The Neva Masquerade is a specific colorway of semi long-haired Siberian Forest domestic cat, which originates in Russia.

[1][2][8] References of the ancient Siberian landrace date back a thousand years,[9] but the colourpoint variety did not appear until the 1970-80s.

[9] It has an overall light coat colour with darker solid or tabby point markings on its head, legs, and tail.

As with other colourpoint cats, the Neva Masquerade is nearly white at birth and develops its darker coloured markings whilst ageing.

The Siamese colourpoint pattern is controlled by a heat-sensitive enzyme, which results in darker pigmented extremities on the cooler body parts, i.e. the legs, tail, and head.

Solid-white Siberian cats can also have blue eyes; however, this is due to lack of melanin pigment and not a result of the colourpoint gene.

[11] This shape and the power in their hind legs contribute to their incredible agility and enables them to jump exceptionally high.

Their round face consists of a broad forehead at the top of its skull and narrows slightly to a full-rounded nozzle.

[16] They are slightly tilted forwards[11][16] and should be set as much on the sides of the head as on top,[11] preferably one to one and one half ear width apart.

[7] Because the Neva Masquerades are a slow-maturing breed, it can take several years for the coat of young cats to fully develop.

However, they will still lose fur year-round and need to be groomed daily in order to prevent their dense triple coat from matting.

The Siberian Neva Masquerade cat has been noted for its hypoallergenic properties primarily attributed to lower levels of the Fel d 1 protein.

[4] This Siamese colourpoint mutation provides the distinctive dark point markings and bright blue eyes in Neva Masquerade cats.

[23] The heredity disease has not been found in the gene pool of traditional Siberians; however, it was diagnosed in a male Neva Masquerade cat.

[6][24] The origin of the Neva Masquerade is unclear, and some believe it is related to the Persian cat, which may explain the prevalence of PKD in this breed.

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) stands as a significant health concern in the feline world particularly in Siberian cats.