If you’re looking to buy or adopt a Persian cat you may have wondered what their personality is like.
Are they as angry as they often look?
Will they get on with my other pets/children/family members?
I was the same before buying Milo, my Persian cat. I often wondered what these glamorous, long-haired cats were like.
My only real recollection of a Persian cat was from the James Bond movies when Blofield (the bad guy) was seen petting a white doll-faced Persian cat.
This, in addition to their angry stance, made me “prejudge” the Persian as being this grumpy cat that would most likely bite you if you came within a 1-meter radius of it.
My friends and family also seemed to have a similar view of the Persian cat. Is British movie culture to blame for this? Surely not.
Persians are popular for their laid back, loving personality. There is more to a Persian’s personality, however. Take heed, Persians are cats, and cats are all different, just like we as humans are all different. We can tell you some personality traits Persians have, but your kitty may or may not have all of these and some traits may not fit at all. You may also notice that your Persian shows a lot of Persian qualities, but also has traits of their own that only they exhibit.
What is the Personality of a Persian Cat?
Despite their grumpy appearance, Persian cats are quite warm and caring. They like nothing more than to lounge about.
Persian cats are known to be calm and loving toward their owners and often toward guests in their home. Persians, unlike other cats, like being picked up and held. They will sneak into a guest’s lap if given the advantage.
They aren’t the docile, lazy cat people often portray them to be, in my experience. And this isn’t just based on my Persian cat, Milo. This is based on speaking to other Persian cat owners.
I find Milo to be quite active and he often likes to chase Teddy (my British Shorthair) around the house. They will sprint after each other and play “catch”. Sometimes this gets a little too vigorous and I must referee, but this certainly breaks the mold of the Persian cat being a quiet cat that loves to just curl up and sleep.
Milo has quite a mixed personality, he has small characteristics of lots of different breeds.
He can be lazy, aggressive, silly, playful, loyal, moody, aloof, affectionate, placid, or vocal at any given point.
As a result, it’s hard to define the Persian cat as any of the above traits, often people say the Persian is very quiet and calm, but most owners I know (with exception of a few) don’t find this to be the case.
Another trait of the Persian cat is that they are soft-spoken, they don’t meow a lot. Their voice when they use it is soft and quiet. They will use their meow to voice needs when they aren’t met. Persians, however, have big purrs and they seem to love to purr for long periods, gaining them the name of purr machines.
Persians aren’t demanding, they won’t follow you around telling you it’s time to put their food out like some breeds tend to do. They love to spend most of their time sitting quietly or curled up asleep. These cats, once used to the grooming they need, will settle in and accept that the daily grooming is part of the routine. There may be exceptions to this as we stated above, that Persian personalities can’t be wrapped up in one neat package, they are each individual and their personalities will show that.
As you’ve probably figured out from reading the above Persians are laid back cats. They love to sit around or curl up and sleep more than wanting out of the house, which is just as well. Persians need daily grooming and it’s much better if they are living completely indoors.
They don’t like much noise so if you have a boisterous household, you will want to make sure your Persian has a place of their own to get away and hide from the noise and craziness. Persians can be playful. They like to play with toy mice or if you want to interact with your cat, they love those feather toys.
Do Persian Cats Get Along with Other Cats?
If you’re looking to buy or adopt a Persian cat and you already have another cat you may be wondering if their personality will be a good fit for your existing cat.
As with any pet, introducing a new member into the household should be done gradually that way you may avoid any unpleasant situations. Your Persian, whether they are the one that lives with you or if they are the one you are introducing probably won’t be the one with the problem of a new pet being added or being added to the house themselves. They, as we’ve stated before are a calm breed.
Even with gradual introductions, you may still find some tensions between your Persian and other pets. That is to be expected. In time, however, you may find your Persian and other pets become friends.
We bought Teddy, a British Shorthair, about 12 months after getting Milo. Milo wasn’t very accepting at first, it did take time and there were plenty of fights and pawing along the way. They do get along better now and most of the time there aren’t any issues but there is still the odd fight, usually instigated by Milo.
What about dogs, you ask?
The same idea will work when introducing your Persian to the family dog as you do with your other cats. Most dogs don’t mind a cat if they know that the cat is part of the family. It is a bit of a myth that cats and dogs are always enemies.
Does the Persian Cat Personality Lend Well to Being a House Cat?
As you’ve figured out from reading the above, Persians are laid back cats. They love to sit around or curl up and sleep more than wanting out of the house, which is just as well. Persians need daily grooming and it’s much better if they are living completely indoors. They will adapt quite well to your house or apartment, often gazing out the windows watching the day go by or lounging by the fire on a cold winter day.
