Felis Historica July 2020 Vol 1 No 1

FEATURES: LONGHAIR – CHAMPION WOOLOOMOOLOO SHORTHAIR – CHAMPION KATZENJAMMER PURRSONALITY – LOUIS WAIN A CHILD PRODIGY – AND MORE… JULY 2020 Volume 1 No.1

THE WORLD’S MOST POPULAR CAT BREEDS

INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE FOR CAT FANCIERS & LINECHASERS

“Today’s achievements are part of tomorrow’s history”

The first Virtual Museum of the Cat! – online now at: www.cat-o-pedia.org

FELIS HISTORICA HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION © A-Cat-Emy Concepts

PUBLISHED BY A-CAT-EMY CONCEPTS for THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION EDITOR

John G. Smithson editor@felishistorica.com HISTORY PARTNERS

The CFA Foundation, Inc. COLUMNISTS / CONTRIBUTORS

Karen Lawrence (St. Catharines, Canada)

Lorraine Shelton (California, USA)

Dr. Leslie Lyons (Missouri, USA)

Laura Dilley Thomas (Virginia, USA)

Laura Vocelle (Muscat, Oman)

Dr. Keith Hammett (QSM) (Auckland, NZ)

Valerie Sheldrake Feline Historian (Suffolk, UK)

PHOTOGRAPHY & GRAPHICS

Helmi & Ken Flick (Florida, USA)

Jack Terry (Florida, USA)

CONTENT All Rights Reserved © A-Cat-Emy Concepts SUBSCRIPTION Published Monthly ANNUALLY $48.00 USD

IN THIS ISSUE!

JULY 2020

VOLUME 1 NUMBER 1

EDITORIAL Our Editor introduces you to Felis Historica!

4

CONTRIBUTING TEAM MEMBERS & COLUMNISTS Profiles on our Team of Contributors & Columnists

6

Contents

DAYS IN THE LIFE OF …

A peek into the diary of a Celebrity Companion Cat ‘Luna King’

11

THE WORLD’S MOST POPULAR CAT BREEDS Analysis of International Registration Data – by Lorraine Shelton

12

THE GAME CHANGER Birth of the CFA Foundation & The Feline Historical Museum

by Karen Lawrence EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GENETICS YOU CAN LEARN FROM YOUR CAT!

by Dr. Leslie Lyons

FELIS HISTORICA

26

28

THE BOOK SHOPPE Book Reviews and Promotions on ‘Cat-Related’ Publications

32

LONGHAIR BREED FEATURE – CHAMPION WOOLOOMOOLOO A Feline History of the Crufts Winning Blue Persian born 1892.

34

PURRSONALITY FEATURE – CATS THROUGH THE EYES OF LOUIS WAIN The extraordinary talent of the 2nd Chairman of the National Cat Club

38

SHORTHAIR BREED FEATURE – CHAMPION KATZENJAMMER A Feline History of Mr. & Mrs. Brooks Classic Tabby Manx, born 1896.

48

THE EYES HAVE IT! OR NOT! Tear Staining: Causes and Remedies

54

by Laura Dilley Thomas

CELEBRATING MODERN CATS - OUR FEATURED BREEDS Longhair - GC.GP.NW, GOLIADA HERMIONE Shorthair - GC.BW.NW, BRIAR-MAR’S ITS GOOD TO BE ME

58 59

OUR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS Profiles of all our International Correspondents

60

A CHILD PRODIGY – (facets from the life of Harrison William Weir) History snippets from The Harrison Weir Collection Archives

76

Welcome! to the first edition of ’FELIS HISTORICA’!

AND OUR

GRAND BUMPER FIRST ISSUE Finally! A magazine for the Cat Fancier who is also passionate about the species, their divergent breeds and varieties, their array of coat lengths, textures, colours and patterns, and a deeper interest in their developmental history, both long before and since the founding roots of the Cat Fancy!

JOHN G. SMITHSON EDITOR

The path to this, our first issue, has been a long but exciting journey, years in the making, and along the way we have delighted in meeting those among our number that share a common passion for the history associated with every aspect of our amazing hobby, in its spectacular divergency.

Cats have played a critically important part in our social history, our art history and literature, our understanding of domestic animal management and their genetics. In their relationship with mankind, they have literally touched the lives of millions, over almost countless centuries of our own social and cultural development.

OUR COVER Watercolour by Louis Wain from a series of images entitled ‘The Hunt’ circa 1910 Private Collection Photo: © John G Smithson

COPYRIGHT © A-CAT-EMY CONCEPTS / FELIS HISTORICA No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written consent.

No responsibility is accepted for accuracy of advertisements or information.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

This magazine celebrates almost every aspect of the history of cats, both well before and during the 150 years since the start of cat shows, and those that are contributing to it, either as columnists or correspondents, are all well versed in the lore of the cat, all as humans who have shared their lives with cats; many of them as breeders or judges, but also as writers, artists, historians, line-chasers, veterinarians, geneticists, scientists and technicians.

The calibre of their abilities and achievements can be read in their respective profiles which follow. Their willingness to contribute, participate, and support this venture, is of itself a testament to their dedication and love for the cat. The profiles of all our contributors, across all areas of expertise, provides you with a brief opportunity to learn a little of each of their individual paths through the cat fancying fraternity, leading to their roles in this first international magazine dedicated to the history of their beloved pets. It is for me, truly an honour to have this opportunity to work alongside such a world-class team!

Our cover art is an exceptional piece by that remarkable British caricaturist and famous cat fancier, Mr. Louis Wain. We felt that it admirably mirrored our mood and desire both to celebrate and to visually trumpet the introduction of our unique new feline history magazine! The team sincerely hopes that you will enjoy, each month, all that is contained in our columns and feature articles, and as time goes by, news from around the globe from our very impressive team of international correspondents!

Among our columnists we introduce Laura Dilley Thomas, author of ‘How to Have Purr-fect Faith – Even at a Cat Show’. Apart from her phenomenal show career early on in breeding Odd-Eyed and Blue-Eyed Bi-colours, Laura has experience as a product formulator of natural skin care products for both humans and pets, personally developing over 200 formulations sold

INTRODUCING MEMBERS OF OUR

Feline Team OF CORRESPONDENTS

in the marketplace worldwide under multiple brand names. Each month, she will bring you a noteworthy featured vendor or product, beginning with an item or two from her own range. She will then formally introduce readers to other wonderful products being developed internationally, not only for grooming, but also for nutrition and general feline well-being.

Lorraine Shelton, a name familiar to many of you already, has provided us with the latest trends on the popularity of cat breeds, based on more recent registration data worldwide. It provides a compelling case for the changing times we live in and the ebbs and tides of breed popularity.

Dr. Leslie Lyons, whose presentations never fail to grab your attention, presents us with an intriguing article entitled ‘Everything you need to know about genetics – you can learn from your cat!’

Lastly, the amazing talent represented by those in our list of International Correspondents, will, over time, bring you news from around the world, from the plethora of Associations and Regions which make up the Cat fancy of today.

These are all people who are intensely passionate about cats, an eclectic mix of both long experience and emerging talent!

BELLA BURNETT WRITER/COLUMNIST FELINE BIBLIOPHILE A.K.A. Miss Rosabella Burnett Chocolate Tabby Persian (Auckland, NZ)

Connections are important in today’s world. My sincerest thanks to those invaluable friends who have given their unqualified support to this venture, as it is YOU that have helped turn a vision, into a reality.

We make no apology that you will find in our pages both alternately English and American spellings, for example such as the words ‘Colour’ and ‘Color’. They are presented honestly, in the common usage of the author. We do promise however to bring you interesting, rare images, and information about the animals you already enjoy so much – opening up to you, some of the long forgotten amazing facts, stories and mysteries from their not so distant past!

We shall also bring to your attention, both tales and facts about cats from within distant living memory; to remind one and all, that today’s achievements, are part of tomorrow’s history!

John G. Smithson Curator

EDITOR FELIS HISTORICA

LUNA KING PROFESSIONAL SHOW GIRL & PHOTOGRAPHIC MODEL FARM & HOUSE CAT THE GIRL NEXT DOOR WRITER/COLUMNIST (AND OCCASIONAL PRINCESS!!)

Seal Shaded Burmilla (Blue eyed) (Hamilton NZ)

On Our Team

British born, and now a citizen of Canada, Karen Lawrence was introduced to the Cat Fancy in 1971 when she acquired her first cat, a blue point Himalayan. After her first cat show, and a few rosettes, she was hooked. Additional breeds followed over the years – American Shorthair, Oriental, Ocicat, Persian, Maine Coon, Singapura and American Curls – but her life changed significantly when she acquired her first Abyssinian in 1979. Since that first Aby arrived, the breed has had a strong clutch on her heart. Numerous Grand Champions and Grand Premiers have been bred/shown under the Tailsend cattery name.

After years of club participation and show management, Karen joined the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) judging program and began her judging career in 1995. Twenty-five years later, she has judged at cat shows around the world, in nineteen countries.

KAREN LAWRENCE ADVERTISING MANAGER advertising@felis-historica.com WRITER/COLUMNIST FELINE HISTORIAN Director: CFA Foundation, Inc Manager: Feline Historical Museum Co-Editor: The History Project www.cat-o-pedia.org

On Our Team

In 1994, Karen began working with a group dedicated to giving CFA a social presence online through development of the first edition of the CFA web site. Once the site was launched, in the fall of 1995, she became the webmaster and was responsible for content, growth and maintenance of the site over the next 15 years.

Early in the 1990s, Karen discovered the joy of locating historical cat fancy artifacts, and through that she discovered the CFA Foundation which preserves the history of the Cat Fancy. A strong supporter of the CFA Foundation, Karen was appointed to their Board of Directors in 2006 and assisted in the setup and design of the Feline Historical Museum in Alliance, Ohio. In 2012, she took over management of the museum. Through the CFA Foundation’s work, she and John Smithson developed the highly popular web site, The History Project, found at www.cat-o-pedia.org.

A prolific writer, she has had over 75 articles published in various magazines and the CFA Yearbook. She is the proud holder of several medals awarded her by the Cat Writers’ Association. Currently she is going back to her cat fancy roots and writing an in-depth, historical book about the first century of the Abyssinian breed.

Lorraine Shelton is an internationally recognized expert in feline genetics, and an Allbreed judge for The International Cat Association (TICA).

A prolific writer on the subject of feline genetics, she is a co-author of a number of books including Robinson’s Genetics for Cat Breeder and Veterinarians, and authored The Guide to Owning a Tonkinese (a Cat Writer’s Association Award of Excellence winner). In addition there are numerous of Lorraine’s articles available on breeds, feline health, genetics and cat fancy history in various magazines and online.

Lorraine is a welcome lecturer at cat shows and annual meetings for various associations and breed groups. As an Approved TICA Genetics Instructor, she enjoys sharing her expertise at TICA and CFA seminars, and FIFe judging schools. She has also participated in a UC Davis roundtable discussion on the genetic aspects of FIP. For TICA, she authored an extensive revision to their Uniform Color Descriptions in 2020.

LORRAINE SHELTON WRITER/COLUMNIST FELINE GENETICS EXPERT CO-AUTHOR ‘Robinson’s Genetics for Cat Breeders & Veterinarians’ Director: CFA Foundation, Inc www.wegies.net www.featherland.net

Lorraine’s first litter, Tonkinese, was born in 1972. The Featherland cattery name was registered in 1988, with the goal of advancing the rare chocolate/lilac factored Persians. She has also bred award winning Turkish Angoras, was a foundation breeder of the Selkirk Rex breed, and is currently breeding and exhibiting national winning Norwegian Forest Cats.

In 2000, as a firm believer in the rapid dissemination of recent advances in feline medicine, Lorraine developed the Fanciershealth group, which now has a membership of over 4,000 breeders and exhibitors. The group can be found online at fanciers@groups.io.

Professionally, her B.A. in Biological Sciences and her B.A. in Psychology have given her a solid basis for her work in the development of compliance and testing programs in the biology and research field. Since 2003 she has worked as a Quality Assurance Manager, responsible for internal compliance audits and external audits of vendors and contract service providers. She regularly hosts the Federal Drug Administration (FDA), regulatory, and client inspections, prepares audit responses, and manages non-compliance investigations and corrective/preventative actions.

On Our Team

John has been writing feline history and editing articles since 1980, when taking on the role as Editor of the first NZ Cat Fancy Yearbook. He started in cats in 1977, registering his ‘Imperatus’ cattery with the NZCF in 1978. His first love was self-Red Persians, and with an early interest in line-chasing under his belt, he bred NZ’s first Red Persian Grand Champion on Christmas Day 1979. Two Himalayan Grand Champions and a Pedigree Persian Kitten of the Year followed. Other breeds included Exotics, Siamese, Orientals, British, Burmese, and Munchkins, with Grand Champions in four breeds and one All-Breeds Cat of The Year.

Always active in clubs and organising shows, John served on numerous club committees, and on the National Executive for a few years, first as Northern Regional Vice-Chairman, Regional Chairman, and then elected as National President of the NZCF in 1992. In 1985 John entered the NZCF Judging Program and qualified firstly in Longhairs, then to Shorthairs in 1990 and All-Breed by 1994. He has officiated throughout NZ and Australia, and the United States as a Guest Judge for both ACFA and CFA, and in Great Britain - a judging career spanning 35 years. He is a Life member of both the Geyserland Cat Club and CATZ Inc.

JOHN G. SMITHSON MANAGING EDITOR editor@felis-historica.com WRITER/COLUMNIST FELINE HISTORIAN Curator: The Harrison Weir Collection www.harrisonweir.com Director: CFA Foundation, Inc Co-Editor: The History Project www.cat-o-pedia.org Co-Editor: The History On Our Team www.cat-o-pedia.org

By profession John is a qualified Graphic Designer and Credit Management Consultant.

Privately, John is an internationally recognised artist specialising in Pen and Ink, using the Pointillist technique. Since 1972 his original works and Limited-Edition prints have sold to collectors worldwide. In 2010 he began the Harrison Weir Collection, amassing the world’s largest private collection of original art and ephemera by this artist, developing a web-site to celebrate Weir’s art at www.HarrisonWeir.com. Later a collaboration was begun between the Harrison Weir Collection and the CFA Foundation, with Karen Lawrence and John working jointly to create ‘The History Project’, an online feline history resource and virtual Museum at www.cat-o-pedia.org. In 2015, John was invited to be a Guest Speaker at the World Cat Congress, on the topic of Harrison Weir, his life and works.

In 2017 John lectured in the UK on the life of Harrison Weir, then continued researching at major British Libraries and Museums, to uncover unknown works for his impending biography of the Father of the Cat Fancy. A trip to the USA followed in 2018, attending the CFA International Show at Cleveland, Ohio; where he gave four history presentations over two days, followed by a week of research at the Feline Historical Museum in Alliance.

Gilbreath McLorn Endowed Professor of Comparative Medicine Department of Veterinary Medicine & Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine University of Missouri – Columbia, Columbia, MO Dr. Leslie Lyons was trained in human genetics and her postdoctoral fellowship focused on developing genetic resources for comparative gene mapping across mammalian species.

LESLIE A. LYONS Ph. D RESEARCHER/COLUMNIST FELINE GENETICS SPECIALIST Prof. of Comparative Medicine Dept. of Vet. Medicine & Surgery College of Veterinary Medicine University of Missouri Columbia Missouri felinegenome@missouri.edu

Her research is currently primarily focused on heritable diseases and traits and the population dynamics of the domestic cat. Specific diseases remain of high priority, including polycystic kidney disease (PKD), skin abnormalities, structural defects, and heritable blindness. An expectation of the research is to develop drug and gene therapies and translational efforts, for one or more of these abnormalities to better develop the cat as an animal model for human disease. Her early studies involved assisted reproduction to produce F1 and backcross cats between domestics and Asian leopard cats (Prionailurus bengalensis) and she continues to work with theriogenologists to preserve the biomedical model through gamete cryopreservation.

Dr. Lyons has also supported the community by providing DNA studies for the first cloned domestic cat, wildcat, and Sand Cat, and the GFP transgenic cat. Her laboratory has identified over 30 mutations in over 20 genes including many diseases, several coat colors, several fur types, and cat AB / B blood type.

Dr. Lyons recently launched the 99 Lives Cat Genome Sequencing Initiative – an effort to have deep coverage sequencing of cats with inherited diseases and as a SNP resource for the community. Dr. Lyons has 3 patents and over 140 peer-reviewed publications, including several in forensic journals. One recent work demonstrated Precision Medicine in domestic cats. Her work on cat population genetics was developed into a National Geographic Explorer episode “The Science of Cats” and she has worked with the BBC on several cat television productions.

On Our Team

“I believe the cat is the most beautiful creature God created.”

Joining the CFA show circuit and the Persian Breed Council in 1996; Laura learned a new experience regarding cats and the Fancy. She was actively involved in breeding, educating and exhibiting. Laura implemented the first PKD clinic in Virginia because the health, wellbeing and breeding to the written standard were her top priorities.

When she first started, she had the dream of owning a blue eye bicolor Persian. In the beginning of her journey, it was not something that was bred, owned, or even shown. Today, it is one of the most sought after in the bicolor world of Persians.

Lauras’ passion was developing blue and odd eye in the bicolor Persian. She successfully accomplished her goals and made history in CFA twice. Jacob was the first Odd Eye in which Granded as CFA’s first ODD EYE bicolor. Anna, the first Blue eye, became CFA’s first Blue eye bicolor Grand Champion. Both were of Laura’s breeding.

LAURA D. THOMAS WRITER/COLUMNIST/AUTHOR ‘How To Have Purrfect Faith’ Owner/Founder - Formulator at: CASTLEBATHS www.castlebaths.com Owner/Product Developer at: PURRINLOT Professional Persian Resource Site www.purrinlot.com

On Our Team

Jacob went on to be the face of Purrinlot, while Anna became the face of her Pet Line in her Personal Care Company, Castle Baths®. Today the Anna® Designer Pet Grooming Line is distributed globally. If you Google “most famous blue eye Persian” – her ANNA is usually listed as #1!

Laura shares, “While many will take this to the next step as time moves forward and I’m certain my name may be forgotten. That's ok- I loved being the foundation pioneer for such a quest- for this was my passion and God allowed my program to move forward like no other.”

Awards: from National wins to DM’s and all in between Recognition: Named the Odd Eye Queen. Grooming has been featured on National Geographic, with her cats in many media outlets including: The Washington Post, NY Times, Cats Hong Kong- Cover, etc., they’ve even made it into a book!

