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Cornish Rex

status: Current

History
The history of the Cornish Rex cat breed started in Cornwall, England, in July 1950 when a tortoiseshell cat named Serena gave birth to a litter of five kittens. Serena's owner, Mrs. Nina Ennismore, noticed that one red and white colored kitten in the litter had an unusual curly coat. This kitten was named Kallibunker and he became the founder of the Cornish Rex breed.
Mrs. Nina Ennismore contacted geneticist AC Jude who suggested that she breed Kallibunker back to his mother. This mating produced a litter of three kittens with the female kitten having a straight coat and two being curly coated males. Sadly, one of the male kittens died, but the other male (named Poldhu) along with his father (Kallibunker) sired further litters. The Cornish Rex was an endangered breed due to the gene pool being very limited in the 1950s and 1960s. Cross-breeding was done with Russian Blues, American Shorthairs, Havana Browns, Siamese and British Shorthair cat breeds. This created a strong foundation for the breed as well as genetic diversity.
Life magazine published an article on the Cornish Rex in 1956 and this article generated attention worldwide. In 1957 Frances Blancheri imported a Cornish Rex into California. This cat was pregnant by her father Poldhu and a litter of 4 kittens were born. This marked the start of the Cornish Rex cat breed in North America.

Description
The Cornish Rex cat breed is a tall, slender cat with a fine boned appearance. Despite their dainty looks, these cats are muscular and strong. This different cat breed has dainty paws and they tend to walk on tip-toe. There is a natural arch to the back which matches a tuck-up to their waist which flows into a long tail. The ears are tall and placed high on the head, with oval eyes that slants upward slightly. The head is often described as looking like an egg on its side.
Males weigh between 8-10 pounds and females weigh between 5-7 pounds.
The most distinguishing feature about the Cornish Rex cat breed is, of course, the coat - even the whiskers on this cat breed are curled.
There are no guard hairs as with most other cats and the hair lies in waves that can be loose or tight. The hair itself is soft and silky and does not require much grooming.
Care should be taken to clean the ears and toes of the Cornish Rex with damp cotton wool as these areas tend to get greasy. The Cornish Rex comes in all patterns and colors, from solid to pointed to tabbies. The body of the Cornish Rex is warm to the touch and their average body temperature is slightly higher than normal.
The American Cornish Rex differs from the UK cat in its head shape, body shape and a little in the coat.

Personality & Temperament
The Cornish Rex cat breed is a social and unreserved cat that likes to be the center of attention.
This different cat breed has earned the nickname of "velcro cat" as it can often be found stuck to its owner!
They are intelligent, athletic and acrobatic, often performing for you like a clown would.
These cats are lively and love to play games. They will learn quickly to play fetch and you will have to play this game for hours on end.
The Cornish Rex makes a wonderful pet as they are very good with children.
If you plan on leaving your cat alone for long periods of time, get a companion cat as the Cornish Rex does not do well on its own.
They are not vocal cats, but rather express emotion through body language with a pat on the cheek with a soft paw or a flip of the tail.Dog breeds with curled hair such as poodles do not shed dead hair until they are brushed and so minimize the risk of allergic responses.
Hopes were that the Cornish Rex cat would be a hypo-allergenic cat breed because of its coat type, and so would be suitable to people with allergies.
However, allergic reactions to cats are due to the protein Fel D1 that is present in hair, saliva and skin of a cat. In other words, the coat type of the cat has little influence on allergies.

Health Issues
The Cornish Rex is a hardy cat breed with few health issues. Due to the short coat, the Cornish Rex is not suited to very cold climates.

Egyptian Mau

Status: Current

History
The Egyptian Mau cat breeds birthplace was Ancient Egypt. Artworks clearly depict this cats ancestors with the distinctive eye markings and spots. Geneticist Leslie Lyons has confirmed that the Egyptian Mau had its origins in Egypt because of genetic and archaeological evidence found there.
This different cat breed first arrived in the USA in 1956 when Russian Princess Nathalie Troubetskoy imported three Egyptian Maus from Italy. She had been in exile from Russia in Italy after World War II. Two of these cats were females and one was a male. It took twenty years for this cat breed to get major recognition and in 1979 TICA accepted the Egyptian Mau.
Gene pools were very limited in USA but due to dedicated breeders and imports, the overall quality of the Egyptian Mau has been improved to a winning cat breed in the competitive circuit.
(Mau is the Egyptian word for cat.)

