APPEARANCE
The breed is known for its unique distinctive pattern, a white cat with strikingly coloured head and tail.
It is a large muscular cat, with evident strength and power in its substantial body and legs.The breed doesn’t gain full maturity until around three years of age. Individual cats should convey an overall impression of a well balanced, well proportioned, and strong appearance in which no one feature is exaggerated.
The head of a Turk is a substantial broad wedge, with a medium to long nose that is straight but with a barely perceptible dip in profile. Ears are moderately large, well feathered, fairly close together, and set high on the head.The eyes are large and oval, alert and expressive, of the requisite colour with pink rims.
The body is long and sturdy, broad, muscular, and deep-chested, especially the males.The legs are well-boned and medium in length with neat feet that are well rounded and tufted.The tail should be a full brush, long enough to balance with the body.
The Turk is a semi-long-haired breed; the fur should be long, soft, and silky to the roots with no woolly undercoat, and is quite water resistant. In the winter, the coat is noticeably longer and heavier than in the summer.The neck and chest ruff become more pronounced with age.
The coat colour is chalk white with no trace of yellow.There must be colour markings on the head but not below the level of the eye or beyond the base of the rear of the ears; the colour on the head should be separated by a vertical white blaze.The nose is white and the ears should be white with delicate shell pink inside.The brush is fully coloured and the nose leather and paw pads pink.
Auburn, black, blue, tortoiseshell, cream, blue tortie, brown tabby, blue tabby, tortie tabby, and blue tortie tabby. Each different colourway can have one of three different eye colours: light to medium amber, blue, or odd-eyes — one of each colour.
The Turkish Vankedisi has a completely chalk white coat and the same eye colours allowed as in the Turkish Van.
The Turkish Van is recognised in ten different colourways