Publications: How to Have Purr-fect Faith, even at a cat show -published by Abiding Books2004

Laura Vocelle is the author of Revered and Reviled: A Complete History of the Domestic Cat, 7 Women Artists and Their Cat Subjects as well as many cat themed coloring books such as: Ancient Egyptian Cats, Medieval Cats Coloring Book for Cat Lovers, Cat Breeds Coloring Book, Cats and Geishas and Cats and Flowers Coloring Book. Laura has always had a deep love for cats, history and art. She holds a BA in History and a BA in Political Science as well as a Master’s degree in Education from George Washington University, Washington, DC. For the past 20 years, Laura has lived in the Sultanate of Oman teaching English as a Foreign Language at Sultan Qaboos University. Prior to that, she lived for 10 years in Cairo, Egypt, where she was given her first cat (a Siamese with a crooked tail) by a friend. Throughout her time abroad, she has been able to travel to a variety of countries. However, with her imminent retirement from the university, she plans to return to the United States where it will be easier to devote her time to working on various cat projects, such as a book on famous cats, and perhaps, an online course devoted to the study of art history through cats.

LAURA A. VOCELLE WRITER/COLUMNIST AUTHOR ‘Revered and Reviled’ FELINE & ART HISTORIAN Manager: The Great Cat www.thegreatcat.org

In addition, she will continue providing weekly cat related posts on her website The Great Cat, which she began in 2012. Laura is looking forward to being a more active participant in the Cat Writers organization, of which she is a member, and attending various annual cat conferences.

But most of all, she will enjoy pampering her two Omani (Arabian Mau) rescue cats. 264 words

LINKS:

Revered and Reviled https://amzn.to/2XiLLtY 7 Women Artists and their Cat Subjects https://amzn.to/3gbzArm Medieval Cats Coloring Book for Cat Lovers https://amzn.to/2LTcSWU Ancient Egyptian Cats Coloring Book https://amzn.to/2Xg2PAG Cats and Flowers Coloring Book https://amzn.to/2LPSRke Cat Breeds Coloring Book https://amzn.to/3bRr8u8 Cats and Geishas Coloring Book https://amzn.to/36mw4WA

On Our Team

Helmi Flick began her career in cat photography at an age when most people are counting down to retirement. She was 55 years old when she decided to do what most people only dream of — earn a living doing what she loved. Recently, in 2020, Helmi and her husband Ken, who work as a team, celebrated their 20th year, shooting cats. Helmi does the camera work while Ken does the lighting and wrangles the cats into poses.

HELMI & KEN FLICK FELINE PHOTOGRAPHY SPECIALISTS GRAPHICS & LIGHTING SPECIALISTS PROFESSIONAL CAT WRANGLERS Co-Managers Helmi Flick Cat Photography www.helmiflick.com

“When we set up to shoot at our first cat show in 2000,” Helmi said, “that was the dawn of the digital era and all of the established cat photographers were still shooting with the film cameras they started out with. I knew from trying to shoot our own cats at home with a film camera that that wasn’t for me. The instant feedback of digital photography enabled me to see my mistakes immediately and learn from them. So I was the only one shooting digital back then. Ken had been a producer of corporate audio-visual work and had a good grasp of studio lighting. He also built our staging gear for cat portraiture. And, with no one to mentor us, we just worked out our techniques as we went along.”

The second way Helmi and Ken did things differently from their cat photographer colleagues was that they were virtually the only ones who did not work alone. “I certainly respect those who do work by themselves, Helmi says, “but I know I could not get the quality of images that we do without Ken doing the wrangling. We’re a team.”

Lighting is a third way that the Flicks’ do things differently. “From the beginning,” Ken says, “our approach to lighting was a very traditional one. We use the classic four-light setup — key light, fill light, hair or fringe light and background light -- that studio photographers have always used when shooting glamor models as well as celebrity and executive portraits.”

“Our goal,” Helmi says, “is to make every cat we photograph look and feel like a celebrity, and beyond coaxing the cat into a series of ideal poses on an appropriate background color, flattering lighting is the key element. I can understand how cat photographers who work alone and often fly to cat shows don’t want to deal with transporting and setting up all of the extra staging and lighting gear we use, but there are two of us to share the extra work and we believe the look we’ve achieved is worth the effort.” Their work has a signature look that’s admired throughout the cat world and outside of it. Helmi is the only cat photographer in the U.S. to have been profiled by a major photography magazine, Popular Photography, the most widelyread photography magazine in the world.

Helmi and Ken live in Hernando, Florida, with their two cats: a Maine Coon and a RagdollSomali mix. They have a small photo studio in their home but capture most of their cat images at cat shows around the United States and occasionally abroad. Helmi's images have been published in books and magazines on every continent, except Antarctica.

Helmi at home with pets Baxter and Xander. Photo: Ken Flick

On Our Team

Keith Hammett, born in April 1942 at Epsom, England was a Brit for a quarter of a century and has been a Kiwi for over half a century.

He attained a BSc (Hons) in Botany at the University of Southampton and a Ph.D in plant pathology at the same institution. He was recruited and worked as a plant pathologist by the then New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) until the early 1980s when the Department was restructured to meet the needs of the horticultural boon trigged by the advent of the Kiwifruit. Keith then became a new crops specialist.

From his first arrival in New Zealand Keith became involved in many facets of horticulture ranging from major crop production to garden clubs. He joined the organising committees of two major Garden shows staged in Auckland in 1968 and 1970. He has written several books and numerous articles for horticultural publications worldwide.

DR. KEITH HAMMETT QSM WRITER/COLUMNIST PLANT BREEDER CAT FANCIER PRESIDENT of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture

On Our Team

He is currently the President of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture and Patron of the Auckland Horticultural Council. His involvement with flower shows from his teen years led to his career in the biological sciences. He has been an international judge of Dahlias since his early 20s.

From childhood Keith has been interested in photography. He has used it as a tool throughout his career as well as appreciating it as a medium for artistic expression. He was a member of the Eden Roskill Camera Club and acted both as President and Treasurer.

From birth there has always been one or more cats in Keith's life. A couple of decades ago Keith joined both CATZ (Inc) and the New Zealand Cat Fancy to investigate the parallels with flower showing and competitive photography. For a period, he acted as Chairman of CATZ (Inc) and was briefly on the Breeds Standards Council of the NZ Cat Fancy.

Keith is regarded as being New Zealand's leading breeder of ornamental plants.

Jack Terry first became involved in photography as the means to record his work in oil painting, metal sculpture and pottery while he was still in high school and college in the mid-1960s.

Wichita State University was the next step in is advanced education. The Vietnam War cut his education short when the threat of being drafted prompted Jack to join the Navy instead, specializing in photography. The nest four years were spent aboard the USS John F. Kennedy, then the nation’s newest aircraft carrier.

Jack used still and movie cameras to document the daily operations of the ship, including flight deck activities and ceremonial events. Many of these events included photographing visiting dignitaries and heads of states, throughout the Mediterranean. Celebrities that came aboard included the extended Kennedy family, Gregory Peck, Princess Garce Kelly of Monaco, and Bob Hope. His duties included processing film and making prints in the ship’s photographic lab.

JACK TERRY ‘THE RESTORIAN’ PHOTOGRAPHIC RESTORATION & GRAPHICS SPECIALIST PHOTO HUMORIST Photo: Helmi Flick

His Navy training set Jack on a path to pursue a 40-year career in a various photo studios and photo labs around Michigan. One specialty of this work that he found to be artistically rewarding was photo retouching. In the pre-digital days before Photoshop, that meant drawing or painting on an existing photo print with colored pencils, charcoals or an air brush, and then re-photographing the touched-up original print.

Jack’s retouching work ranged from restoring old and often deteriorated historical photos to enhancing contemporary portraits. One memorable – if a bit creepy – job involved a photo a woman had taken of her cat after it had just died. She asked Jack if he could paint its closed eyes open one last time. This was tough job in the pre-Photoshop days and an emotionally touchy one, so he was relieved when his work brought tears of gratitude from his customer.

Jack supplemented his photo lab employment with occasional work as a freelance photographer, shooting portraits, weddings, concerts and other events. He later started his own retouching and photo restoration service under the name, “Restorian.” These days, he is enjoying his retirement in Florida with his wife, Linda, and their five cats.

LUNA KING Feline Team

PROFESSIONAL SHOW GIRL & PHOTOGRAPHIC MODEL FARM & HOUSE CAT THE GIRL NEXT DOOR WRITER/COLUMNIST (AND OCCASIONAL PRINCESS!!)

Seal Shaded Burmilla (Blue eyed) (Hamilton NZ)

LUNA KING PROFESSIONAL SHOW GIRL & PHOTOGRAPHIC MODEL

DAYSFARMIN&THE HOUSELIFE CAT OF THE GIRL NEXT DOOR LUNA KING WRITER/COLUMNIST COLUMNIST & FELINE MODEL (AND OCCASIONAL PRINCESS!!) (notes from her diaries) Seal Shaded Burmilla (Blue eyed) (Hamilton NZ) The best Photos all by Helmi Flick Cat Photography

BELOW: SHOW PHOTOS As a Kitten, and Cat

I guess that from your human perspective, I am just another cat. But, from where I am sitting, (comfortably I might add!) I am an accomplished feline CELEBRITY! Essentially, I am a farm girl, you know, like the girl next door. But I have refined tastes, good breeding, and know that I am a ‘cut above’ on so many levels. I am a show girl to boot, with an enviable record of successful appearances, and my managers have also successfully marketed me as a model.

I was born near the Great Lake, known as Taupo, the daughter of two world-class Burmilla’s. But I was considered “special” on account that Burmilla’s have green eyes, but mine are as ‘Blue’ as the clearest sky on a summer’s day. So that, immediately set me apart. I became the leading lady of the King family farm, which suited me well, as I am really a country gal (some would say a natural beauty), and I do enjoy checking around the property to make sure that all the animals are attending to their duties!

So, I regularly check on the horses, the chickens, the sheep, the orchard etc., while also ensuring that the household cats are behaving themselves!

As a show girl, I was ranked No.3 in the nation in the Short-haired Companion Cats in the NZCF Annual Awards 2019 and was Supreme in both 2015 & 2016!

Needless to say - I have many fans and admirers!

One of my human staff arranged for me to do some modelling with the famous feline photography duo from the United States, Helmi and Ken Flick. They, like many others who know how famous I am, came out to visit me in my home; where I was of course, the perfect host!

How many other cats can prove that they have personally received the admiration and attention of the Flick’s, in their own home! (OK, so I do know of one famous worthy fellow in Wales – Bagpuss!) But, hey! This is MY 15 minutes of fame dude!

Amongst my other hobbies, I make sure that everyone parks their cars in the right place. I can check on them through my office window, after enjoying a busy day at the desktop reading emails from my fans. I also get a buzz out of ‘virtual fishing’! Yes, it’s the new craze! And after all, a girl of my standing really doesn’t want to get her feet wet! Ciao fans!

More on another day!

The World’s Most Popular Cat Breeds BY

LORRAINE SHELTON

Analysis of Registration trends

EXPERT ANALYSIS OF PEDIGREED CAT REGISTRATION DATA FROM THE WORLDS MAJOR REGISTRIES In an article published in 2005, I presented a summary of cat registration data from CFA, TICA, and GCCF from 2000-2004. Keep in mind that I am limited by the availability of this data. Since CFA and TICA are centralized, international registries, I am able to obtain this data most easily. However, this data is primarily reflective of historic North American trends.

SVERAK (Sweden’s FIFe member), LOOF (the regulatory body for cat breeding in France), and GCCF (the birthplace of the modern cat fancy in England) conveniently publish data on-line, whereas data from the numerous European club based registries is much more difficult to obtain and must be compiled to reach significant numbers.

I hope that I will be able to include data from Australia and New Zealand in my database in the future. The cat fancy in Russia is very active and my database does not reflect their breeders’ activity. Data from the new registries in China will also be interesting to observe in the next few years.

With limited data sources, I will be extrapolating from what I believe are the largest cat registries, assuming that they are representative of trends around the world. I have also rounded most of the data points below for ease of readability.

In 2005, I concluded that since CFA registrations were on the decline and TICA registrations represented about half of CFA registrations, that GCCF would be the largest annual registry of pedigreed cats within the next few years.

Sure enough, in 2008, CFA and GCCF registrations were on par, at around 31,000 cats.

However, the next year saw an unfortunate precipitous 17% decline in GCCF registrations. Numbers in that association have stabilized at around 21,000 cats each year for the past decade.

CFA registrations continued to decline until 2012, when a year-over-year increase of 10% occurred; registrations have been skyrocketing ever since, with CFA registering almost 60,000 individual cats from 25,000 litters in 2018, with over 60% of registrations originating in China.

In contrast, TICA, the other major US-based registry, has been experiencing a more steady increase in registrations: growing at an average of 5% a year for the past two decades.

The largest FIFe member, SVERAK, has maintained a steady state of registration numbers over the same period: between 10,000 and 12,000 cats a year.

Registrations by Association

90,000 80,000

CFA 70,000

TICA SVERAK

60,000

GCCF 50,000

LOOF

40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000

The biggest surprise has been the success of the French registry, LOOF, with an average growth of 7% a year, growing steady from 16,000 cats in 2003 to almost 46,000 cats in 2019.

The total number of breeders in CFA, North America’s largest registry, decreased from 16,700 in 1994 (two-thirds of which bred only one or two litters that year, with 76% breeding three or fewer litters) to 8,400 in 2004.

Influencing factors may have included lifestyle changes, economic factors, and the policy CFA instituted in the early 1990’s mandating veterinary inspections of catteries producing a large number of kittens each year.

As of 2015, CFA had fewer than 5,000 breeders registering one or more litters a year, with 30 breeders producing 20 or more litters a year, compared with 150 similarly high volume breeders in 1994.

The inspection program has been successful in accomplishing the laudable goal of discouraging large catteries in the United States Keep in mind that breeders who register their cats with CFA (and TICA) typically only register approximately 40% of their kittens individually, due to the two-stage registration process used in those registries, while litters in other registries are more commonly recorded in their entirety, sometimes by law.

The exception in CFA is the Ragdoll and British Shorthair during the past five years, where the number of kittens reported as born closely corresponds to the number registered.

This is an indication that examining solely the total number of cats registered by an association may be an inaccurate indication of the state of the cat fancy worldwide, and that breed trends may give insight that is more valuable.

I will discuss selected breeds in four groups, which I have categorized the Big Five, the Legacy Breeds, the Newcomers, and Endangered Species.

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

1994

1993

1992

1991

1990

1989

1988

0

Photo © HELMI FLICK

The Big Five and the Rise of China In 1988, 74% of CFA registered cats, 58% of SVERAK registered cats and 36% of GCCF registered cats were Persians (including Himalayans) or Exotic Shorthairs. This declined to 49%, 15%, and 13% respectively by 2005. The slope of this declining curve in CFA closely matched the decline in total CFA registrations over the same time period, while the total number of nonPersian/Exotic cats in CFA remained fairly steady.

Many theories have been proposed for the decline in popularity of this breed family worldwide, with a likely contributing factor being the discovery in the early 1990’s that there was a 30% penetrance of Polycystic Kidney Disease in the breed. Despite the encouragement of geneticists for breeders to avoid reducing the gene pool by keeping an unaffected parent or sibling of an affected cat, many prolific and successful breeders left the breed after discovering through genetic testing that their line was affected by this heritable, often late-onset, heartbreaking disease.

So if the Persian breed is on the decline, what is taking their place to explain the sudden increase in CFA registrations? In 2019, 43% of CFA registered cats were Ragdolls: a breed that, for many years, CFA rejected entrance into their registry.

Due to the popularity of this breed in China, registrations from this country currently represent over 60% of all CFA registrations. In TICA, the first major registry to recognize the breed, Ragdolls have long been the second most popular breed. Although rising slightly in recent years, Ragdoll registrations in TICA have remained fairly stable during the past two decades, typically two to three times those of CFA. The tide has since shifted. While less than 1000 Ragdolls were registered each year in CFA before 2012, an amazing 25,000 were registered in 2019, compared to 7100 in TICA. Ragdoll registrations have also increased in SVERAK (where they are the most popular breed), GCCF (where they are the third most popular breed), and LOOF (where they are the fourth most popular breed).

US Based Registries Individual Cat Registrations 90,000 80,000 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0 CFA Total

CFA Persian/Exotic

CFA NonPersian/Exotic

CFA Ragdolls

TICA Ragdolls

1988

1989

1996

1998

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

TICA Total

Photo Š HELMI FLICK

TICA’s most popular breed, the Bengal, doubled in yearly registrations between 2001 and 2014.

Since then, the number has stabilized to between 8000 and 8700 a year. The number of Bengals registered in GCCF has dropped precipitously, from a high of over 3000 in 2005 to only 260 in 2019. As the third most popular breed in LOOF, 3500 Bengals were registered in France in 2019.

The breed has also been gaining popularity slowly and steadily in SVERAK, with over 600 registered in 2018. Accepted only since 2016, CFA currently registers approximately 400 Bengals a year.

TICA Individual Cat Registrations 10000 9000 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 Bengal

Ragdoll

Maine Coon

British SH/LH

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2010

A giant in Europe and Asia, in every sense of the word, is the Maine Coon. This breed represents 34% of LOOF registrations, with over 15,000 cats registered in 2019. In contrast, LOOF’s second most popular breed, the Birman, had 5000 registrations in 2019. The increase in Maine Coon registrations closely corresponds with the growth of LOOF as a whole. Registrations of this breed in GCCF have been fairly even at around 2000 a year since 2005. As the third most popular breed in SVERAK, Maine Coon registrations have been steadily rising, with approximately 1300 registered in 2018. In CFA, Maine Coons have been a consistently popular breed, after declining slowly from a high of 4700 in 1996 to a low of 2900 in 2011, registrations have risen to almost 4400 in 2019.

CFA LItters 25000

20000

15000

10000

5000

0 Exotic

Persian/Himalayan

Maine Coon

Persian

Abyssinian

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

Siamese 2006

Photo Š HELMI FLICK

Photo © HELMI FLICK

GCCF’s most popular breed, the eponymous British Shorthair, eclipsed the Persian in registration numbers in 2001. Between 2013 and 2019, registrations rose from 5100 to 7800 annually, currently representing 37% of all registrations. Across the channel, LOOF registrations have been steadily rising as well, with almost 2800 cats registered in France, including the rapidly rising popularity of the British Longhairs. In 2017, the number of British Shorthairs registered in LOOF surpassed that of France’s historically popular breed, the Chartreux.

GCCF Individual Cat Registrations 14000

12000

10000

8000

6000

4000

2000

0 Persian/Exotic

British SH/LH

Ragdoll

Maine Coon

Siamese

Burmese

1988

1989

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2007

The Legacy Breeds Beyond the recent dominance of the Ragdoll and Bengal, the continuing popularity of the Maine Coon and British Shorthair, and the fading reign of the Persian and Exotic, how are our other historic breeds holding up?

Unfortunately, not well.

The Siamese family of breeds, in particular, are declining in a worrisome way, with only 357 litters born to CFA breeders in 2018, down from almost 2000 in 1996.

Under 600 individuals in the Siamese /Oriental breed group are registered in TICA each year and fewer than 200 in SVERAK. Once the dominant breed in England, second only to the Persian, the Siamese has declined from a high of 7300 registrations in 1989 to only 1400 in 2019.