Description
This regal cat breed is muscular and elegant and when standing, looks like it is on tip-toe. The coat is medium long and lustrous and three colors are accepted for competition: bronze, smoke and silver. The smoke color coat is fine and silky whilst the silver and bronze coats are dense and soft.
The Egyptian Mau cat breed is the only natural spotted domestic cat. There is good contrast between the background color and pattern with the pattern being random with any shape or size of distinct spots. A mark in the shape of an bug (often referred to as the mark of the scarab) is clearly seen on the forehead and a dorsal stripe runs the length of the spine to the end of the tail. The neck, upper chest, tail and legs are barred and the shoulders show a transition between spots and stripes.
The eye color of the Egyptian Mau is gooseberry green (similar to a green grape but not as vivid) and the eyes are shaped like an almond. The slant towards the base of the ear gives the cat a worried look. The ears are medium to large and broad at the base. The head is wedge-shaped and slightly rounded. The Egyptian Mau has extraordinary scent, hearing, and sight powers and is very sensitive to its surrounds.

Personality & Temperament
The Egyptian Mau cat breed is a shy and sensitive cat breed that does not like loud noises and disruptions.
It has a soft, chirping voice and is in general a friendly busy-body.
This cat will form a very close bond with you and will be intensely loyal and loving towards his human.
You will become the center of the Egyptian Maus world and you will not find it difficult to return the love and affection bestowed upon you.
The Egyptian Mau cat is not a cat suited to indoor living.

Health Issues
The Egyptian Mau cat is a robust, healthy cat breed. However, there have been a few issues with luxating patella (slipping kneecaps) but your breeder should be able to advise you about this condition.

Himalayan

Status: Current

History
The first Himalayan kitten was part of an experimental breeding program started by Dr. Clyde Keeler and Virginia Cobb in 1931. In Canada in the 1950s Ben Borrett started work on a similar breeding program with the goal being to create a colorpoint longhair cat breed and in 1955 the GCCF recognized the Himalayan cat breed as a Colorpoint Longhair. Marguerita Goforth began a breeding program to create a Persian type cat that had Siamese markings. She was instrumental in getting the Himalayan recognized for championship and in 1957 this cat breed was recognized by American associations.

Description
The Himalayan cat breed has the body and the coat of the Persian with the beautiful colors and patterns and blue eyes of the Siamese.
This cat breed is a medium to large cat with a short cobby body type. The head is round and large with a short, thick neck. The eyes are round and large and set far apart. The ears are rounded at the tip, small and set low on the head. The tail is in proportion with the body and is short and thick.
The coat of the Himalayan cat breed is long and silky and this makes it require daily grooming sessions. The undercoat needs to be kept tangle-free and the top coat silky and shiny.
This is a cat breed that should be considered only by people who have the time and the will to commit to the grooming needs of this long haired cat.
The ears, face mask, tail, legs and feet show the color of the cat. The body color is uniform with a definite contrast between the body color and the point color.

Personality & Temperament
This long haired cat breed is loving and affectionate. The Himalayan is not a very active cat breed but rather prefers to cuddle on your lap. Due to their Siamese genes, they are talkative, communicating with you in soft chirps and quiet meows.
They like to play with toys such as a piece of scrunched up paper or a ball of string. They are more suited to a quieter household but do get along well with children and other pets.

Health Issues
N/A

Japanese Bobtail

Status: Current

History
The Japanese Bobtail cat is documented in paintings and writings in Japan for at least a 1000 years. In the Smithsonian Institute in Washington there is a 15th century painting that depicts two long haired bobtails and sketches of bobtail cats sitting next to geishas are found in Japanese history.
Many legends exist around this cat breed and it is considered to be the good luck cat of Japan where ceramic cats can be seen in doorways with a raised paw. Judy Crawford sent the first cats to Elizabeth Freret in North America in 1968 and when Judy returned to the USA she brought more of these cats with her. Together these two women worked to get the Japanese Bobtail recognition and in June 1979 TICA gave the breed championship
status. The long haired cats were only recognized in March 1991.

