you, always watching you, following you throughout all rooms, if you want somebody to be happy and jump to kiss you each time you come home, then the Russian Blue is just perfect (or maybe purrrfect). She can even send unfinished email - there's no need for special training to make her do that. And if you want to put her skills to test, just leave her alone with a toilet paper roll and see what comes out. I did it:

In terms of grooming, Russian Blues don't need special attention, as they are short haired cats. Just brush them once or twice a week to minimize the amount of hair they swallow and that's all. I'm going to share some more tricks with you such as how to give your cat a pill or how to teach her a few words, but these are topics for future articles.

Kitten photos kindly provided by Cendre de Roses Russian Blue Cattery