Photo Š HELMI FLICK

CFA Litters 2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0 Siamese

Oriental SH

Balinese/Javanese

Colorpoint SH

Oriental LH

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2006

Photos Š HELMI FLICK

The Burmese is another breed that has shown a decline in popularity around the world. From over 5000 registered in GCCF in 1988, only slightly over 1000 were registered in 2019. Only 272 litters of Burmese were registered in CFA in 2018, 37 of them as European Burmese. A minority breed in TICA, 176 individual cats were registered in TICA; encouragingly, this was up from 156 the year before. In SVERAK, individual Burmese registrations have been hovering around 200250 for most of the past two decades. In LOOF, under 80 American and English Burmese combined were registered in 2019.

The Birman, a long-time staple of the French cat fancy, has been maintaining its popularity in its native country, increasing in the past decade from 3000 in 2008 to almost 5000 individual cats in 2019. However, the number has been declining in SVERAK in recent years, from a high of 1700 in 2001 to an average of 850 a year from 2013 to 2018. The decline has been even more precipitous in GCCF (from 2200 in 2001 to just 450 in 2019) and CFA (from around 1000 a year from 1990 to 2005 to only 250 in 2019 from less than 200 litters).

The Abyssinian, historically a popular breed around the world, has also seen its numbers decline in the past decades, but there are promising signs of improvement. From a high of over 1700 litters registered in CFA in 1996, to a low of 483 litters in 2014, individual registrations were almost 1200 in 2019, indicating a resurgence of interest in this breed. Numbers appear to be holding steady in LOOF, TICA, and SVERAK as well, although declining in GCCF. The numbers of Russian Blues are also holding steady over the past decade in CFA and GCCF (around 350 cats a year each) and TICA (around 200 cats a year).

LOOF Individual Cat Registrations 18000 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 MAINE COON

BIRMAN

BENGAL

RAGDOLL

BRITISH SHORTHAIR

PERSIAN

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

CHARTREUX 2011

SIBERIAN

The Newcomers Other than the wildly successful Ragdoll and the popularity of the Bengal, are there other breeds than are doing well despite the downturn in the overall cat fancy?

Yes, there are, and these breeds may provide a sense of optimism towards the future. As older breeders retire, leaving their legacy breeds to flounder, we need to mentor the next generation of breeders. These younger fanciers appear to be attracted to our newer breeds.

One of the standouts is the Siberian (including the Neva Masquerade). Although growth in CFA has plateaued at under 200 litters a year, individual registrations in TICA have soared from under 300 in 2001 to almost 1900 in 2019, making the Siberian their fifth most popular breed. Similarly, in SVERAK, registrations have grown from just over 500 a decade ago to over 1800 in 2018, making this breed the second most popular in Sweden.

Additionally, almost 1600 Siberians were registered in LOOF last year.

Another breed that is notably growing in popularity is the Sphynx. With TICA registrations stable at around 1000 individuals from 2005 to 2013, the breed has grown to almost 1800 registrations in 2018. CFA has consistently registered around 500 litters a year since 2008. LOOF registrations have continually increased over the years to over 1000 individuals in 2019.

Although less popular in SVERAK and GCCF, registrations still appear robust for this breed in those registries, with between 200 and 300 individuals registered a year.

Photos Š HELMI FLICK

SVERAK Individual Cat Registrations

5000 4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0

1988

1989

1996

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

Photos Š HELMI FLICK

Another breed that appears to be particularly popular in China is the Devon Rex. After two decades of maintaining a stable litter registration rate of 300-400 a year (500-700 individuals a year), CFA registered over 2000 individual Devon Rex in 2019. TICA individual registrations have also increased, from 150 in 2009 to 350 in 2019. In GCCF, individual registrations have declined from their peak in 2003 at 650 to 370 in 2019. In SVERAK, registrations have increased from 400 a decade ago to over 600 in 2018. Only moderately popular in France, LOOF registrations have been stable over the past decade at under 200 cats.

Two other curly cats, the Selkirk and Cornish Rex are breeds that have resisted the overall downward trend, with fairly stable breeding numbers across the registries over the past decade. Ironically though, with only 44 cats registered in GCCF in 2019, the Cornish Rex may not be thriving in its country of origin. Even newer breeds are on the horizon, with the Lykoi, Kurilian Bobtail, and Peterbald growing well in TICA and LOOF and the Toybob getting off to a good start in TICA and CFA.

TICA Individual Cat Registrations 2000 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 Siberian

Savannah

Sphynx

Scottish Fold/Straight

Persian/Exotic

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2010

Munchkin/Minuet

Endangered Species The term “Preservation Breeder� is becoming increasingly popular in the cat fancy and there are numerous breeds, both old and new, that appear headed towards extinction without the recruitment of new breeders to carry on their lineage.

The most threatened breed, in my opinion, is the Turkish Van. A breed which never experienced more than 50 litters in a single year born in CFA, with less than a dozen in the past four years, I fear that the gene pool is not large enough in this country to sustain the gene pool. Looking beyond the borders, significant numbers do not appear to exist in the other major registries. A beautiful breed with a long and distinguished history, including its significance as the genetic foundation of the major variants for long hair and the white spotting trait, it would be a shame to see this breed fade into extinction. Its cousin, the Turkish Angora, is also in decline in the United States, however the popularity of this breed in Europe makes it far less threatened.

I am concerned about the American Wirehair as well. One of the first breeds based on a distinguishing mutation found in the community cat population in North America, this breed had only 14 individuals registered in 2019, across associations. Luckily, the dominant nature of this trait and the large gene pool of potentially available American Shorthair outcrosses makes it relatively easy to bring back from the brink, if breeders were so inclined. The La Perm is also at critically low numbers in the United States, with less than 50 cats registered in 2018. However, the breed is growing in popularity in Sweden, with 165 individuals registered in 2018, up from 70 only five year ago. Another American breed, the American Bobtail, has experienced a greatly reduced population in recent years, with only 18 litters born in CFA in 2018.

The Havana Brown was identified by UC Davis’ Veterinary Genetics Laboratory as a breed with critically low genetic diversity. With the number of litters dropping in CFA from 50 in 2013 to 10 in 2018, that seems unlikely to improve, unless the recently accepted Suffolk breed in England generates new excitement for these cats. The Korat is another breed with less than 50 individuals registered by US-based registries in 2018, however a recent surge in CFA registrations and steady breeding activity in LOOF and GCCF may indicate the breed will be able to avoid extinction.

CFA LItters 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 Ragdoll

British SH

Devon Rex

American SH

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2006

I have not been able to cover all our wonderful breeds in this article. If you have any questions about a specific breed, feel free to contact me at featherland@gmail.com. The “raw data� is also available upon request. I would like to thank those from the various registries who have helped me compile this data over the past 15 years, especially Frances Cardona, Dick Kallmeyer, and Leslie Bowers. Additional contributions to my database from other registries would be greatly appreciated!

2018 Individual Registrations CFA

TICA

GCCF

SVERAK

F Danica

LOOF

Ragdoll

20356

6366

3170

2193

320

2505

Maine Coon

4035

3578

1695

1274

777

13808

Persian/Exotic

13997

817

1303

503

253

3743

British Shorthair/LH

5736

2054

6823

779

395

3200

Bengal

406

8730

271

620

84

3314

Birman

296

135

574

825

377

4962

Siberian/Neva Mas

349

1698

320

1826

56

1398

Siamese/Oriental/LH

1301

594

2413

457

121

570

Sphynx

1219

1783

206

23

908

Scottish Fold/Straight

1063

929

NFC

483

374

270

1057

443

1757

Devon Rex

1380

267

344

597

8

172

Chartreux

71

36

11

Amer SH/Euro SH

1783

95

Burmese/Euro Burm

311

156

Abyssinian

982

268

Savannah

2055

2230 20

42

12

1140

215

117

88

194

134

102

303

1780

94

Russian Blue

392

213

361

89

51

136

Cornish Rex

439

168

53

216

2

72

Selkirk

168

111

67

6

303

Munchkin/Minuet

593

47

Tonkinese

251

47

176

15

Burmilla/Asian

35

26

272

46

11

45

Egyptian Mau

129

55

78

10

3

142

Somali

114

57

87

20

140

Ocicat

179

18

86

19

4

Turkish Angora

66

89

104

213

Toyger

272

5

29

Thai

107

23

134

LaPerm

19

Pixiebob Singapura

165

167 86

Peterbald Turkish Van

30

17

34

103

8

128

18

40

Kur Bobtail

27

Toybob

60

16 26

6

6

6

35

21

35

Since 2001, the number of Persian, Himalayan and Exotic Shorthair registrations have been in decline, but they still rank No. 3 in the top 5 most popular registered breeds.

Photo Š HELMI FLICK

Historic Trophies won by famous cats of the past, in the Collection of The Feline Historical Museum PHOTO: PRESTON SMITH PHOTOGRAPHY

KAREN LAWRENCE REVEALS THE ROOTS BEHIND THE FORMATION OF THE CFA FOUNDATION AND HOW THE FELINE HISTORICAL MUSEUM BECAME A REALITY

The Game Changer BY

KAREN LAWRENCE

BIRTH OF THE CFA FOUNDATION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FELINE HISTORICAL MUSEUM Through the efforts of Vaughn Barber, Don Williams, Michael Brim, Tom Dent and Sy Howard, the Cat Fanciers’ Association Foundation, Inc. was established on June 22, 1990 by the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) Board of Directors.

The original purpose of the organization was to be a forum that would educate the general public about the history of the cat and the cat fancy. Today’s mission statement has changed only a little from that original purpose – "to acquire and conserve the history of cats and show the development of the cat fancy through the acquisition of fine art, artifacts, and literature."

The CFA Foundation’s collection started with financial donations from cat clubs at the meeting where it was formed. Other donations of cat books, stud books, past issues of the CFA Yearbook, the Cat Fanciers' Almanac, and other cat-related periodicals (from many different registering bodies) quickly followed. Today, donations to the CFA Foundation have expanded enormously and have helped position the foundation to be a recognized authority on historical information about the cat and the cat fancy.

A long-standing goal of the Foundation was to establish and maintain a permanent display for the benefit and use of the general public. The opportunity to achieve that goal came when The Cat Fanciers’ Association moved to Alliance, Ohio and offered to lease the ground floor of their newly purchased building to the Foundation. The Feline Historical Museum became a reality in the spring of 2011, and now contains an exhibition of works of art relating to cats, an impressive historical artifact collection, plus a unique gallery of catrelated figurines. A research library, filled with over 8,500 books dating back as far as 1872, completes the museum.

The first major donation to the foundation, from the National Capital Cat Show, was funding to purchase the silver collar and medal presented to Cosey at a Madison Square Garden cat show on May 8, 1895. Cosey was a brown tabby Maine (Coon) cat owned by Mrs. Fred Brown of Long Island.

A view of the Main Gallery on the Ground Floor of the Feline Historical Museum. At the rear are the Library, the Vault, and two more viewing rooms. On The mezzanine, are found the Research Room, the Store Rooms, and the Children’s Library.

PHOTO: KAREN LAWRENCE

The CFA Foundation Inc, was incorporated as a not-for-profit organisation in

From time to time, the museum will exhibit special collections, such as a room dedicated to the Maneki Neko, the Japanese “welcoming cat”, and a bank vault filled with the Cat Doll Collection, an exhibit of unique dolls, dressed in period costumes.

In addition to the general cat library, the museum hosts a research room that is filled with cat magazines dating back as early as 1909, plus periodicals dating back to the early 20th century. These, plus breed specific publications and historical pedigree records, provide documentation about the development of the pedigreed cats and the cat fancy. All of the Foundation's print resources are available to the general public and researchers for on-site reference. We are always willing to assist with the research of people who are unable to visit.

Many of us have realized that our cherished cat collections will not be treasured by those we leave behind, or we are searching for a place where those special items will be appreciated. Every passing year sees more historical material destroyed because breeders and their heirs do not consider it as having value or interest. Please consider a donation to the CFA Foundation! It is only through you that the museum will continue to grow and achieve its mission.

The Feline Historical Museum is located at 260 East Main Street, Alliance, Ohio 44601.

Please visit our web site – www.felinehistoricalfoundation.org - for additional information on the museum. The CFA Foundation posts regularly to its Facebook page and produces a regular email newsletter.

New York State under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

Accordingly, contributions to the foundation are deductible for Federal income, gift and estate tax.

Everything you need to know about Genetics…

You can learn from your Cat! BY

DR. LESLIE LYONS Ph.D College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri

PART ONE DOMESTIC CATS We see them every day, in our households, on the farm, and in the streets. Their various colors and patterns are fascinating, the perfect camouflage. And yes, if we pay a little more attention – we can learn everything we need to know about genetics, from our cats!

Cats have been at the forefront of genetics since the rediscover of Mendelians Laws of Inheritance in the 1890’s. This recurring column will work our way through the history and science of cat genetics. We will discuss the early discoveries of inheritance patterns and cat mutation population data, reveal some of the early highlights of gene mapping, discuss the current state of genetic testing for cats for their diseases and traits and bring ourselves forward to the era of genomics and Precision Medicine for cats in the 21st century.

Gregor Mendel, the father of the science of genetics, was an Augustinian Monk who studied seven different traits in pea plants (plant height, pod shape and color, seed shape and color, and flower position and color) and established many of the rules of heredity, primarily dominant, recessive and co-dominant inheritance patterns and the rules of segregation and independent assortment, known as Mendel’s Laws of Inheritance. Mendel conducted his research between 1856 to 1863 and published his findings in 1866, which then went unnoticed for the next three decades.

Meanwhile, Charles Darwin, an English geologist and naturalist, gathered compelling evidence for his theories of evolution and natural selection during his voyage on the HMS Beagle from 1831 – 1836. However, Darwin did not publish his research until 1859, in his book “On the Origin of the Species”. Darwin continued gathering data that supported his theories, including field trips to the first cat shows in the 1870’s in the UK. In the early 20th century, Mendel’s Laws were rediscovered and the role of natural and artificial selection in various species, including cats, began to be deciphered. As several of Mendel’s traits had dominant inheritance, scientists were scanning species for similarly performance of visible characteristics in other animals. The Reverend William M. Hind (1815 – 1894) noticed the taillessness of the Manx cats could be a candidate for dominant inheritance1.

Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866 – 1945) is credited with the discovery of sex linkage using fruit flies, along with Leonard Doncaster (1877 – 1970), who realized the orange coloration of the tortoiseshell female and orange males was also sex linked2. Thus, the Orange locus in cats was one of the first traits, for any species, to be localized to a specific chromosome!

EDITOR: This is the first in a series of articles based on feline genetics

by Dr Leslie Lyons that will be published in FELIS HISTORICA in the ensuing months

Figure 1. Everything you need to know about genetics, you can learn from you cat!

The calico cat can teach us about many aspects of genetics, including, dominant and recessive inheritance, variable expression, plieotrophic effects, co-dominance, sex-linkage, Lyonization (X-inactivation and epigenetics). Photo (Sadie) courtesy L. Solecki.

Charles B. Davenport (1866 – 1944) was one of the first American geneticists, supporting the rediscovery of Mendel’s laws. He recognized cats had many visible traits demonstrating different inheritance patterns, such as, white coat, long fur, tailless, polydactyla, yellow (Orange) and maltese (blue dilution) and he documented his early observations3.

Dr. Davenport later became one of the leaders of the American eugenics movement, as did Clarence C. Little (1888 – 1971), who made significant contributions to color genetics in the domestic mouse and examined the cat Orange locus4. Cat chromosomes were visualized as early as 19095, however, the correct number of autosomes (18) and the X-Y sex chromosomes were finally demonstrated in 1928 by Osamu Minouchi6. Once the chromosomes of cats were depicted using karyotypes, many investigators showed tortoiseshell male cats were chromosomally abnormal as either being XXY or XX/XY chimerism.

By examining just calico cats (Figure 1), we will discover the Mendelian Law’s of dominant and recessive inheritance, begin to understand what causes variable expression, plieotrophic effects, co-dominance, sex-linkage, Lyonization and why Cc, the first cloned cat, does not like her nuclei donor, a calico cat named Rainbow!

Figure 2. Genetic anatomy of the cat. The ideogram represents the 18 autosomes and the X and Y chromosomes of the domestic cat. The nomenclature and the size in megabases are depicted under each chromosome.

Left of each chromosome is the gene name and on the right is the locus name for traits to be discussed in future issues.

We will use what we learn about basic genetics, to understand the different patterns, colors, fur types, body structures and diseases that make our domestic cats and their fancy breeds fascinating and unique.

As my own adventure in cat genetics began at the National Cancer Institute in 1992, Roy Robinson published his last compilation of cat genetics in 1991, expanding on the first works of RC Bamber8 and then AC Jude9. Over 75 traits and diseases are now of common concern for cat breeders (Figure 2).

This column will update these bibles of cat genetics and traits and bring our knowledge forward to cat Precision Medicine of the 21st Century.

1

Hund, W. Taillessness in Manx cats. Ann. Rep. N. Staffs. Field Club :81, 1889.

2

Doncaster l. On the inheritance of tortoiseshell and related colours in cats. Proc.

Cambridge Philospphical Soc. 13: pt I: 35, 1905.

3

Davenport CB., Details in regards to cats. Report on the work of the Station for Exp. Evol., Cold Spring Harbor. Carnegie Institute of Washington, Yearbook 4: 93, 1905.

4

Little CC. Preliminary note on the occurrence of a sex-limited character in cats. Science N.S. 35:907, 1912.

5

von Winiwarter H and Sainmont G. Nouvelles recherches sur l’ovogenese et l’organogenese de l’ovarie des mammiferes (chat). Arch. Biol., 24: 165, 1909.

6

Minouchi O. On the chromosomes of the cat. Proc. Imp. Acad. Jap. 4: 128, 1928.

7

Robinson R. Genetics for Cat Breeders. International Series of Monographs in Puer and Applied Biology Zoology Division, Volume 45, Pergamon Press, London, UK. 1971, 1977, 1991.

8

Bamber RC. Genetics of domestic cats. Bibliographie Genetica 3:1-83, 1927.

9

Jude AC. Cat Genetics All-Pets Books, Inc. Fond du Lac, WI USA, 1955.

Image: © www.gograph.com

INTRODUCTIONS, PROMOTIONS & OCCASIONAL REVIEWS BY

MS. ROSABELLA PURRNETT

Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

Welcome readers, to this, my first book summary for ‘Felis Historica!’

Today, I am not proffering my own review of these three books, as the reviews supplied next to each, more than cover them adequately! But, it would be fair to say, that three more diverse subjects would be difficult to find within our desired common denominator – the world of cats! How many of you today remember dear Molly Oliver? (now Molly Sasson). A former President of FIFe, she played a key role in a forerunner to ACF in Australia, later joining the WCF. But this International All Breeds Cat Judge also had a career in the Secret Service! ‘More Cloak Than Dagger’ is a ‘must read’! Then we come to the phenomenally researched and superbly illustrated history book, ‘Revered and Reviled’ by Laura A. Vocelle, whose passion for cats shines through her work, and marks her writing as a specialist resource for all serious matters of feline history! Our third book is ‘How to Have Purr-fect Faith – even at a cat show’ by renown exhibitor Laura Thomas, who beautifully relates how she continued to develop her personal spiritual journey while campaigning her beloved cats to a National Win! In my opinion, all three books represent essential reading. Adieu!