Description
The unique pom-pom tail is what earned the Japanese Bobtail its name. The tail is unique to each cat and is composed of angles, kinks and curves. The tail must be close to and in balance with the body. The hair on the tail is longer than the hair on the body which gives it the pom-pom look. This bobtail cat breed comes in two coat varieties short hair and long hair. The tail of the long haired variety looks like a chrysanthemum in full bloom. The bones in the tail are often fused and make it possible for the cat to clean its tail. Care should be taken when handling the cat to not injure the fragile bones of the tail. The head of this cat breed is triangular and the cheekbones are high and chiseled. They have large eyes with a pronounced slant and large ears set high up on the head. This is a medium sized cat breed with a slender body type. The hind legs are powerful and made for jumping. This muscular cat is able to jump to great heights with ease and grace. Male cats weigh between 8-10 pounds and females weigh between 5-7 pounds.
The coat comes in a wide variety of colors and patterns. The more traditional color is the tri-colored mi-ke which is a combination of snowy white, deep black and rich red. The eyes can be any color but the cats with two different eye colors or with blue eyes are highly prized.
The coat lies flat against the cats body and both the long hair and short hair varieties lack an undercoat. There is little shedding and the silkiness of the coat helps it to keep tangle free. A weekly brushing will keep the coat in perfect condition.

Personality & Temperament
The Japanese Bobtail is intelligent and very active with an outgoing personality. They are talkative and will communicate with you in soft chirps and meows. Playing is a favorite pastime and games that involve running and jumping are greatly enjoyed.
You will often find your cat on top of cupboards or on the fridge busy exploring the world from high up. This cat breed is not a lap cat but they are loyal to their family and will adapt well to children and other pets.

Health Issues
N/A

LaPerm

Status: Current

History
The LaPerm cat breeds history starts in March 1982 on a cherry orchard owned by Linda Koehl where a brown tabby cat gave birth to a litter of 6 kittens. One of these kittens was long, skinny and hairless with a tabby pattern on its skin. At 6 weeks old this kitten started to grow a sparse curly coat with a classic brown tabby pattern. As this kitten matured, she developed a soft and wavy coat.
More curly coated cats appeared on Lindas farm and she decided to enter 6 of these cats into a cat show. Due to the reaction from the judges, she decided to start a breeding program and so established the foundation for the LaPerm breed.
At first, 90% of the kittens that were born were bald and at 3-4 months of age developed the curly coat. Kittens born with a straight coat retained straight hair. Then a male kitten called Snow Fire came along he was born with a straight coat but soon shed this coat and in its place, started to grow a curly coat and even curly whiskers. This was the first time this happened.
In February 2003, TICA granted the LaPerm championship status.

Description
This is a medium sized muscular cat with a semi-foreign body type. The males weigh between 8-10 pounds and the females weigh between 6-8 pounds. The ears are large and cupped and the eyes are almond-shaped.
The LaPerm cat breeds coat has loose curls and ringlets that feel like mohair. Guard hair, awn hair and down hair are present and the texture of the coat comes from the shape of the curls. The coat stands away from the body with the longest curls in the ruff and on the neck. The hairs inside the ear are also curly.
The long haired variety has a plumed tail while the short hair variety's tail is like a bottlebrush. Both varieties have curled whiskers and eyebrows. The season and the age of the cat dictate the length and fullness of the coat. A wide range of colors, patterns and eye color are found.
The coat does not shed or tangle much which makes grooming easy. A light combing will remove any loose hair and will keep the coat in excellent condition.

Personality & Temperament
The LaPerm cat breed is a gentle, intelligent and curious cat. They love to be in your company and will often jump up onto your shoulder for a ride. They are ideal family cats as they are gentle and good with children and get along well with other pets. Often called clowns, they will entertain you with their antics whilst playing a game.

Health Issues
N/A