Seal Point Siamese Cats – the Original, and Best-Known of the Siamese Colors

The Dark and Handsome Ones!

Seal point Siamese cats are the 'original' Meezers, the ones most people (well, most people who aren't already owned by one of these fascinating creatures) imagine when they think of Siamese cats.

The ones seen in movies and cartoons and on TV. The ones that generally give the breed a bad name!

But how do you recognize them? What are they really like? And how do you tell a seal point from a chocolate point, or any other color? Let's find out.

Coloring

Seal point Siamese cats are named after seals, which are dark, brownish-black in color, so when you think seal, think dark.

They have creamy coats and dark, almost black, seal-brown points. (The points are the facial mask, ears, tail, paws, nose leather and paw pads, which should all be the same dark brown color.)

Of all the Siamese colors, they have the widest variation in body color. When they're young - up to about the age of two years old - their coats are usually a pale cream, but this point color (unlike the chocolate point) tends to darken with age.

Although the fur on the chest, neck and stomach may stay quite pale, their backs usually darken to a cold-toned, caramel, beige and may even turn dark brown, so that in later life there could be little difference in color between the hair on their backs and their tails (as you can see in the photo below).

Show judges tend to give preference to seal points with pale bodies, so it's unusual to see one in a show ring much after the age of two.

Personality

Any discussion about different personality traits among the point colors will of necessity be a generalization, so take that as a given! But there do seem to be some differences and many owners swear that seal points are haughty, and chocolate points are jokers, and blue points are lovers, and torties are naughty ... and so on.

Seal points are very much the elegant aristocrats of the Siamese world, independent and dignified - and don't they know it! They're real creatures of habit, dislike change, and can be quite possessive - jealous guardians of their owners' affections.

They'll quickly let you know - with a piercing glance, a strident 'miaowrr!', or even a quick tackle of your ankles - when they disapprove of something you're doing.

Seal or Chocolate Point? What's the Difference? How Do You Tell?

One of the questions that crops up regularly in cat forums and on social media is how to tell the difference between a seal and a chocolate point. In general terms, seal points are dark-coated and chocolate points are much paler, seal points have cold-toned fur, chocolate points have warm-toned fur.

The most reliable way to tell the difference between the two is to look at their paw pads. Seal points have dark brown, almost black paw pads, while chocolate point paw pads are milk-chocolate brown with a pinkish undertone. So if the paw pads are pinkish, and the coat is pale, the chances are you've got a chocolate point.

The photo below is of a chocolate point. Compare this with the photo of the seal point above. And then look at the paw pads on this one - you can immediately see the pinkish chocolate paw pads.

You can find out more about the chocolate point Siamese here; there's also a wonderful picture of a seal point and a chocolate point together on that page that clearly shows the difference.

Seal Point Siamese Kittens

All Siamese kittens are born white and it can take several weeks for their points to come through and become distinct.

At a very young age it's quite difficult to tell seal point kittens from their blue counterparts, although both tend to develop their point colors more quickly than chocolate or lilac points.

The photo below was sent to us by reader Rosalyn, of her seal and chocolate point kittens Sammy and Lucy. You can read their story here and see further pictures of them.

In the photo below, Sammy, on the left, is the seal point and Lucy, on the right, is the chocolate point. As you can see, the seal point's mask is more defined than the chocolate point's.

The Seal Point in Related Breeds

The seal point pattern is not exclusive to Siamese cats (nor, indeed, exclusively to cats - it's also found in rabbits, rats and mice!)

You find it in many other cat breeds including some we've written about on other pages and in particular:

• Balinese
• Birmans
• Himalayans
• Javanese
• Ragdolls
• Snowshoes
  
• Tonkinese
  

Related Pages

• An Overview of All The Siamese Point Colors
  
• Chocolate Point Siamese
• Blue Point Siamese
• Lilac Point Siamese
  

Advertisement

FTC Disclosure: If you make a purchase via a link on this site, I may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. See our Affiliates Disclosure for further details.