More Cloak than Dagger: One Woman’s Career in Secret Intelligence is the truly staggering autobiography of Molly J. Sasson, (formerly widely known to cat fanciers the world over as Molly Oliver. This book covers her long, remarkable career working in secret intelligence, in Britain, the Netherlands and latterly in Australia, primarily during the height of the Cold War. In Britain she headed an intelligence division of the Joint Air Photographic Intelligence Centre, based at Nuneham Park, which actively monitored Soviet industrial capacity and troop movements in communist Eastern Europe. She later worked in the Netherlands with the Dutch Domestic Security Service, the BVD. Then in 1969 she accepted a position as an officer with the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), remaining with them during a period of upheaval that lasted fourteen years. “…It is her cool appraisal of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) that will command most attention and raises still unanswered questions of great importance.” - Peter Coleman AO, author and former parliamentarian.

“Danger, loyalty and betrayal! A gripping and meticulously researched account of life in the intelligence community at the height of the Cold War. It raises disturbing questions about the Soviet subversion of Australia’s security services and why successive governments persist with the cover-up.” – Mervyn F. Bendle, author of ‘Anzac and Its Enemies: The History War on Australia’s National Identity.

PLACE YOUR ORDER AT:

https://www.connorcourtpublishing.com.au/More-CloakThan-Dagger-One-Womans-Career-in-SecretIntelligence--Molly-Sasson_p_267.html

Molly of course, loomed large in the world of the Cat Fancy around the globe. She reveals her role and participation in the Australian and New Zealand fancies, as well as her pivotal work within FIFe, in Europe. Hard to put down from beginning to end!

Revered and Reviled: A Complete History of the Domestic Cat by L.A. Vocelle was 7 years in the making - and well worth the wait. Just over 400 pages, this book spans the timeline of the cat in history, from 20 million years ago to the present. One notes from the dedication to the author’s cats and one special cat, in particular, that this creation was truly a labor of love.

Dozens upon dozens of photographs, paintings, and other illustrations bring the text alive, such as the photo of Mark Twain and his cat, “Tammany.” Even those well versed in the history of the cat will find new cat related facts and insights in this volume, such as that cats are mentioned in many of Shakespeare’s 37 plays but always negatively.

This book, that should be a welcome addition to any ailurophile’s library, sequentially describes the rise of the cat, the cat as goddess and the cats in early Aegean and Mediterranean civilizations. It then describes the Dark Ages and Middle Ages where the cat did not fare well, being persecuted by the Church and seen as familiars of witches. Pope Gregory IX, in 1233, went so far as to issue a papal bull proclaiming the cat a vessel of the devil. Conditions got better during the Early Modern Period (1500-1700) and really improved during what L.A. Vocelle describes as “The Enlightenment” that was followed by the Victorian period of the 19th century. For readers wanting to explore cat history even further, the book’s appendices and references contain 27 pages, including a timeline of the cat in history, lists of Theban tombs depicting cats, Egyptian cat cemeteries, and well notated references from each chapter.

L.A. Vocelle concludes her book by reflecting, “At last the cat has reclaimed its rightful place as a goddess to be worshipped and adored. Today the cat is undeniably a goddess reborn.” Read this book and you will be convinced of this, as well.

- Gregory M. Simpson, Cat Writers’ Association

PLACE YOUR ORDER AT: https://amzn.to/2XiLLtY

How to Have Purr-fect Faith: (even at a cat show) is for anyone who wants to understand in a practical and life-changing way, what it really means to have faith. As she shares a season of faith in her own life, Laura shows that God is a faithful Friend who loves you unconditionally, takes pleasure in being involved in everything you do, and lovingly conforms you to His likeness wherever you are – even at a cat show!

“Laura asks and answers questions we all ask God at one time or another. Is my dream His plan for me? How can this dream come true? How to Have Purr-fect Faith is a beautiful, scriptural teaching that blends a quest with a growing up of spirit. Trusting in the Lord is an all-encompassing journey, and just as Laura teaches, He promises to be with you every step of the way.” – Liz Watson, Allbreeds Judge, Great Lakes Regional Director and Board Member.

“I just finished reading How to Have Purr-fect Faith. I shared the joy…the sorrow…the doubts…the fears…and the faith. I read much of it through a veil of tears…tears of joy as the words brought back to me how much our Father loves us. All of us who are Christians in the cat fancy have wondered if we are doing the right thing. This book gives us the direction and the inspiration to ask if this is His plan for our lives.” – Virginia King, National Award-Winning Breeder.

“Could not put it down: read it in one sitting. Laura Thomas’s writing style is superb – easily understandable, even for a non-believer.

Gives insight into how a Christian overcomes daily obstacles and grows in faith. Outstanding! Also offers a glimpse into the world of pedigreed cats and the competition of showing them.” – Susannah Pincheira, Regional Award-Winning Breeder.

PLACE YOUR ORDER AT: https://www.castlebaths.com/purrfectfaithbook.html

PHOTO BY LANDOR © 2016 THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

THE LATE GREAT ‘CRUFTS’ CHAMPION

BY

JOHN G. SMITHSON

An excerpt from ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ © John G. Smithson 2019

In Frances Simpson’s chapter on Blue Persians in ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903), Wooloomooloo is one of only two early Blue Persian stud males mentioned in the first two pages. She explains the rise in the popularity of the Blues and gives an example of the increase in entries in the competitive classes for this variety as follows:

Through those cats listed in ‘Jumbo’s’ maternal pedigree, Wooloomooloo was also a great-great-grandson of Miss Simpson’s Blue Female ‘Mater’ who was the fourteenth Longhair, to be recorded in the National Cat Club Register.

“In 1891 blues came very much to the fore, and the entries at the Crystal Palace number 15 males and 17 females. At Cruft’s Show in the year 1894, a grand blue, called ‘Wooloomooloo,’ was exhibited by Mrs W.R. Hawkins, and this cat became one of the most famous of stud cats. Many of the finest blues of today are descended from this noted sire.”

Given that Miss Simpson briefs us on only three of the early Blue males before speaking in more detail about the desirable qualities looked for in Blues, this comes as high praise indeed. The other two males mentioned, were Mrs H.B. Thompson’s ‘Don Juan’ and Mrs Singleton’s ‘Moko’. These three should certainly be counted among those early ‘Blues’ described as ‘Pillars’ of the colour variety; alongside such early notables as ‘Ch. Bundle’, ‘Ch. Glaucus’, ‘Blue Goblin’, ‘Beauty Boy’, ‘The Friar’, ‘Turco’ and ‘Thunder & Lightning’.

That ‘Ch. Wooloomooloo’, was one of the outstanding sires of this period is fully supported by the number of his sons and daughters who were retained for breeding by a majority, of serious devotees of the Blue Persian cat and his subsequent appearance on so many extended pedigrees to this day.

PARENTAGE AND OWNERSHIP ‘Wooloomooloo’ was bred by Mrs A. Smith, born March 3, 1892. His sire was ‘Frisk’ (aka ‘Friske’), a Blue Longhair male owned by Mr Gillam, and his dam was ‘Fluff’ a Blue Longhair female, owned by his breeder, Mrs A Smith.

Both his sire and dam were sired by ‘Jumbo’ making this a half-brother to half-sister pairing. Both parents were also half-siblings to another well-known Blue male ‘Blue Boy’ also by ‘Jumbo’, owned by Madame L Portier.

The Crufts Cat Show Gold Medallion (1894) This example, held in The Harrison Weir Collection.

As to his unusual name, we probably have Miss Frances Simpson to thank for it, supported by the following quote from Miss Simpson, found in s short article entitled ‘Pillars of the Stud Book’, that she wrote for ‘Our Cats’ magazine, published on May 4th, 1901: “In the blue Persian world, perhaps Wooloomooloo and Beauty Boy can claim more descendants than any other stud cats of this breed. (variety). Wooloomooloo first made his debut at Crufts Show. Curiously enough this was the year in which I was sojourning in the suburb of Sydney, N.S.W., after which this noted cat was named.”

Initially he was sold to Mrs E. Davies, of Talbot Rd, Isleworth; but subsequently came into the ownership of Mrs W. R. Hawkins, who holds the honour of showing him so successfully at the Royal Aquarium in 1894, as described

by Frances Simpson. However, by the time he was siring kittens for Mrs Dean of Hawthorndene, in Slough, he was registered in The Cat Club Register, under her name.

CHAMPION ‘WOOLOOMOOLOO’ From a watercolour by artist Rosa Bebb, an illustration for ‘Rabbits, Cats and Cavies’ (1903) by Charles H. Lane.

The above illustration by Rosa Bebb of ‘Ch. Wooloomooloo’ was commissioned by the judge Charles Lane for his book, ‘Rabbits, Cats & Cavies’, published in 1903 by J.M. Dent & Co. The caption to it reads: “Blue – ‘Ch. Wooloomooloo’, one of the best of the colour ever shown. Owner, Mrs Dean.

SIBLINGS AND SHOWS No notable siblings are recorded, with the sole exception of sire-sibling ‘Starlight’ (aka ‘Bluebeard) whom it is claimed, went on to sire the formidable blue stud males ‘Darius’, (Mrs. Ransome) and ‘Blue Noble’ (Mrs Wells) and the female ‘Rosalys’ (aka ‘Ben Mohr Rosalys’ – owned initially by Mrs.Clinton Locke).

His show wins, as recorded in the Register of the National Cat Club are: Royal Aquarium, 1894, Two first prizes, Six Specials and the Beresford Challenge Cup, but this was not apparently his first show, which we learn from an excerpt taken from a letter written by his first owner, Mrs. Davies, to ‘Our Cats’, published on May 18th, 1901: -

This is highly indicative of his popularity as a stud cat, of the immense regard for his obvious phenotypical advantages. When we trace the pedigrees of modernday blues, we find that like Ch. Bundle and Ch. Glaucus before him, he was similarly, like them, a prominent backbone of later breeding programs, earning him the popular epithet during his lifetime, as ‘King of the Blues’!

BREEDING AND PROGENY

The progeny of ‘Wooloomooloo’ are many. The most significant among his sons being his name-sake, ‘Wooloomooloo II’, out of ‘Lady Jenny’, (a descendant of both Ch. Glaucus and Ch. Beauty Boy) and originally owned by Mrs Trivett. Then ‘Wooshoo’ (aka Iver Wooshoo), out of ‘Queen of Sheba’, owned for a time

by Mrs Herbert Ransome. Then ‘Oliver Wooleepug’, out of ‘Miss Brougham, (similarly a descendant of Ch. Glaucus and Ch. Beauty Boy, but also tracing back to The Friar and Ch. Perso), owned by Mesdames Lemmon & Bartlett. Lastly ‘Yani’, out of ‘Moke, (another queen who could trace her ancestry back to Ch. Beauty Boy), owned originally by Miss M.B. Hooper, but later jointly owned by Miss Frances Simpson and Miss E.F. Goddard.

From only a cursory examination of the two main registers, we can pull a memorable list of ‘Wooloomooloo’ sons and daughters that were retained for breeding.

Among his more prominent daughters could be counted ‘Jill’, the dam of Rev. Cosway’s ‘Angela’, herself the dam of a raft of renown blues sired by ‘Blue

“Champion Wooloomooloo belonged to me, and did not make his first appearance at Cruft’s Show. I showed him at the Palace in October, before Cruft’s. Judge Mr. A.A. Clarke who only gave him h.c. I sold him to Mr. Hawkins, five days before the Cruft’s Show, where he took so many honours. He was sold a few months after, to Mrs. Dean, where he died.”

STUD ADVERTISEMENT IMAGE-SET FROM ‘OUR CATS’ (1903).

Archives of The Harrison Weir Collection.

Noble’, among them, ‘Imperial Blue’ and Windsor Blue Gift’; and ‘Ethel’ the dam of ‘Fulmer Roy’.

The accompanying Stud Advertisements are from listings published in ‘Our Cats’ during 1903 for the sons of ‘Champion Woolloomoloo. It is easy to see, that even 9 years after his famous win at the Royal Aquarium in 1894, even major breeders of Blues, such as Mrs Ransome, (Editor of ‘Our Cats’) were perfectly content to advertise his sons at stud.

Among his last notable daughters, we find the blue female ‘Ch. Tibbeboo’, born 31st July, 1897. She was bred and owned by Mrs S.Clunes, out of her queen ‘Tibby’. Her show wins, as listed in the register of The National Cat Club include: 1st, Special, Botanic 1898; two firsts, Championship and four Specials, Crystal Palace 1898. The following is a report on her appearance at that show was published in ‘Windsor’ Magazine in early 1899: “A little sensation was caused at the summer show over another blue pet in the shape of Mrs Clune’s ‘Tibbeboo’, who, although but ten months old, captured the championship and specials awarded to its class by Mr Louis Wain. For short face and compactness of form as well as in colour, it quite fulfilled Mr Wain’s chief demands. And this beautiful cat easily secured the highest favour at the late show.”

The untimely death of Champion Woolloomooloo was matter-of-factly reported, in the January 17, 1900 issue of ‘Our Cats’ magazine. Described as ‘the well-known light blue cat belonging to Mrs Dean’, Woolloomooloo was only six weeks shy of his 8th birthday.’ No explanation is offered to suggest any specific cause for his somewhat early demise.

It would understandably be foolish for anyone to underestimate the impact of this singular male, ‘Ch. Woolloomooloo’ on the continuing development of the Blue Persian during the 1890’s, coming as he did, well prior to the rise of the ‘Thorpe’ dynastic strain that would descend from Ch. Orange Blossom of Thorpe, his sons and grandsons. Just looking at ‘Woolloomooloo’ we can see qualities in him, indicative of what the future would hold and of the powerful place the ‘blue Persian’ would occupy, both as a fashionable breed and in the emerging cat fancy of tomorrow. The popular descendants of ‘Ch. Woolloomooloo’ were many, and these have all played a not insignificant part in creating and adding to the great mix of genes, that ultimately assisted breeders to produce the Persian of today. He was unquestionably the most iconic of the early blue Persian males living during the mid-to late 1890’s.

READ MORE ABOUT ‘WOOLOOMOOLOO’ AT WWW.CAT-O-PEDIA.ORG

Where’s that bird?

ORIGINAL WATERCOLOUR BY LOUIS WAIN from the CFAF Collection in the FELINE HISTORICAL MUSEUM

Image © The CFA Foundation, Inc.

“Timing” as they say, “is everything!’ and this truism could certainly be applied to the life of artist Louis William Wain, whose iconic talent for drawing cats grew out of small dawning through sad circumstances, and a chain of events over which he had no control.

Wain was born August 5th, 1860, at Clerkenwell, in Middlesex, England, the eldest and only son of six children born to Julie Felicite Boiteux (1833 - 1910) and William Mathew Wain (1825 -1880).

With his father’s death in 1880, Louis found himself at the head of a household, at the age of only 20, with a mother and 5 sisters to care for. His sisters were Caroline, (born 1862); Josephine, (born 1864); Marie, (Born 1867); Claire, (born 1868); and Julie, (born 1871).

Louis’ formal education began in the Orchard Street Foundation, (in the former Well St Chapel), in Hackney; then at St. Joseph’s Academy in Lee Terrace, Blackheath, London; followed by attendance at the West London School of Art from 1877 until his graduation in 1881.

He was then engaged to teach at School of Art for several years, while simultaneously developing a career as an independent freelance illustrator.

It was around this time that his freelance work for the Illustrated London News and the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News. Accordingly, by another twist of circumstance, he would have begun to rub shoulders with the world renown animal illustrator and cat fancier, Harrison Weir, who was a contemporary of his father.

Harrison Weir had been on the extended staff of the Illustrated London News since its inception in 1842 and who was also contributing to the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News. Little did he know it at the time, but his link to Harrison Weir and to the Cat Fancy was yet to come to fruition.

Although known today primarily for his genius as a comic illustrator of cats, he had a true talent as an artist capable of creating stunning works in realism. Among two of his best examples in the Harrison Weir Collection, are ‘The Robin’s Breakfast’ executed for the Christmas Number of the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, published in December 1881; and ‘Love at First Sight’, also for the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News Christmas Number, published in 1884. (shown overleaf) Upon the death of his father, Wain had to find assistance for his mother in raising five daughters, and this assistance came in the form of Emily Mary Richardson, who was subsequently employed as a governess for Wain’s five younger sisters. Again, circumstance played a major role in his life, and although Emily was his senior by ten years, the two became engaged; and upon their marriage, they arranged to move to Hampstead Heath, in North London.

But these happier times were not destined to last. Emily sadly became ill in their second year together. The couple had adopted a black and white stray short-haired kitten they had found out in the rain, and naming him Peter, he became an integral part of their lives.

Emily however grew progressively more ill, and it was soon revealed that she was suffering from breast cancer.

‘LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT’ by Louis Wain The Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic News, Christmas Number, 1884. Image: The Harrison Weir Collection.

Emily was considerably comforted by Peter’s attentions, and Louis, aware of how much pleasure Emily derived from him, began sketching Peter in all his poses and antics, which Emily over time strongly recommended that he have published.

It was about his time, that Louis also began to feature cats in his drawings for the Illustrated London News. An early drawing of anthropomorphized cats entitled ‘A Kittens Christmas Party’ was published in the Christmas 1886 issue of the paper, featuring approx. 150 cats all styled upon their pet cat Peter!

But sadly, Emily died just weeks later, in January 1887. In 1890, the delightful drawing of Peter shown on the opposite page, drawing by Louis Wain, was published in ‘The English Illustrated Magazine’ in 1890. In later years, when reflecting upon his life’s journey, Wain would freely acknowledge that the foundation of his career in drawing cats should be attributed to his cat Peter.

‘THE ROBIN’S BREAKFAST’ by Louis Wain The Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic News, Christmas Number, 1881 Image: The Harrison Weir Collection.

These early anthropomorphized cats were simpler in form that his later studies which over time, stood upright, became clothed and ultimately mimicked their human counterparts. But Wain was certainly not the first to turn cats into humans through this methodology. The early 19th century French artist, Jean-Jacques Grandview (1803 – 1847) drew anthropomorphised animals, including cats in political and social satirical French papers of the 1830’s

Left: ‘PETER’ the black and white shorthaired stray, that became the inspiration behind Louis Wain’s earliest drawings and first anthropomorphised images of cats. Right: Anthropomorphised cats by Jean-Jacques Grandville (1842).

Both images from The Harrison Weir Collection.

and 1840s. In the drawing next to ‘Peter’ above, we see an excellent example of his work, from ‘Scenes de la Vie Privee et Publique DES ANIMAUX’ published in Paris in 1842, in which we find a feline society ‘gentleman’ is being cordially received in the salon of a feline Lady socialite.

This one was drawn 18 years before the birth of Louis Wain.