They don’t like much noise so if you have a boisterous household, you will want to make sure your Persian has a place of their own to get away and hide from the noise and craziness.
Persians can be playful. They like toy mice or if you want to interact with your cat, they love those feather wand toys.
Their calm nature and laid-back personality make them a great house cat.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re looking to buy a Persian cat or looking to take in a rescue, then you can be assured that their personality will align quite well with your household in most instances.
When I was looking to buy my Persian cat I couldn’t find much good quality Persian cat information. That was the main reason for me creating this blog.
I hope this post has given you a good understanding of the Persian cat personality.
What about your Persian? What personality does your kitty have? We’d like to know so, feel free to drop a message in the comments section below.
It was nice to know that Persian cats are generally very warm and caring although each of them has their own unique characteristic. This is a nice information for me because I’m planning to give my sister a kitten. She said that she wanted a kitten that can be so sweet to her and make her feel loved. Since she loves small pets, I’ll be sure to shop for a teacup Persian kitten.
I would avoid the teacups – Persians are notorious for health issues (especially the peke faced ones) and that’s only exacerbated in the teacups. She will face mounds of vet bills and a shortened lifespan, not to mention the designer price tag of the kitten. Persians aren’t huge cats, mine is half the size of my mutt tabby, they’re just all fur. For the cat’s health and your sister’s wallet’s sake – I feel you should get a regular cat not a teacup.
I have an exotic shorthair and I agree with your description. She is very sweet with family members including children and old persons. She is super easy going with humans but not with other cats as she is quite territorial. She likes to go around in the garden of our country house but never very far and gets scared easily. I experienced the fact that she doesn’t appreciate to be left alone for a long time so whenever we go on vacations, I leave her at friends and family instead of leaving her at home and having someone come by for catsitting daily. The hard thing is to convince my friends and family to let me take her back upon my return : )
She sounds adorable and just like my Milo!
I have a Persian cat called Ellie,she is thirteen now, I adopted her with another Persian but unfortunately she passed away, Ellie is not a meat eater an only eats Royal biscuits an drinks water, should I try an give her a little cats milk,I’m not so sure.
You could try some cat milk, have you tried lightly cooked white fish? My cats both love fish.
Cats are obligate carnivores – meaning they REQUIRE meat to be healthy. Cats absolutely cannot be fed a vegetarian or vegan diet. Please speak with your vet about Ellie’s diet, I feel you are doing her a disservice.
Hello! Thank you for this post, I cant seem to find many blogs on Persian cats. I trust blogs because they come from personal experience. I am debating between a Persian cat and a British shorthair. I read you have both! I am looking for a quieter calmer cat, I live in an apartment. Can you tell me a little more about British shorthair personalities from your experience? Any tips would be appreciated! Thank you.
Hi Gabriela,
I do indeed have both I wrote a post you may find helpful http://persiancatcorner.com/persian-cat-vs-british-shorthair-how-different-are-they/ I find my British Shorthair to be the calmer of the two. My Persian doesn’t fit many of the “laid-back” often cited characteristics of the Persian. He’s generally boisterous and can be a bit snappy at times. That’s not to say my British Shorthair just lounges around all day, as he doesn’t he loves to play too but he’s happier to play on his own and doesn’t demand attention as much as the Persian.
The other factor you need to consider is grooming, the Persian needs lots of grooming, typically on a daily basis. The British Shorthair is much lower maintenance and only needs brushing about once per week.
Based on what you are looking for I’d say the British Shorthair would be your best bet, as they are calm and laid-back. They don’t like to be picked up generally and prefer to be on the ground. Neither are lap cats.
It’s important to note that you can get many different personalities within the breeds so stereotypes of each breed can differ on a cat to cat basis.
In this video I recorded you can get an idea of their personalities a bit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bNwIqUQGAU
Let me know how you get on or if you have anymore questions, I’m more than happy to help.
Shaun
Good morning 🙂 I am getting my first Persian baby next week Friday but need to decide on a boy or girl, they are both absolutely beautiful making it hard to choose (I have a mixed breed female cat who is great but not so keen to be touched) what would you recommend?) most sites say they are the same if they are spayed) I also dont want my female to rub off on another female making them the same (I want to be able to touch and play with my kitten/cat) thank you 🙂
Hi Cheryl, It’s difficult to say generally, as there are so many variations in personalities even within the breed. Generally, the males will be more dominant even when sprayed, my male Persian is very feisty around unknown cats but is fine with my other male cat. Males tend to grow slightly bigger also, so this is something to consider. I don’t think the sex will make a massive difference, in all honesty, I think the introduction and their own individual personalities will be the defining factor. Let us know how you get on!
Shaun
one of my persian kittens meow is so low I can barley hear it. Wondering if this is a permanent situation.