The round 'teddy bear' face and dense plush coat of the show standard sit on a breed that Cornell's feline health center lists among those with an elevated rate of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a silent heart disease that can kill without warning, so a breeder who can't show recent cardiac screening on both parents is a real red flag, not a formality.
9.58years, life expectancy at birth
2.2 years below the all-cat life expectancy at birth of 11.74.
Measured, not estimated: worked out from 7,936 UK cats that died in 2019 under veterinary care. Based on 194 deaths of this breed. 95% confidence interval 8.73 to 10.43 years. Life expectancy at birth is the average a kitten of this breed could expect; a cat that is already an adult has a longer expected total, because it has got past the risky early years. UK cats, so treat it as the best available figure rather than a promise about yours.
Teng et al. 2024, Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery 26(5) — open access · figures cited with attributionHealth tests to ask the breeder for
There is no CHIC program for cats. These are the DNA and screening tests that the testing laboratories and cat health bodies name for the British Shorthair. A breeder who tests will show the certificates; a DNA result of "clear" for one variant is not a guarantee against the disease.
- PKD1 DNA test (UC Davis VGL / Langford Vets) screens for autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease
- British Shorthair Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative Syndrome (ALPS, FASL) DNA test (Langford Vets) screens for fatal kitten lymphoproliferative disease
- PRA-pd (AIPL1) DNA test (UC Davis VGL) Persian-derived progressive retinal atrophy
- Echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) by a veterinary cardiologist, repeated regularly for breeding cats screens for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM); no DNA test covers this breed (GCCF: 'BSH and related breeds' have increased HCM incidence)
When to spay or neuter: by five months, whatever the breed. That is the one answer the AVMA, the feline practitioners and AAHA all give, and the spay and neuter page has why, and the two weeks after.
Sources: langfordvets.co.uk · vgl.ucdavis.edu · vgl.ucdavis.edu · langfordvets.co.uk. Checked September 2026. Check a breeder has the questions.
Adopt a British Shorthair near you
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Living with a British Shorthair
British Shorthairs are famously low-drama: independent, undemanding, content to nap for hours, and not needy about attention or exercise. The plush double coat sheds more than the short-hair look suggests and needs weekly brushing, and because this is a breed prone to both weight gain and heart disease, portion control and periodic cardiac checks matter more here than the laid-back reputation lets on.
Health you should know about
- Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — thickening of the heart muscle that can progress to heart failure or sudden death; Cornell's feline health center lists British Shorthair among the breeds with increased HCM prevalence, and cardiac screening of breeding cats is recommended.
- Obesity — the breed's dense, cobby body type combined with low natural activity makes weight gain easy, and excess weight compounds joint and heart strain.
- Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) has been reported in the breed, most plausibly traced to historic outcrossing with Persians; it is far less common than in Persian lines but worth screening for in breeding stock.
- Hemophilia B, an inherited blood-clotting disorder, has been documented in the breed; it is uncommon but serious when present.
Read the full Cat Care Guide first — costs, daily time, and everything a cat needs before you choose a breed.
Naming a British Shorthair? British dog and cat names, 89 of them, with what they mean.
Sources — 5 references
Last reviewed October 2026. 5 sources listed below. Written and maintained by Petdeals.io. General care information, not veterinary advice — for a sick animal, call a vet.