Grandville is generally credited for be an influence on the English caricature artists like John Tenniel, and other artists that worked on the satirical London paper ‘Punch’ and later, for the Illustrated London News. No wonder then that we find similar drawings by none other than Harrison Weir (1824-1906), the one alongside entitled ‘The Good-Natured Dog’ from ‘Funny Dogs with Funny Tales’, published in London, in 1857; again three years before the birth of Louis Wain. Weir worked alongside those earliest employees of the Illustrated London News when it was first published in 1842 and was still working for the paper as a freelance artist when Wain joined the staff in 1886.

But Wain took it further. He imbued his caricatures of cats with human qualities, described best by Alfred B. Cooper who, in an article published in the Boys Own Annual, at least two to three decades later, and having completed an interview with the artist, described his drawings: “He endows them with every human quality, speech,

‘The Good-Natured Dog’ by Harrison Weir. from ‘FUNNY DOGS WITH FUNNY TALES’ (1857) Image: The Harrison Weir Collection.

they really - think, plan, wear clothes, keep shop, use a latchkey – and , in fact, show every human quality, good or bad. He makes them sit on chairs and sofas, dance at evening parties, kiss under the mistletoe, skate, slide, tumble, dine a la carte, play trumpets and drums and all kinds of musical instruments, go to school, read books, play leap-frog, use face-powder and dress in the latest fashion. He draws jockey cats, sporting cats, roue cats, tragical cats, comedy cats, cooking cats, tramp cats, Bridge cats, social cats, philosophical cats, - in fact, he draws any and every kind of cat except the real household cat which lies on the rug and purrs.

“The last-mentioned fact is why some people say Louis Wain’s cats are not cats at all! But they are certainly nothing else! He is not a cat portrait painter. He is a cat humorist, and, under the guise of cats, he pokes fun at man-kind in general and shows them, under this guise, their foibles and failings and comicalities and littleways generally.

He then closely observes: ‘TWINS’ from a painting by Louis Wain.

Print from ‘The Penny Illustrated’ Xmas number, 1899 Image from: The Harrison Weir Collection

“But of all humorists, surely Louis Wain looks the least humorous. His dark face has, one might almost say, an expression of gloom upon it, and when he smiles, as he does occasionally, it almost seems to hurt him.

(Ed: Our photo of Louis Wain, taken from ‘Our Cats Magazine in 1900, at the head of this article is a clear case in point!)

“Yet, he is a genial man. He probably smiles inside, indulging in a sort of invisible chuckle!”

“I suppose,” he said to me, “that I must have drawn eighty thousand cats in my time. I have shown them in every human role, from the cradle to the grave, engaged in every sport, from circus-riding to croquet – cats of all ages, from prattling infants to doddering old men; but I defy anyone to mistake any of my cats for any other creature extant or extinct. I represent foibles, failings, pleasures, passions, anything but politics, which I never touch, and I claim the right of every caricaturist to exaggerate defects, emphasize features, use my subject for all it is worth, in order to bring out the special point I want to make at the time.”

Louis Wain has an absolutely marvellous facility as a draughtsman. He has been drawing for the B.O.P (Boys Own Paper) for a quarter of a century; drawing not only cats, but dogs, sailor-boys, and many other subjects, and oddly enough, he draws with his left hand.

Picture of a Cat by Louis Wain From ‘The Sketch’ July 18, 1900. This painting attracted the attention of HRH the Princess of Wales on a visit to an Exhibition at the Botanic Gardens

His models are of his own household, for he always keeps three to half a dozen cats as pets at ‘Bendigo,’ his house at Westgate-on -Sea.

Works such as the above, entitled ‘CHAMPION CATS OF ENGLAND – 4TH ANNUAL OF THE CAT CLUB AT WESTMINSTER’ became familiar with the public and to cat fanciers during the 1890’s and early 1900’s. This full-page print was published in ‘Black and White’ Magazine on Jan 25, 1902. It names some of the most popular cats on the show bench at that time.

Image: Scan from an original period print in the archives of The Harrison Weir Collection.

Wain’s introduction to the world of show cats, did not take place until 1890, by which time he had garnered some early notoriety for his caricatures of cats.

It also coincided with the prior establishment of the National Cat Club in 1887, at which time Harrison Weir as elected as the first President and Chairman. But by 1890, there was a clear rift among the ranks of the club, and in mid-1890, Weir and several other committee members, including the Secretary all resigned. The new Hon. Secretary pro-tem was Mr. J. Townsend, and at the next meeting, Louis Wain and others were voted in as new Members. Within a short space of time, he accepted the post offered to him as the new It is Chairman.

It is from this point forward that we begin finding his caricatures or ‘parody’ images of named pedigreed cats emerging with increased regularity in the papers. During this time he was continually developing and refining new skills of observation in relation to recognised breeds.

In the above image of ‘Champion Cats of England’ (1902), almost every image is an interpretative rendering as much of the personalities of the cats as representing their true breed, colour and pattern traits.

There can be little doubt that Louis Wain’s increasing popularity as a cat caricaturist was proving to be another drawcard for the growing Cat Fancy, during these heady days of unprecedented growth in the ‘craze’ for showing

‘CAT BEAUTY COMPETITION’ by Louis Wain.

Published in German Family Newspaper in 1889.

Image: The Harrison Weir Collection

ABOVE: ‘REFLECTIONS AT THE NATIONAL CAT SHOW’ – by Louis Wain. ‘Black & White’ Magazine October 27, 1894.

BELOW: ‘PUSSIES’ – by Louis Wain, ‘The Sketch’, July 10, 1895. Images: The Harrison Weir Collection

Four of Thirteen exemplary colored book plate scenes from ‘SOMEBODY’S PUSSIES’ a children’s book published by Raphael Tuck & Sons Ltd, in London in 1925.

Images from a First Edition copy of the book, in The Harrison Weir Collection.

CFA Judge Vicki Nye, and Felis Historica Editor John Smithson, in the CFA Foundation’s booth at the CFA International Cat Show in Cleveland Ohio, in 2018.They are admiring the Foundation’s recent acquisition of an antique chromolithographic print

by Louis Wain, where the focus is clearly on the white shorthair cat! Photo: Karen Lawrence.

Another, superb colored antique print, dating from 1895, by Louis Wain – entitled ‘Mrs. Tabitha’s Cats Academy’ Image from an original period print in the archives of The Harrison Weir Collection

importing, and breeding of cats. Not only was he a prolific artist but he became so adept at it, that from his head he could draw a caricature for a passer-by, sign it and give it to them as a memento. This he is recorded as having done on several occasions.

He was a congenial man. It was thanks to his kind intervention, that Harrison Weir was persuaded to judge at the Crystal Palace in 1901, and again late in 1905. Weir, still unwilling to compromise on the principles that lead to his resignation as President of the National Cat Club over a decade earlier, agreed on the condition that he would only judge the domestic section, which included the workingmen’s cats! This meant that he was not judging cats belonging to ‘Members’ of the NCC! Weir died in January 1906, and with him, the end of a 35-year era since the first Crystal Palace show in July of 1871.

Louis Wain eventually left England in 1907 to work for a time in New York, providing freelance illustration services for the local media giants there, while continuing to produce his trade mark cat caricatures for his own Louis Wain’s Annual, The Boys Own Annual and periodicals.

His work continued to be popular and as Alfred B. Cooper also observed, he had become so recognised for his style, that there was hardly a person who did know his name.

“It can be claimed for Louis Wain that his one idea has made his name a household word all over the world.

Indeed, it is probable that his name is more familiar with the general public than that of any other living comic artist.

Ask the first ten men you meet to mention the names of two ‘Punch’ artists, and now that Phil May is gone, perhaps not more than one of them will reply satisfactorily. Then ask the same ten men the name of the artist who draws cats, and every man-Joe of them will pass this viva voce examination with honours.”

Eventually Wain’s behaviour became so erratic, that his family decided to commit him to the Springfield Mental Hospital in Tooting. When it was discovered where he was residing, news of it was highly publicised and a strong public appeal was made by leading artists and authors, including H. G. Wells and others, leading to the intervention of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin. As a result, he was transferred to the Bethlem Royal Hospital in Southwark, and then later to Napsbury Hospital, where he continued to draw and paint cats in an increasingly modernistic style. Although diagnosed with Schizophrenia, there is considerable debate on what may have first triggered the condition, including the theory that he may have contracted Toxoplasmosis, (a parasitic infection) transmitted through contact with cat faeces. th

Wain died at Napsbury on July 4 1939. His works today fetch exceptionally good prices and are an excellent investment.

His artistic legacy however, on behalf of the cat, and the cat fancy, is both lasting and priceless.

TWO VIEWS of LOUIS WAIN at the same Show, hosted by the National Cat Club, at the Crystal Palace, in November 1905.

(See text for details.) Images published in ‘The Bystander’ and the ‘Illustrated London News’ respectively.

From the archives of The Harrison Weir Collection.

TWO PRIZE PETS Mr. Brooke’s Dogue de Bordeaux ‘SANS PEUR’ a First Prize winner at Paris and The Palace, accompanied by Mrs. Brooke’s Manx cat ‘CHAMPION KATZENJAMMER’ a Silver Medal winner at the Crystal Palace.

Photo: A. Dresser, Windsor Magazine, 1900. Image from of The Harrison Weir Collection

THE BROOKE’S BELOVED MANX CHAMPION

BY

JOHN G. SMITHSON

An excerpt from ‘Katzenjammer’ @ The History Project

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Among the earliest breeders and fanciers of Manx were the brothers, E. Sydney Woodiwiss and Sam Woodiwiss.

Both were active participants of The National Cat Club and in fact we find them both listed as serving on the Committee of that body for 1894 and 1895. Both were also avid supporters of a variety of different shorthaired breeds, Sam registering his under the well-known ‘Sedgemere’ prefix, taken from where he lived at Sedgemere, East Finchley.

We find a large selection of shorthairs in the register bred and owned by Sam, including some unusual ones, all under the ‘Sedgemere’ cattery name, including English Shorthairs, Manx, Siamese and even an imported ‘Indian Fishing Cat’ with the unusual name of ‘Sedgemere Hateful’, (NCC: 1801), possibly garnered through a friendship with Mr Gambier Bolton, a seasoned cat fancier and naturalist who was famous for his travels and his association with big game cats!

His brother, Mr E. Sydney Woodiwiss, who lived at Upminster in Essex, bred and owned English Shorthairs and Manx cats, choosing to register his English shorthairs under the ‘Upminster’ prefix, while his Manx cats were simply registered under the cattery name ‘Manx’.

We find a plentiful number of his early Manx in the register, one of the earliest being ‘Manx Pickles’ born in 1893, and although not recorded in a register, he seems likely to have been the breeder of the lovely silver tabby ‘Manx Silverwing’, (owned by Mr Gambier Bolton) and the dam of a Manx named ‘Ping Pong’. His ‘Manx Tommy’ (NCC: 2281) was a Black Manx imported directly from the Isle of Man. Interestingly, a Mr George Woodiwiss Esq, is recorded in the register as the previous owner of a Blue Shorthair, named ‘Peter of Kingswood’ (NCC: 1316) born in 1890, and is also to be found listed as an Honorary Member of The National Cat Club in 1895, alongside such notables as Madame Ronner and The Duchess of Bedford.

Another Manx breeder of note from this period is Mr. Jungbluth, who bred both ‘Kater’ and later ‘Bonhaki’, who were respectively purchased by Mr and Mrs H.C. Brooke and who became the backbone of their Manx breeding program.

The Brooke’s had a wide reputation as fanciers and connoisseurs of ‘curious pets’, accommodating in their menagerie, dogs, cats, rats, poultry, a dingo, and tame wolves! It was into this world of the late Victorian cat fancy, and into this unusual menagerie that ‘Katzenjammer’ made his appearance.

PARENTAGE & OWNERSHIP ‘Katzenjammer’ was born on April 8, 1896. As a homebred cat, he was mostly born at Welling, where the Brooke’s had their homestead. His sire was the Manx cat ‘Kater’ (NCC: 3252),born June, 1894, whom the Brooke’s had purchased from Mr Jungbluth. His dam was ‘Wenkeltit’, for whom no other information is available.

On his registration, he is noted as bred and owned by Mrs H.C. Brooke.

Charles Lane, in his book ‘Dog Shows and Doggy-People’ (1902) gives us this image of Mrs Brooke below and tells us the following about Mr & Mrs Brooke, and of Mrs Brooke’s particular interests: “The subjects of this sketch are another instance of husband and wife with congenial tastes, and both keenly interested in livestock, and, strange to say, both seem to like the varieties which are rather out of the common.”

“Mrs Brooke is quite an enthusiast, not only with dogs, but also with cats and poultry – in fact, I think anything she take sup, she does with all her might; and the number of prizes, with one variety and another, she has taken since she lived in this country – I believe both she and her husband were educated, and spent most of their youth on the Continent – must be considerable.”

He also provides an insight into both the interests and talents of Mr H.C. Brooke: -

Left: Mrs H.C. Brooke, Right: Mr. H.C. Brooke, with Manx Kitten on his shoulder and pet Wolf under his arm Photos: A.R. Pickett, from ‘Dog Shows and Doggy-People’ (1902) by Charles H. Lane.

Images courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

“Mr Brooke has been known as one of the most ardent supporters of the Dogue De Bordeaux, of which he had some of the finest specimens seen in this country – ‘Sans Peur’, ‘Dragonne’, ‘Matador du Midi’ were amongst his best. He also had some good Esquimax, Hairless Dogs, Dingoes, Thibet Dogs, and other distinguished foreigners, and has several wolves, which he has succeeded in taming, and has a better opinion of wolves in general than is held by the public at large.”

“I went from King’s College School to a school at Sutton-Valence. Here I first imbibed the joys of hunting and ferreting; and I may say that even now, after all my varied experiences of pastimes at home and abroad, ferreting is still one of my favourite amusements. I next went to college in Germany, where I very soon joined one of the ‘corps’ which exist at most of the higher German educational institutions for convivial and duelling purposes.

“He also takes an interest in Bull-dogs, usually keeping some – ‘Aston Thornfield’, ‘Battle-axe’, and ‘Baby Bacchus’ have been some of his winners – and has been the Hon. Secretary of one of the Bull-dog Clubs for some time.”

Since then I have been, and still am, a great believer in the duel. The majority of these college duels are of a comparatively light character, such as the ‘Schlager’, which is extremely prevalent amongst students; but even this may sometimes result in serious injuries.”

“From the fact of my being sometimes called upon to judge what my friend Mr Brough calls the ‘wild beasts’ – that is, the Foreign Dog Classes – I have often had the pleasure of seeing the dogs from this kennel in the show rings, and can testify to the ability with which Mr and Mrs Brooke handle breeds which are not ‘everybody’s money,’ and the zeal and energy exerted to show them to the best advantage.”

“From my schoolboy days I have always had a number of pets, and when I went to Berlin to study at the Veterinary College, I had a large artificial run, near the town, for training dachshunds to fox and badger. I also had foxes, jackals, polecats, martens, a hybrid between dog and wolf, a toy Pomeranian, long-haired dachshunds, a bloodhound, and a fighting boarhound related to ‘Harras II’.”

We learn even more about Mr and Mrs Brooke’s background from an interview with ‘Windsor Magazine dated in 1900, in which Mr Brooke enlightens us as to early education and development as a young man on the Continent:-

From the above, we learn that Mr Brooke was in all probability a qualified Veterinarian, and no doubt this made him an ideal candidate for being the breeder of such curious pets and accounts for his specialist knowledge of so many unusual varieties.

Two Manx cats and an Abyssinian.

‘Katzenjammer’,(left) ‘Ch. Bonhaki’,(centre) and ‘Sedgemere Peaty’, (right).

Photo: A. Dresser. ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903), by Frances Simpson

His German education may also explain some of the names of Mrs Brooke’s Manx cats! While many us may have known that the translation of ‘Katzen’ is ‘cats’, the literal translation of both the names ‘Kater’ and ‘Katzenjammer’ is ‘hangover’! Perhaps in their youth Mr & Mrs Brooke liked to imbibe!

Of course, the Brooke’s choice of cat breeds very much reflected their interest in dogs, therefore cats of unusual conformity or ‘foreign’ cats were their specialty, and they were known to be constantly on the lookout for the rare and ‘specifically different’. The Manx was their favourite from the local isles, but Mr Brooke was also an ardent supporter of the Abyssinian, especially the ‘Ruddy’, and he is known to have imported both ‘Indian’ and ‘Australian’ cats.

It was his specialist knowledge of foreign varieties that made him the obvious choice to write the chapter on the foreign varieties of cats in Frances Simpson’s ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903) and it is of particular interest to note, that it was he who wrote to Mr Shinick in New Mexico, with regard to his Mexican Hairless cats. Mrs Brookes exhibited two of the most outstanding ‘Mexican Crested’ or ‘Hairless’ dogs of the time, father and son, being ‘Hairy King’ and ‘Paderewski Jnr’.

We get a specific glimpse of the personality of ‘Katzenjammer’ from an anecdote provided by Mr Brooke: -

“It is also noticeable that many Manx, like the Siamese, are very dog-like in their habits, showing extreme affection for their owners. Poor old ‘Katzenjammer,’ for instance, would follow me to the railway station, and many a time on my return from town have I found him sitting in the middle of a field waiting for me, and on seeing me he would accompany me home just like a dog.” ¹ And similarly of the affection of the owner for his cat:“Champion and Premier ‘Katzenjammer’ was bred at home; he did not commence his show career till late, and then he had to meet ‘Bonhaki,’ after whose death, however, he was unbeaten, and had earned his champion title at the time of his death from gastritis last year, which robbed me of one of the most affectionate ‘pals’ man ever had, and I am not ashamed to own that many and bitter were the tears I shed over his grave.” ¹ SIBLINGS & SHOWS At least some of the Show awards of ‘Katzenjammer’ are listed in Register of The National Cat Club. But an interesting tid-bit about an early appearance at the Crystal Palace as a kitten is provided by none other than Miss Elsie Hydon, who later became President of The Cat Fanciers Association and was the owner-manager of the famous ‘Lavender’ cattery, based in Bogota, New Jersey.

‘Manx Silverwing’, the dam of Mr Gambier Bolton’s ‘D-TAIL’, who was sired by ‘Katzenjammer’ “Silverwing has won many prizes and calls forth great admiration whenever exhibited.” Frances Simpson Photo: Glacier, Longsight. ‘Our Cats and All About Them’ (1902) by Frances Simpson

“I remember H.C. Brooke by name, since the time Lady Decies used to show Zaida and Miss Whitney used to show her wonderful brownies. Yes! We first showed cats at The Crystal Palace in 1895 (sic),to wit, the infant, who later became Champion and Premier Katzenjammer, and his sire Kater.”

The above was quoted from a newsy piece published in the 14th September 1927 issue of ‘Cat Gossip’, so we may forgive Miss Hydon for mistaking the year , which must have been 1896, given that Katzenjammer was not born until April 1896 and would have been only six months old at the Crystal Palace Show of that year. It is illuminating however, to gain confirmation that the sire of ‘Katzenjammer’ was shown at the same time. ‘Kater’ and son, alongside each other would have been quite a sight!

