Exotic Shorthair
A Persian in a short coat, face and all, which is exactly how it was bred. All the Persian calm and none of the daily grooming.
Overview
The Exotic Shorthair is a Persian in a short coat. It was created by crossing Persians to American Shorthairs and then breeding back to Persian type, and it is often sold as the low maintenance Persian.
That description is true about the coat and false about everything else. It has the same flat brachycephalic face as the Persian, and therefore the same set of problems that face causes.
Temperament
Calm, gentle and quiet. Exotics are affectionate lap cats with a little more of the American Shorthair's playfulness than a Persian usually has.
They are undemanding, tolerant of children, and content in a quiet household. They are not athletic and they do not ask to be.
Care and grooming
The coat genuinely is easier: a weekly brush rather than daily combing.
The face is not. A study of over three thousand Persians found haircoat, dental and eye disorders at the top of the list, and those follow directly from the shortened skull that the Exotic shares. Daily face and eye cleaning is a real routine job, and tear staining, blocked tear ducts, dental crowding and noisy breathing are common.
Living and exercise
An indoor cat in a calm home. They overheat more easily than a normal cat because a shortened airway cools less efficiently, so hot weather needs managing.
Polycystic kidney disease came in with the Persian ancestry, it has a DNA test, and a breeder should be able to show a clear result for both parents. Ask for it.
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