Katzenjammer’s listed wins are: 3rd, Crystal Palace 1896; 2nd, Botanic 1899; 1st, Championship, Premier and Special, Crystal Palace 1899.

BREEDING & PROGENY Of progeny credited to ‘Katzenjammer’, there are only three. These are: ‘KATZENJAMMER’S DAUGHTER’ (Manx female, date of birth and dam unknown). It is unclear as to whether this was her real name, or whether it was truly unknown. But she is acknowledged as siredby ‘Katzenjammer’. She is recorded as owned by Miss Elliott, who subsequently bred her to Mr & Mrs Brooke’s ‘Champion Bonhaki’, to produce a Black Manx female, named ‘Dachhase’ (born

December 1899). This would appear to suggest that ‘Katzenjammer’s Daughter’ must have been from an early litter sired by ‘Katzenjammer’. ‘Dachhase’ became the property of Mr and Mrs Brooke, and her name is certainly indicative of Mr Brooke’s early exploits in teaching Dachshunds how to “fox and badger”!

(Dachhase aka Dachs Hase and Dachshase).

‘D-TAIL’ (Silver Tabby Manx female, born June 24, 1900) (CCR), by ‘Katzenjammer’, out of Mr. Gambier Bolton’s ‘Manx Silverwing’. The dam was also a striking cat, and her image, shown above, was featured in Miss Simpson’s early work ‘Cats and All About Them’ published in 1902.

In ‘The Book of The Cat’ she informs us that Mr. Bolton’s two females ‘Manx Primrose a Black, and ‘D-Tail, a silver tabby, “won respectively first and second at the Westminster Show in 1902”. She also goes on to sat that “It was a grievous loss when ‘D-Tail’ disappeared very mysteriously from his home in St. John’s Wood.

‘FINCHLEY KIT’ (Tabby Manx female, born July 23, 1900) (CCR). By ‘Katzenjammer’ out of ‘Finchley Trilby’. Bred and owned by Mrs. H.E. Jung.

IN SUMMARY The world into which ‘Katzenjammer’ was born was a strange but dynamic one. The curious environment that was the home-life of Mr and Mrs Brooke, where a dingo had the freedom of the home and his own dedicated armchair in which he slept at night, much like any regular house dog – and his exposure to cats and dogs of wide variation, as well as a myriad of other pet species, must

THE STRIKINGLY HANDSOME MANX - ‘CHAMPION KATZENJAMMER’ Photo: A.R. Pickett, Bexley Heath. ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903) by Frances Simpson

have been an exceptionally bizarre upbringing for a young Manx kitten. But that he was a content and happy cat cannot be denied. In the photograph of him with Mr Brooke’s famous Dogues de Bordeaux, he appears quite relaxed and totally at home.

That he was a respected example of the breed cannot be challenged, as is witnessed by those who used him at stud, and his only rival for pre-eminence was the Brooke’s own ‘Champion Bonhaki’ while that amazing Manx male yet lived.

It is indeed heart-warming to read Mr Brooke’s own tribute to ‘Katzenjammer’, which is clearly written out of sheer love for his old ‘pal’. Many years later, Mr Brooke would import another Brown Tabby Manx male from the Isle of Man, and in a living tribute to his old favourite, would name him ‘Katzenjammer’s Ghost’. This lovely male became a celebrated Champion in his own right, and upon the death of Mr Brooke, became the property of Miss Helen Hill Shaw, as ‘Katzenjammer’s Ghost of Cademuir’.

Miss Shaw says of the breed: -

“As a breed they are all that can be desired; wonderfully intelligent and affectionate to their owners and to each other; living the ideal family life, they are the best of pals. We have always been able to let our Manx males run about the house without any fear of unpleasantness.”

We are reminded of Mr Brooke’s anecdote of meeting ‘Katzenjammer’ on his way home from the railway station, and knowing that during his lifetime, this wonderful Manx cat enjoyed exceptional freedoms, mixed company, and a healthy dollop of family love.

Classic Tabby Manx Kitten drawn by Harrison Weir ‘Our Cats’ (1889)

BY

LAURA D. THOMAS

This months featured product I feel should be something from my company lines, just to get your feet wet with learning a little more about the person who will be bringing these features to you along with my expertise. I’ve been making what is known worldwide as the Anna® Designer Pet Line since the early 2000’s. Anna® Tear Stain Trio Remover Set, has been Castle Baths® top seller for 15 years in a row out of all our 200 formulation, to include outselling our human skincare lines. As any Persian breeder knows- grooming is the utmost importance when showing and one of their largest challenges.

Why do cats develop them? And what can be done?

Have you ever noticed how the fur beneath the eyes of your cat can turn darker over time, perhaps becoming laced with streaks of red or brown? Eye discharge, more commonly referred to as tear staining occurs when your pet’s tears oxidize upon contact with air and are absorbed into the follicles, producing a change in color. On a molecular level, this is due to the breakdown of your cats’ red blood cells during natural cell division, producing the dye molecules known as porphyrins, which are excreted via the tear ducts whenever your cat tears up.

There are five main reasons why cats will tear up.

The first is pain, and especially so during the teething stage. Teething causes your pet’s mouth to ache, and just like a human child, your pet will respond to the painful sensation by producing tears. There is also more irritation and inflammation in your pet’s eyes at this stage of development so tearing will likely be often and excessive. Cats and dogs typically cut their teeth several times per year during their first year of life.

The second cause of tearing in pets is infection. This can be either bacterial or viral. Make an appointment with your veterinarian to determine if either of these is the cause of your pet’s tearing. An eye stain test can determine whether tearing is caused by a scratch on the eye, or a bacterial or viral infection. If the test comes back positive for infection, the vet will prescribe an ointment, eye drops, or an oral medication (sometimes a combination of all three is needed.) If tearing does not subside after the end of the treatment’s course, see your vet again for a second round or a different medication option. Using the Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio will help combat an infection, as it possesses antiseptic properties. It is great to use in combination with your veterinarian’s prescription.

Thirdly, there is irritation. The chemicals contained within air fresheners, disinfectant wipes, perfumes, and other household products can be very irritating to animals, causing their eyes to drain. Irritation can also be caused by grass allergies, dust in the litter box, and other sources of air pollution. If you or your vet believe your pet’s tearing to be the result of environmental factors such as these, your best recourse is to isolate and find an alternative for whatever is causing the irritation. If you cannot identify and/or remove the irritant, consider purchasing natural tears for your pet. Use the same kind as is sold in drug stores for humans, but not the kind that removes redness, as this type is actually an irritant to pets’ eyes. Natural tears will help lubricate the eye and remove the irritants(s). This helps your pet’s eyes much like computer eye drops help human eyes, as irritation can often be attributed to a simple case of dryness.

The fourth cause of tearing in pets is allergies. Like humans, cats and dogs can be allergic to pollen, and experience seasonal allergies as a result. If you or your vet believe this to be the case, try minimizing your pet’s exposure to outdoor air on days when there is high pollen concentration. If this is not possible, such as when you need to take your dog out for a walk or to do his business, consider using an infant’s version of Benadryl or using natural tear drops for humans. As always, talk to your veterinarian before beginning any medication regimen on your pet.

A fifth possibility is that your pet has developed a blocked tear duct, in-grown eyelash, or other medical eye problem that requires veterinary attention. If you are concerned that this may be the case, see your veterinarian.

What is the Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio?

By this time, you’ve seen several instances of the phrase “Anna Designer Pet” used in conjunction with “tear stain removal.” If you’re unfamiliar with the brand, or perhaps even if you are familiar with it, may be wondering, “How exactly does this Anna Designer Pet Trio actually work, and why is it any better than other tear staining removers on the market?” To answer this question, it is necessary to return to the issue of how tear stains are formed in the first place. But first, let’s discuss the Anna® brand in general, and go over the component parts of its Tear Stain Remover Trio.

The Anna® Designer Pet brand is Castle Baths’ natural pet grooming product line. The Trio is a collection of three natural, chemical-and-antibiotic-free products designed to remove tear stains from fur: a Face Shampoo, Face Wash, and Grooming Powder. First marketed in 2005, Castle Baths’ Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio has rapidly risen in popularity to become one of the world’s leading breeder-preferred and breeder-recommended natural tear stain remover on the market today for both cats and dogs. I originally developed this line for my cattery, Purrinlot. Today, it is now widely recommended by veterinarians and professional groomers. The Tear Stain Remover Trio comes in two sizes: a small trio, which contains one 12oz bottle of Face Wash, one 4oz bottle of Face Shampoo, and one 4oz jar of Grooming Powder, and a large trio, which contains one 12oz bottle of Face Wash, one 12oz bottle of Face Shampoo, and one 8oz jar of Grooming powder. The Large Trio is only a few dollars more than the Small Trio, and contains twice the volume of the Small Trio.

How Does It Work?

What separates the Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio from its mass-marketed competitors?

If you think back to the section on how tear stains are formed, you may recall the passage explaining that the stain-producing prophyrin molecules are secreted from the tear ducts and absorbed into the hair follicles surrounding the eyes. The key word to keep in mind here is “into” the follicles. Not on top of the follicles, but into them. This is because the source of each tear stain is actually buried deep within the inner layer of each follicle. If you look at the illustration to your right, you will see a diagram of a hair follicle shaft with its inner and outer layers. The Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio is the only tear stain remover on the market that is designed to work on the inside layer of the shaft where the stain originates. It accomplishes this via a three-step process:

STEP 1: THE FACE SHAMPOO The Face Shampoo is designed to work on the outer layer of hair. Those who are familiar with the structure of hair may recall that all hair follicles have a protective cuticle layer called keratin (see illustration to the right), which keeps the hair strand from splitting ends and prevents ordinary soaps and shampoos from penetrating into the inner hair shaft. When a tear comes into contact with the keratin on a hair follicle, and air, it oxidizes, weakening the keratin to the point where it seeps inside the follicle.

It’s like leaving an apple floating in a bucket of dirty water. Eventually, if the apple is left in the water long enough, some of the dirty water will erode the skin on the apple enough that some dirt gets inside the fruit. The stain, once inside the inner shaft of the hair follicle, causes a hard film to form overtop of the keratin. To continue with the apple analogy, once the dirt gets inside the apple, it has the effect of causing the apple’s skin to develop a hard texture as though it had been turned into a candy apple and baked in an oven. If someone wanted to remove the decayed spot inside the skin of the apple, he or she would first have to break apart the candy coating.

This is essentially what the Anna Designer Pet Face Shampoo does. By breaking up the hardened, oxidized layer of stain obscuring the keratin, it allows the Face Wash and Grooming Powder to begin working on the deeper layers of the stain.

STEP 2: THE FACE WASH The Face Wash is actually what removes the visible stain. If you were forced to select only one product from the Trio, this would be the one to choose. It can remove stains more effectively than other solutions and does so without stripping the hair shaft. However, even with the oxidized coating over the keratin dissolved, it will require several washes to remove a stain that has been building up for a long time. A single visible stain is actually composed of multiple, microscopic layers of stain that have darkened (oxidized) over time. A dark stain that has been on your pet’s face for a long time may easily have hundreds of layers of stain built up. Therefore, if you used nothing except the Face Wash to wash your pet’s face, and only washed it once per day, it would take hundreds of days to see results. The more often you use the face wash, the better the results will be.

STEP 3: THE GROOMING POWDER Fortunately, this is exactly why there is a third product bundled with the Face Shampoo and Face Wash in the Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio: the Grooming Powder. Using the Grooming Powder after applying the Face Wash can speed the stain removal process up tremendously. Using the Grooming Powder after you have removed a layer of stain with the Face Wash, and patted the area dry with a cloth will help keep new stains from entering the follicles, as well as act like a makeup for your pet. But what truly makes this product exceptional is its ability to penetrate the hair shaft and push the stain outward so it can be wiped away by the Face Wash.

Be sure to pat your pet’s face dry with a cloth or tissue before applying the Grooming Powder.

Otherwise, the powder and Face Wash will blend into a gravy-like consistency and smear all over your pet’s face. The best way to apply the grooming powder to your pet’s face is with a makeup brush, as this will allow it to work into the various layers of the hair. Since human skin is naturally oily, using your finger to apply the powder is not recommended, and using a cotton ball or swab will only apply the powder to the outer layer of the hair. Once applied, the grooming powder will begin to work its way inside each hair follicle affected by the stain and push the deepest layers of the stain outward. Once it has removed the stains origins inside the follicle’s inner shaft, the remaining stain layers can be more easily wiped away the next time you use the Face Wash. It is for this reason above all others that the Grooming Powder is included in the Trio. The Grooming Powder is, in essence, the Tear Stain Remover Trio’s secret ingredient.

So, as a summary of how the Grooming Powder is so effective, and different than most others on the market, it will: • Act as a cover like makeup so your pet’s face is prettier.

• Protect your pet’s fur from new stains by helping the tears roll off the follicles rather than into them.

• Help push the stain out of the hair follicle so that it can be easily wiped away with the Face Wash.

How long does it take?

The time period it will take to completely remove a stain from your pet’s fur depends on how long the stain has existed (since stains build up over time) and the color of your pet’s fur. Some fur colors will clean up quicker than others. Cats and dogs with dilute colored fur have small cells comprising their hair follicles, so they are naturally more resistant to deep stains than those with full-color coats. Cats and dogs with white fur are actually masking a gene for either dilute or dominant coloring. The best way to know if your pet’s coat is dilute or dominant is to ask your breeder.

This is analogous in humans to when a natural blonde dyes her hair red. Because blonde hair cells are naturally small, the larger red dye molecules can’t penetrate the keratin coating and thus, just adhere to the outer layer of each follicle. Therefore, a layer of the red dye is washed off with each shower, and the person’s hair returns to blonde within about three weeks.

However, if a brunette were to bleach her hair blonde, it would take much longer to reverse the process. The small blonde dye molecules would easily penetrate the spaces between the larger brown hair cells and take hold in the inner hair shaft, causing the brunette to need to grow out her hair before she could restore her natural hair color.

Interesting Product Tidbits •

The Anna Designer Pet Tear Stain Remover Trio is completely natural (no antibiotics or chemicals are used in its formulation)

•

It is clear/colorless and tearless (some colored tear stain removers will themselves cause staining because of the dyes used to color the liquid)

•

It is safe for use on puppies and kittens as young as 3 weeks

•

It is made with edible ingredients, and is safe to use around the mouth and eyes

•

It is safe to use 12 times or more per day

•

It is safe to use on the paws and around the rear end

•

It removes stains at their source rather than simply masking their appearance.

For more information see: https://www.castlebaths.com/pet-care.html

FACTFILE DOB: August 9, 2000

CFA’S BEST CAT PREMIERSHIP 2006 CFA’S 17TH BEST CAT CHAMPIONSHIP th 4 Best Solid Colour Persian 2nd Best Blue Persian 2002 CFA’S MIDWEST REGION 3rd Best Cat, 2002 5th Best Kitten, 2001 Sire: GC RW Araho’s Shawn Murphey of Goliada Dam: GC Goliada Oh! Susanna, DM Breeders:

Michael & Nancy Petersen Owner:

Nancy Petersen

A SOLID BLUE PERSIAN OF THE MODERN ERA

GC. GP. NW, GOLIADA HERMIONE GC, GP, NW Goliada Hermione was a very special cat. She was named after Harry Potter's Hermione, as my husband, Michael, and I believed the “ugly duckling" would turn into a swan.

Hermione went to her 1st show as a kitten in January 2001. Though the season was almost over, she became the CFA Midwest Region’s 5th Best Kitten.

With Michael’s health deteriorating, to lift his spirits I started showing Hermione as an adult in January 2002. I took Michael with us and Hermione rode with Michael in his wheelchair at the shows. She ended the season as CFA’s 17th Best Cat. After being spayed in Spring 2004, Hermione looked fantastic by summer and was ready to show in January 2005. At her first show as a GP, she won Best Cat in Premiership in every ring! She led the premiership rankings for the entire season and became CFA’s Best Cat in Premiership in 2006.

Her assets were a conformation to die for, huge poppy eyes of brilliant copper color, large well-rounded cobby body, magnificent coat with pale, even, trueblue color – and ohhh, what a head!

She was a large cat, larger than most of her competition, and a joy to show as she always had a regal presence in the judging ring. She would stand on the judging table, posing for the spectators as if to say, “Look at me, aren’t I special?!!”

Nancy Petersen

FACTFILE “MANNY” DOB: August 29, 2014

CFA’S CAT OF THE YEAR 2015-2016 CFA’S BEST CAT North Atlantic Region 2015-2016 CFA’S BEST MANX Nationally 2015-2016 Sire: GC BW RW Slieau Simon Sayz of Briar-Mar Dam: GC NW Briar-Mar’s Catching Fire Breeders:

Gonzalez/Veach/ Suki Lee Owners:

Omar F. Gonzalez / Gary L. Veach

A RED CLASSIC TABBY BICOLOR MANX OF THE MODERN ERA

GC. BW. NW, BRIAR-MAR’S GOOD TO BE ME “Manny” was one of five kittens in the litter, four of them being all rumpies that weres strong and healthy. As these kittens grew, I kept looking at “Manny” thinking to myself you are starting to really look good. Within a few weeks there was no denying that he was the “one”. The litter was truly impressive, with all four going on to grand.

“Manny’s” first show was at four months old, shown alongside his very flashy brown patched tabby/white Van sister GC RW/GP NW Briar-Mar MockingJay of DeyDream. “Manny” took the breed in every ring and while both kittens enjoyed making finals together it was “Manny” who came out on top and was highest scoring kitten at four months. We decided to show “Manny” for a regional win.

He went to eight shows in total and was highest scoring at every show he attended. Little did we know that this feat would be the hallmark of his entire career.

At the start of the new show season in May, “Manny” continued his winning streak, granding in one show and was always highest scoring cat at every show he attended until he was pulled after the first weekend in April, three weekends before the conclusion of the 2015/16 show season. Along the way he won a great many prestigious shows like National Capital, Cotton States Cat Club and the pinnacle of shows, The World show. “Manny” was highest scoring for the purple show and then crowned Best of the Best. “Manny” was the first Manx in CFA history, dating back to 1906 to become Cat of the Year.

Omar Gonzalez

OUR International CORRESPONDENTS

FELIS HISTORICA

HWC

HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

© A-Cat-Emy Concepts

IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER BY LAST NAME

SANDRA ALSUMAIT (CFA, KUWAIT)

JOHAN LAMPRECHT (SOUTH AFRICA)

Kuwait City, Kuwait

Durbanville, South Africa

GAVIN CAO (CFA, CHINA)

RUSSELL LAW (CFA, HONG KONG)

Chengdu, China

Hong Kong.

JINSON CHOI (CFA, SOUTH KOREA)

DONATELLA MASTRANGELO (FIFe, BELGIUM)

Paju-Si, South Korea

Rome, Italy

ELLEN CROCKETT (TICA, UNITED STATES)

STEVEN MESERVE (TICA, EUROPE SOUTH)

Port Townsend, WA, United States

Vila de Cucujaes, Portugal

PAM DELABAR (CFA, EUROPE)

DARRELL NEWKIRK (CFA, UNITED STATES)

Tampere, Finland

Nevada, United States

FARAH DIANA (CFA, INDONESIA.)

CHAYAPON PHUCHAROENYOS (WCF, ASIA)

Jakarta, Indonesia

Bangkok, Thailand.

BAMBI J. EDWARDS (ANCATS, AUSTRALIA)

EVA PORAT (FIFe. SWEDEN)

Sydney, Australia

Orebro, Sweden.

LUIZ PAULO FACCIOLI (TICA, SOUTH AMERICA)

CHATE RUENGRUGLIKIT (CFA, THAILAND)

Port Alegre, South Brazil

Bangkok, Thailand.

BOB GLEASON (CCA, CANADA)

CHERYLE U’REN (CCCA, AUSTRALIA)

London, Canada

Melbourne, Australia

ANNELIESE HACKMANN (WCF, EUROPE)

LIESBETH VAN MULLEM (TICA, EUROPE NORTH)

Essen, Germany

Utrecht, The Netherlands

JOHN HANSSON (GCCF, UNITED KINGDOM)

ROBBIE WALKER (ACF, AUSTRALIA)

London, England.

Gold Coast, Australia

STEVEN JONES (FIFe, NORWAY)

JANE WEBSTER (NZCF, NEW ZEALAND)

Stavanger, Norway

Palmerston North, New Zealand

JUN KOHNO (CFA, JAPAN)

IZADDIN SYAH YUSOF (CFA, MAL.AYSIA)

Tokyo, Japan

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

OUR International CORRESPONDENTS FELIS HISTORICA takes this opportunity to welcome and introduce our multi-talented team of International Correspondents representing a wide array of countries and associations, experience, cultures, and breed varieties across the entire Fancy bound by, and sharing a common love for the Cat, whether Pedigreed or Domestic.

Thank you for your support for this adventure!

These, are THEIR stories…….

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Darrell is a former member of the United States Armed Forces, serving in the US Air Force for four years. After his discharge, he went back to college and received an associate degree in Nursing. A few years after that, he earned a diploma in a Nurse Anesthetist program, and began his professional career in 1981. He completed his undergraduate degree in Nursing and Business Management in 1986 from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri. In 2015, he retired and moved from the mid-west USA to Las Vegas, Nevada.

Darrell attended his first CFA cat show in 1984, with his wife Beth, looking for a silver Persian kitten. While there, they fell in love with the Abyssinian and shortly after that show purchased their first Abyssinian breeding cat, Van Dyke's Abi Alexis of Purssynian. He and Beth’s first love was the blue Aby, and they would soon learn that there would be many hoops to jump through to get acceptance for that color as it had only recently been recognized and advanced to Championship competition in CFA.

DARRELL NEWKIRK (CFA, USA) NEVADA, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT THE CAT FANCIERS’ ASSOCIATION CFA INTERNATIONAL LIAISON to the World Cat Congress

Darrell and Beth registered PURSSYNIAN as their cattery name, and in addition to Abyssinians, he bred bi-color, solid color and parti-color Persians, Maine Coons, Birmans, Scottish Folds and Cornish Rex. His Abyssinian program was exceptionally successful, and at one time GC Purssynian Jambe Finete, DM (Jammer) held the record for the number of Grand Champions and Grand Premiers he sired. "Jammer" is one of those rare males in a breeding program that consistently produced kittens of a quality even better than his own. The very first fawn Abyssinian to achieve CFA’s DM status came from Darrell’s cattery, GC Purssynian's Sunhawke, DM. After years of producing award winning Abyssinian, the Purssynian breeding program ended in 2011 after the unfortunate passing of Beth.

Darrell switched to the CFA judging program in 1996, after being an ACFA judge since 1989. He has also served several terms on the CFA Board of Directors as a Director-at-Large. For a few years, Darrell was Chair of CFA’s International Committee and guided its growth and membership of CFA clubs overseas. He has also served several terms on the CFA Board of Directors as a Director-at-Large, and of course, was recently elected President of CFA. To this day, Darrell thinks that the cat fancy is interesting, exciting and a great place to share ideas with those who think likewise.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

My involvement in CFA started over 40 years ago when I got my first CFA registered cat in 1975, a Himalayan (at that time a breed separate from Persians). I actually fell in love with Lynxpoint Colorpoint Shorthairs at my very first show and worked on establishing a Siamese breeding program in order to work with the CPSH. I was fortunate to have bred GRC, NW, BW Sapad Mme Charlotte H., D.M (I think Charlotte was my Siamese alter ego) under my Sapad cattery name; GRC, BW, RW Alsace V. Lestat was my most memorable CPSH bred under my Alsace cattery name. My “heart cat” was GRC Alsace Armstrong, my Maine Coon male, who loved his “pick me up and love me” moments.

I have bred Siamese/Colorpoint Shorthairs, Oriental Shorthairs, Persians, Singapuras, Maine Coon Cats, Manx, and am currently working with Norwegian Forest Cats and occasionally American Curls.

PAM DELABAR (CFA, EUROPE) TAMPERE, FINLAND CFA DIRECTOR: REGION 9 Director: CFA Foundation, Inc.

Accepted in 1990, I have been judging for the Cat Fanciers’ Association for over 30 years and have been fortunate to have judged on every continent where cat shows are held and for almost all the members of the World Cat Congress and several other independent organizations.

First elected in 1986, I have served as regional director for the CFA Gulf Shore Region and the European Region of CFA, a director at large, vice president and president of CFA, culminating in 28 years of service on the CFA Board of Directors.

Additionally, I served 6 years as president of the World Cat Congress, overseeing the largest expansion of the organization since its inception. Though originally from the United States, I moved to Finland in 2011.

My professional career encompassed 24 years in the US Army, retiring in 1993 as a Lieutenant Colonel.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Gavin Cao is a Chinese Canadian currently residing in Chengdu, Sichuan, China - the home town of pandas and the world renown Sichuan style of cooking. As a bachelor of math/computer science, from the University of Waterloo, Gavin has over 20 years of experience in business software solutions and ERP consultancy with esteemed companies such as Nortel Networks, Sprint, E&Y, SAP, etc...

His very first pet cat, was a domestic brown tabby kitten which he got when he was only 5 years old and has been in love with cats ever since.

In this hobby, Gavin has been an active participant in the emerging world of China cat fanciers since he first registered his cattery with CFA in 2007. Over the past decade, he has achieved multiple National and Breed Wins in CFA for his Scottish Folds as well as Devon Rex: - in 2017-2018 season, his Scottish Fold adult "Java Cafe Apollo" took both the breed win as well as 10th Best Cat in Championship National win in CFA China.

- in 2018-2019 season, his Devon Rex kitten "Alienrex's Foxy Lady" made breed history by achieving "Kitten of the Year" and National win in CFA China.

GAVIN CAO (CFA, CHINA) CHENGDU, CHINA

Besides engaging heavily in CFA campaigning activities, Gavin also headed one of the most prolific CFA show producing clubs in China.

Spanning the period between 2013 to 2020, the Great West China Cat Fanciers club have hosted/co-hosted close to 40 CFA shows nation-wide in major cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Xi'An, Hangzhou, Suzhou. These shows greatly raised public interest and awareness of pedigreed cats countrywide.

In 2017, Gavin Cao was accepted and enrolled into the CFA's judging program as the second judge in history from mainland China. In 2020, Gavin Cao successfully became a CFA approved Shorthair judge and is currently working towards completing his Longhair training program.

Given Gavin's mixed cultural background as well as prolonged exposure to all aspects of cat fancying, he has a unique perspective to offer on the history and shaping of the Cat Fanciers Association in China.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Currently, John is Chairman of the GCCF, in his second term in this office, having previously served as Chairman from 2008-2011. He has held the GCCF ‘Pannaduloa’ prefix since 1978, with his main breed interests being Siamese, Oriental and Cornish Rex. He has the distinction of having bred the first GCCF Seal Tortiepoint Siamese Grand Champion.

He also bred the youngest ever Supreme Grand Champion, gaining this title in 1986 at the age of just over 10 months. He then went on to become the first UK. Grand Premier Siamese male neuter, two years later. This was Supreme Grand Champion and UK Grand Premier Pannaduloa Blazer.

John became the first male GCCF All Breed Judge since the inauguration of Breed Advisory Committees. He enjoys full Independent Judge status abroad, and has officiated for many organisations world-wide including in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and most of Europe. He has also Guest Judged for CFA and TICA.

JOHN HANSSON (GCCF, UK) LONDON, ENGLAND CHAIRMAN GOVERNING COUNCIL OF THE CAT FANCY

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

He has served as former Chair of various Breed Advisory Committees, including the Birman and Siberian, and the Joint Rex Committee (covering Cornish, Devon, LaPerm and Selkirk Rex); and the Asian List, (including Burmilla and Bombay) and the Singapura. These positions were relinquished to avoid any conflict of interest, during his term as Chair of the GCCF. He was also a former member of the GCCF Disciplinary Committee and recently relinquished his position as a member of the Genetics Committee.

Current responsibilities include Presidency of the Rex Cat Club, the Ragdoll Cat Club & Ragamuffin Cat Club, and Vice-President of the Red Point & Tortie Point Siamese Cat Club. He was among the group who first bred Oriental Silvers Shaded and Smokes in the UK, assisting them to attain Championship status.

Now retired, he no longer breeds cats, but is owned by a Chocolate Smoke and White Cornish Rex who gained a Best of Section Kitten Award at the GCCF Supreme Show in 2018. He shares his home with a Borzoi and a rescue Saluki. He is married, and has twin daughters, along with 4 grandchildren, including twins. The eldest grandchild is 25 and the twins are the youngest at 13.

Jun Kohno graduated from Tokyo’s Nippon University, Agriculture and Veterinary Department, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Fishery. He studied Biochemistry, specifically as related to enzymes.

In 2010, he was introduced to cat shows when he visited one in Tokyo and found it fascinating.

At the time he was looking for a cat that would be similar to his wife’s Classic Siamese that had died at the age of 20.

While there, he met a breeder of lovely Oriental Shorthairs. He and his wife soon found themselves owning a Chocolate Point Siamese and a Lynx Point Oriental Shorthair - looking nothing like that classic Siamese!

They were attracted to the svelte body, the friendly nature, and especially the beautiful colors of ebony and ebony spotted tabby Oriental Shorthair, and started to breed them immediately. Their breeding program has progressed well, and they have increased their available gene pool by importing outcross cats from France and the United States.

They have granded quite a few cats already and are currently working towards producing their first DM.

JUN KOHNO (CFA, JAPAN) TOKYO, JAPAN SECRETARY Micina Cat Fanciers

A recent success included winning the Japan Region’s BEST KITTEN with STELLA SI KATE SPADE in the 2018/2019 show season.

Presently, both Jun and his wife are expanding their breeding program to include Siamese, which they have loved since the very beginning.

Jun is currently the secretary of Micina Cat Fanciers, in Tokyo, which normally hosts one, or sometimes two, shows a year. He also assists his friends in other Japanese clubs with the arrangements for their shows.

Jun owns B to B, a company in Tokyo that designs and produces bags, accessories, etc. Thanks to his excellent employees, the company pretty much runs itself these days, which leaves him lots of time to spare for breeding and cat shows.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Russell Law was born in Hong Kong in 1969 and he’d spent his childhood & adolescence there before moving to study architecture in London in the early 90’s – this was such time in the UK that his impression about cats had changed against what he had always contemplated from childhood experience – unfriendly & untouchable.

Russell went back to Hong Kong in 1998 and soon co-founded his design studio, the Studio OFF, in 2002 (www.studiooff.net). After some serious breed study, Russell acquired his first Norwegian Forest Cat – the “wegie” – a male named “Frey” from Australia in early 2003.

Russell attended his first CFA show with Frey in December 2003 and he had decided to go much further with this new hobby. Soon he imported another male “Pepe” from Japan and female “Heavenly” from Germany – this couple has proven to be game-changers for Russell’s dominance in the Asia’s cat fancy.

RUSSELL LAW (CFA, HONG KONG) HONG KONG CO-FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL Studio OFF www.studiooff.net SECRETARY United Feline Odyssey www.facebook.com/ufo.cats.3

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Russell founded “Cattery Russmania Norwegian Forest Cats” in 2003 and has become very active in the Asia’s cat fancy – the CFA International Division - Asia (aka “ID”). Russmania has its unique squad of wegies from Japan, Germany, USA, Switzerland, Denmark, Italy, Greece, Poland, Sweden & Portugal. Russell has won multiple ID “COTY” (Cat Of The Year) & “POTY” (Premier Of The Year) - “Antonio” as COTY in 2006/07, “Bohemia” as POTY in 2007/08, “Darya” as POTY in 2010/11. Since then Russell’s influence in the wegies’ development and a key player in the ID has been widely recognized.

The highlights of Russell’s achievements were “Apollo” (2016/17) and “Destor” (2017/18) with both achieving “CFA Best Norwegian Forest Cat worldwide” and National Winners, the highest CFA’s title. This last season (2019/20), Russell’s boy “Gregory” has won ID “POTY” again and is his 3rd National Winner.

Russell has been the Secretary & co-founder of Club “United Feline Odyssey” (UFO) since 2008 and a member of the CFA Norwegian Forest Cat Breed Council since 2007. Russell has been Show Manager for over 30 CFA shows to date.

Chate Ruengruglikit, PhD has been a Thai Persian breeder since 2012. Chate is a co-owner of Pinkpawpal Cattery, a secretary of the CFA club, ‘Siam Blue-eyed Cat Fanciers’ and a CFA Master Clerk, working towards Master Clerk Instructor status. He is also Vice-President of two companies; Pinkpawpal Company Limited manufacturing shampoo, powder and supplements for pets; and Chavanaphat Company Limited, a leading confectionery manufacturer in Thailand.

Chate has a strong background in both Chemical Engineering and Food Science. He spent 7 years studying at Cornell University, NY, for his Master and Doctoral degrees. His experience with felinology started there when his friend obtained a Persian cat from a rescued animal shelter and he actively part-took in taking care of him.

CHATE RUENGRUGLIKIT (CFA, THAILAND) BANGKOK, THAILAND VICE-PRESIDENT Pinkpawpal Company Ltd Chavanaphat Company Ltd SECRETARY Siam Blue-eyed Cat Fanciers www.pinkpawpal.com

After graduating in 2006, Chate came back to Thailand and met his better half, Acting Sub Lt. Pattama Weeranon a year later. He shared his passion for cats with her. They got their first CFA female Persian kitten from Byhishands Cattery in USA for their own X’mas gift in 2011 and the Pinkpawpal Cattery was established. “Leah” is a beautiful blue tabby and white and their journey in the cat fancy started in earnest from then. Leah became a one-show Grand Champion at her first show as championship cat in 2012. Then the couple developed a big plan for their breeding program. They imported more Persians from Europe, matching them carefully into their breeding program.

Until the end of 2019-2020 season, Pinkpawpal Cattery has achieved Cattery of Distinction Tier 2 with 29 homebred Grand Champions, 3 homebred Grand Premiers, 19 Divisional Winners, 3 Breed Winners, 8 National Winners and 4 Distinguished Merits.

Their proudest masterpiece is the first National Winner by a blue-eyed bicolor Persian in the history of CFA, GC NW BWI Pinkpawpal Minerva. Chate and Pattama have had experience in adopting and showing other breeds like the American Curl, Norwegian Forest Cat, Siberian and Scottish Fold. Chate has dedicated much work in organizing CFA cat shows and also Clerking Schools in Southeast Asia.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Izaddin Syah Yusof is a graduate of Lancaster University in the United Kingdom, majoring in Computer Science & Software Engineering. He is currently a Database Administrator in a multinational Technology company and is currently residing in Kuala Lumpur. Izaddin is also a published author and editor, on a range of topics in the form of both traditional print and online content.

A relative newcomer back in 2010, Izaddin obtained his first British Shorthair from Bluebabe cattery. After attending CFA's 2013 Breed Awareness and Orientation School, his interest in a certain curly breed grew, which led him to obtain his first Selkirk Rex, Emikoo Precious Polly, from Australia.

IZADDIN SYAH YUSOF (CFA, MALAYSIA) KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA CFA INTERNATIONAL DIVISION CLERK OF THE YEAR -2016

She became the first Selkirk Rex to earn a Grand Champion title in Malaysia, and was CFA's third best Selkirk Rex for the show season. Izaddin consequently granded other cats under his cattery, Cataleya; five of which earned Divisional Winner titles, and another Selkirk Rex also became CFA's third best Selkirk Rex for two consecutive show seasons. Though his achievements may not be as significant as other breeders, he is proud to have brought awareness for this minority breed to this region. He was also part of the team that helped push the Selkirk Rex to become a recognized breed under FIFe in 2017.

Izaddin is one of the more opinionated and vocal advocates of the fancy in his homeland. He strives to provide a fresh and unbiased voice to ensure healthier growth of the cat fancy in this region. He has voluntarily assisted many clubs in varying capacities to help ensure shows are smooth and successful. He was a show manager, a club president for Cat Advocates & Troupers Society, a CFA Ambassador, a CFA Breed Council member and a licensed CFA Clerk a stint during which he earned the award for CFA's 2016 International Division Clerk Of The Year.

As an avid movie buff, he also loves watching trashy low-grade horror movies, offering the excuse - "so that you don't have to".

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Farah Diana owns Ricimacka Cattery. It is a small cattery which is located at Jakarta, Indonesia.

Her program is devoted to Solid and Bicolor Pedigreed Persians, in which the program is aimed at ensuring that all of her cats are to be raised with love and full attention, in making them feel comfortable in their home.

It is her main priority to provide a positive environment where her cats are trained to have sweet and unique personalities as well as maintaining their pureness of breed in accordance to CFA standards. She is not only a breeder but also a groomer. She offers her services in the preparation of cats for exhibiting at shows.

She has always loved animals since her childhood. All her life, one of her family values has been sincerely to provide a good and loving home for all animals in need. She owns 4 domestic cats and a few stray cats that initially passed in front of her house. When those stray cats have been tamed, she nurtures them to control their population.

FARAH DIANA (CFA, INDONESIA) JAKARTA, INDONESIA OWNER RICIMACKA CATTERY

Her educational background includes a Bachelor Degree, in Electrical Engineering. She works diligently in the Telecommunication industry as an Intelligent Network Consultant. With this position, she has had the chance to work abroad, such as in Europe, South Africa, South East Asia and South Asia. It was such a great opportunity to work under different cultures and atmospheres.

In 2014 she went back home back to Jakarta for good and has worked there ever since.

Deciding to adopt a cat again, she attended her first cat show, and in the HHP Class, won 2nd place. This event triggered her to attend more cat shows.

She attended Clerking classes for (CFA/TICA) and became a Ring Clerk (CFA) and a Master Clerk (TICA) in order be more competent with CFA/TICA show rules. After that, she again exhibited at cat shows with her cats, namely with GC RW Topknots Manny and GC DW Pinkpawpal Phoenicia. Both cats have brought considerable success, consistently gaining highest scoring exhibit in show.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

I have been a member of the Feline Control Council of Victoria since its inception in 1962. I was first licensed to judge in 1965 and qualified as an All breeds judge in 1979.

Over the past 58 years I have gained broad experience with judging invitations throughout Australia and New Zealand plus USA, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Europe, South Africa, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Manila, United Kingdom and vast areas of China thus gaining valuable knowledge into international variations of standards.

I am an FCCV and Cat Co-Ordinating Council of Australia National Tutor and Examining All Breeds judge plus being involved in lecturing and conducting of Judges Seminars for both organisations. Over the years I have shown my preference for breeding and showing top quality Persians in Solid, Himalayan and Marked colours.. I breed under the “Sublime”, “Preview”, “Firnbank” and “Lavendel” prefixes. Together with my family, we have achieved multiple Best in Show, Supremes and Cat of the Year winners.

CHERYLE U’REN (CCC of A, AUSTRALIA) MELBOURNE, VICT, AUSTRALIA VICE-PRESIDENT World Cat Congress PRESIDENT Co-Ordinating Cat Council of Aust.

LIFE MEMBER / REGISTRAR Feline Control Council of Victoria

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

I am a foundation and life member of both the Feline Control Council Victoria and the Pedigree Persian Cat Club of Victoria. Currently I am Registrar and serving on the Management Committee of the FCCV plus holding positions on many sub-committees relating to judging, breeding, showing and standards matters.

Having also been a regular FCCV delegate at our national Cat Co-Ordinating Council of Australia’s conference since the FCCV became a member, I am now privileged to be currently serving as President of this National organisation. I believe strongly in the principle of such a group and am proud of the unity that exists within from all the Member Bodies, which represents a very high percentage of the cat fancy in Australia.

I am dedicated to ensuring that the CCCA and FCCV remain the influential and professional organisations in the Australasian cat fancy that they are today and on the international scene as well, with CCCA being a member body of the World Cat Congress of which I proud of currently serving as its Vice President.

Bambi’s first cat was a Seal Point Siamese named Kim, that she had purchased for my fourand-a-half-year-old son. Kim lived for 21 years. Bambi became a member of the cat fancy in 1972, and in those early days bred Siamese, Oriental Shorthairs, and Foreign Whites, along with Cornish and Devon Rex. She brought some of the first Devon and Cornish Rex cats into NSW. She was the founder of the Rex Cat Club in NSW. With their Pink and Black colours, they organised some spectacular Rex shows, bringing out from England, Alison Ashford, to judge at one special show.

Bambi has written many articles for National publications and various Journals. As an International All Breeds and Ancats Tutor Judge, and WCF All Breeds Judge, she has officiated throughout Australia and around the world. Apart from Australia, the countries in which she has had the pleasure of judging include the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Malaysia, the United States, Japan, Germany, Dubai, Thailand and New Zealand. She has always considered it a privilege to have had so many cat owners and breeders allow her to handle their beautiful exhibits.

BAMBI J. EDWARDS (ANCATS, AUSTRALIA) SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA NATIONAL SECRETARY Australian National Cats www.ancats.com.au BAJIMBI CATTERY www.bajimbi.com.au

In early 1997 it was apparent that a club that would make things great for its members was needed. Bambi, along with Brian and Adela did months of research and in June 1997 the Waratah State Cat Alliance was created and accepted into the ACF at their 1997 AGM in Perth, now Ancats. Bambi is proudly the National Secretary of the only National organisation registering kittens and conducting shows across Australia, Ancats. Last year, Ancats presented the Grand Ozzie Tour, comprising of three shows on two weekends each in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. A great time was had by all, flying around Australia.

Bambi has always been active with her Bajimbi prefix, exhibiting and gaining Supreme Exhibit wins at National Shows. She is especially pleased and excited when cats or kittens of her breeding, exhibited by her clients, win major awards across Australia and gain top honours in countries abroad. Since her start with Siamese in Melbourne in 1972, along the way she has also bred Burmese, Balinese, Russians, Exotic Shorthairs, Abyssinians, Tonkinese and Ragdolls.

In recent years she has now narrowed her breed interests to Siamese, Orientals and Burmese.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

ACF AUSTRALIA

ROBBIE WALKER (ACF, AUSTRALIA) GOLD COAST, QLD, AUSTRALIA PRESIDENT FCCQ, QUEENSLAND ACF INTERNATIONAL LIAISON OFFICER

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

I have been involved with the Australian Cat Fancy since 1997, breeding Scottish Folds and British Shorthairs under the prefix ‘Glencairn’ and later ‘Duart’. Whilst my partner & I no longer breed we still have several adored feline companions whom we love and who continue to give us much enjoyment and pleasure.

I am currently the President of the Feline Control Council of Queensland (FCCQ) one of the Australian Cat Federations member bodies of which I am also currently the Treasurer and International Liaison Officer. I am a qualified Companion (Household) cat judge and decided this was as far as I wished to go as far as judging was concerned and relish the show management roles.

The Australian Cat Federation Inc. was formed in 1972 with the key aim of promoting unity and harmony across the Australian Cat Fancy. It is made up of 11 member bodies representing all States and Territories. I still actively participate in running shows, which has included several ACF National Shows, I am currently the Honorary Council Steward of the Cat Section with the Royal Queensland Show and the Chief Steward for the Sydney Royal Easter Show Cat Section. The Australian Cat Federation (ACF) holds a National Show in June each year which moves around Australia. Over the years I have taken a committed role in the running of several National shows, having held the position of Show Secretary or Show Manager.

As ACF’s ILO I attend the World Cat Congress meetings of which ACF was one of the founding members, it is an excellent opportunity for the representatives to gather, communicate, interact, and develop invaluable relationships. This role also includes liaising with various clubs and associations throughout Australia and New Zealand in organising shared judging assignments for overseas judges.

When it comes down to it, the cat fancy family is made up of many individuals whose combined efforts ensure the smooth running of clubs and associations who fit the all too familiar activities into their busy schedules. Not being a pedigree judge may be an advantage as this delivers a different perspective and one, I am confident of that provides a fair and unbiased representation and assists in the future success and growth of ACF.

I became peripherally involved in the cat fancy in 2006 after the purchase of my first pedigree cat, a Ragdoll, which prompted an interest in that breed’s history but it wasn’t until 2010 that I joined the New Zealand Cat Fancy (NZCF) and in 2011 my local cat club.

In 2012 I felt I could make use of the skills gained in ten years as a technical writer in the air force, and volunteered to reformat the NZCF governance documents for which I continue to provide amendment support to this day.

That same year I also began my association with the NZCF’s Breed Standards Advisory Council and apart from a couple of short breaks have been a part of that committee ever since.

In 2015 I stood for the Executive Council and was elected for the standard 3-year term at the end of which I served for a short period as Chair.

Not long before my term ended, I was able to attend the 2018 World Cat Congress in Italy which was an invaluable opportunity for a variety of discussions with those holding similar roles to my own in a number of other cat associations.

JANE WEBSTER (NZCF, NEW ZEALAND) PALMERSTON NORTH, NZ TECHNICAL WRITER GOVERNANCE DOCUMENTS NZCF HISTORIAN Past President: NZCF Former NZCF Liaison Officer to the World Cat Congress

Currently I am the NZCF historian and cat fancy history is the one thing I always wish I had more time for. Even so, I do manage to eke out a little time here and there to keep moving on the mammoth task of digitising the NZCF’s early documents for their preservation and to improve their availability to members and cat fancy historians worldwide.

The number of Ragdolls in the household has gone up and down over the years and currently stands at two.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

At the time of my birth, with my family lived a white Persian tomcat. So, the first own cat I bought at a cat show was a blue-cream Persian-girl. I didn`t want to breed at that time. Many years later I started breeding. But on the way I became acquainted with the “cat scene”.

First, I bred Persians, then in addition Siamese and Oriental Shorthairs. Afterwards I bred Birmans for many years and I did it with great pleasure. My last breed was the German Rex. Now, as an All Breeds Judge I can look back on a judging career spanning 50 years. Through this activity I became acquainted the fancy, across almost the whole world.

Some years ago, when I couldn`t exhibit my cats anymore because they had gained all titles which were then possible, I had more time on my hands and my life was getting a little boring.

I therefore accepted a position in the “Cat scene”. First I was member in the German Cat Federation “1. DEKZV” and fulfilled some roles up to the Vice President. In FIFé, I worked for several years as Chairman of the Judges and the Show Commission at the same time. Some time later I left the club and the organization.

ANNELIESE HACKMANN (WCF, EUROPE)

I decided to set up a new club named “Deutsche Edelkatze”, which is a member of WCF. I am still president of this club. Since the founding of the club I have worked with a local animal welfare organization.

ESSEN, GERMANY

32 years ago, I founded the World Cat Federation (WCF) and have been the President since that time. Together with Alva Uddin from FIFé and others, I was one of the founders of the World Cat Congress (WCC).

PRESIDENT WORLD CAT FEDERATION

In addition, I have authored some books, the most successful being one about Birman Breed and I have been involved in some Video Productions.

WCF LIAISON OFFICER to the World Cat Congress

I believe these were the most important steps of my “cat life”. I do not breed anymore because I am travelling too much and have too little time because of the different tasks in the associations to which I must duly attend.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Chayapon Phucharoenyos started his career as a lawyer, but spent most of his time as an investment banker between London and Bangkok for over 25 years.

With a legal education from the University of London, he also has good understanding of regulatory frameworks and risk associated with business transactions. Prior to the cat world, he was a frequent speaker at many investment functions and served his last position in the financial industry, on the Board of Directors for the Agriculture Futures Exchange of Thailand.

Chayapon stepped into the cat-world in 2014 when he adopted many stray cats around Bangkok into his care. He loves cats. In 2015, he established The Association of Registered Cats (ARC) and brought WCF to Thailand. That was the first time WCF started a network in Southeast Asia.

Chayapon managed the ARC with an aim to promote the well-being of cats, and a good balance between the beauty and health of cats, and not just for pure beauty alone. He gave emphasis to the responsible breeding of cats, and to the importance of cat registrations.

CHAYAPON PUCHAROENYOS (WCF, ASIA) BANGKOK, THAILAND CHAIRMAN DISCIPLINARY COMMISSION WORLD CAT FEDERATION HONORARY PRESIDENT Association of Registered Cats

Under his management, the ARC has gradually improved the awareness of cat welfare in Thailand. So far, the ARC has more than 400 catteries registered with WCF. The ARC never overlooks the importance of the cat registration.

From 2018 onwards, the ARC has issued more than 1,500 WCF pedigrees for their cats in Thailand every year, and that number is growing. That has been a success story for cats in Thailand.

This same working principle of Chayapon’s has been extended to WCF clubs in Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines whose operations are under the supervision of the ARC. Currently, Chayapon is the Honorary President of ARC, and serves as the Speaker (Chairman) of the WCF Disciplinary Commission. He lives with at least 40 British Shorthairs, 2 Thai, 1 Abyssinian, 1 Devon Rex, and 10 cats he adopted from the streets of Bangkok.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Johan has been active in the Cat Fancy since the early 1980’s, breeding a variety of SH and LH breeds, giving him wide experience across the spectrum of breed varieties. His cattery ‘Les Beaux Chats’ is therefore well-known in all parts of the world. In his professional life he is a full time Medical practitioner in private practice and for a time was a Senior Specialist Consultant with the University of Stellenbosch/Tygerberg Hospital.

His judging career started in 1989, first qualifying as a Siamese/Oriental Judge in 1990 with the Governing Council of the Associated Cat Clubs of South Africa, then as an All Breeds Judge in 1994, with the WCC affiliated SACC. Since 1998 he has been recognised as an Independent All Breeds Judge by LOOF (France), and was the only non-European resident member of NOKK (the Dutch Independent Judges Guild) since 2014.

He has held a WCF All Breeds Judges licence since 2001, an ACFA All Breeds International Judges licence since 2006, a CFSA All Breeds Guest Judge licence since 2014 (South Africa) and held a CJGA (Cat Judges Guild of Africa) All Breeds licence since 2016. Johan’s wife, Thea, is also a respected All Breeds Judge and a joint holder/breeder in the Les Beaux Chats cattery.

JOHAN LAMPRECHT (SOUTH AFRICA) DURBANVILLE, SOUTH AFRICA PRESIDENT & REGISTRAR C.A.S.A. (WCF Affiliate) WCF LIAISON OFFICER to the World Cat Congress http://www.lesbeauchats.com

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Johan is a Life Member of several SACC affiliated clubs and a Member of KZN Cat Club, CFSA affiliated. He is Honorary Patron of AICA (African Independent Cat Association) and has acted as Show Manager for several Independent Cat Clubs. He is the President and Registrar of CASA, a WCF affiliated club. With the SACC he has served as Vice-Chairman, Vice-Secretary, Genetics advisor to the Registrar, International Liaison officer & ABCC club delegate for more than 20 years.

He is a past 2nd Vice-President of the WCF (world-wide) 2017-2019 and a former member of the Show Commission, the Judges Commission, and International Standards Service. (WCF).

His judging career has taken him around the world, officiating in South Africa, Australia, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Italy, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Malta, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and U.A.E. (Dubai).

I have been a member of Canadian Cat Association (CCA) since 1975 and breeding Burmese exclusively since 1974, establishing Hullabaloo cattery with my wife, Elaine in 1981.

We have successfully bred over 40 CCA grands and over 70 Regional and National winners including two CCA KOTY winners and an AOTY. I was a founding and still active member of the Hamilton Cat Fanciers and the Pawsitive Paws Cat Club (London, Canada).

CCA

I was first elected to the CCA Board of Directors in 1983, since then I have served the association in many capacities including eight terms as President and two as Treasurer. I am a past Chairman of a number of Committees, including Benefit Shows, Public Relations and the Board of Examiners.

Currently I am Chairman of the CCA Legislative Committee, which is in the process of rewriting the association By-Laws and Operational Manuals, to be compliant with Canada’s revised NotFor-Profit Act.

BOB GLEASON (CCA, CANADA) LONDON, CANADA PAST PRESIDENT CANADIAN CAT ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN CCA LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE

I have been a Canadian Cat Association Judge since 2003. I have proudly represented CCA internationally as a guest on several occasions since the early 80’s, in my capacities as CCA President and as an All-Breeds Judge.

My experiences in France, Germany, South Africa, Russia, China, Hong Kong, United States and Canada have taught me that we have a very special hobby and that by working in cooperation with each other, the fancy will continue to be an enjoyable and viable pursuit.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

TICA

Ellen has been owned by cats since birth – as a child there were barn cats and kittens. She got her first pedigreed cat, a Persian in 1968. She bred Persians for 10 years, but once she got her first Devon Rex in 1979, she knew she had found her true love. She has also bred American Shorthairs and Sphynx, but never wavered from her beloved Devons.

Her foundation queen, Vicrock Lola was the first Devon to be a TICA SGC, (Supreme Grand Champion) a CFA Grand Champion and a FIFe Grand International Champion – and so far, the only Devon to have all those titles.

Ellen joined TICA on the day it was formed in 1979, becoming a judge in the Association in 1985.

She has served on the TICA Board of directors for 15 years, as well as on the TICA Genetics and Rules committees. She has judged in every TICA region, and guest judged in Australia and New Zealand. She is an All-Breed Ring Instructor and Distinguished Judge.

ELLEN CROCKETT (TICA, UNITED STATES) PORT TOWNSEND, WA, USA TICA ALL-BREED RING INSTRUCTOR TICA ALL-BREED DISTINGUISHED JUDGE

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Ellen was the Editor/Publisher of the Devon Rex Newsletter for almost 20 years. She led the TICA standards alignment project in 2004, which mandated all standards conform to a uniform layout and point limits.

She is a graduate of Cornell University, with a major in Zoology and minors in Genetics and Ethology. She attended graduate school at Syracuse University in Forest Zoology.

She travelled around the world with her US Army officer husband, Larry, for 30 years.

They retired to the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state in 1998. Professionally, she has worked in various non-profit organizations, ending with 13 years as Disaster Director for the Olympic Peninsula Chapter of the American Red Cross.

She and her husband Larry live in Port Townsend Washington with 2 Devons, a household pet, and two rescue dogs; a Doberman, and an English Mastiff.

Steven’s Journey into the cat fancy began in 1989, in Boston, when he saw an article on Bengals or “Toy Leopards” as they were called at the time.

He met with a few breeders and eventually settled on a pretty boy that he names Alex. This cat was bred by the founder of the breed, Jean Mill.

Over the next few years, Steven exhibited in the then NBC class or ‘New Breed and Color” at some of the biggest cat shows in the world, such as INCATS at Madison Square Garden in NYC, which helped advance the Bengals to championship status with TICA in 1991.

He continued working in NBC classes, as well as championship, moving the new colors and patterns, like marble and seal lynx points quickly into championship a few years later. In 1995, ‘Mowglis Wild River”, a brown-marble boy, was the Marble Bengal International Winner.

Currently Steven resides in Aveiro, Portugal. He is also President of LondonCats Worldwide, which produces cat expos all around the UK and Europe.

STEVEN MESERVE (TICA, EUROPE SOUTH) VILE DE CUCUJAES, PORTUGAL TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR EUROPE SOUTH PRESIDENT LondonCats

Steven also has had a seat on the TICA Board of Directors for the last few years, first representing Europe West Region and now Europe South. He was licensed as a Judge in 2017 and has been an All-Breed Judge since 2019.

Steven currently breeds and shows American Shorthairs and Scottish Folds. Steven has bred and shown TICA’s Kitten of the Year in 2016 (Stone) and 2017 (Striker), both stunning American Shorthair boys.

In 2016 Stone achieved not only Kitten of the Year, but also Best Shorthair Cat of the Year….and in 2020, Mowglis Jack the Ripper, a Scottish Fold and Stone’s son, became TICA’s All-Breed Cat of the Year.

Steven shares his home in Vile de Cucujaes with his partner Thiago Pellizzaro, who is a fashion photographer.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

I was born in 1958 in Caxias do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, South Brasil. My very first interests were always music and literature, but I decided to study IT, was hired by a federal bank where I worked for 27 years, 22 of them as manager, and was retired due to health issues.

I started publishing one year before my retirement and have already published five books that include a novel, three short stories collections and a novel for children that is obviously about a cat. I am a book reviewer and have a column of literature on a local radio station.

TICA

I like to play piano and guitar, and I also enjoy singing.

My passion for cats came later in life. When my wife and I moved to our house in 1986 we decided to have a dog, and we did, but my mother-in-law suggested a cat. She brought a Siamese kitten for us to take care of, but we were not so lucky with Siamese at all. I still loved pointed cats! After three trials, we finally found out about Birmans and started a breeding program with registered cats, and everything began to progress on the right path.

LUIZ PAULO FACCIOLI (TICA, SOUTH AMERICA) PORT ALEGRE, SOUTH BRAZIL TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR SOUTH AMERICA

I have been a TICA member since 1991. I became an Allbreed judge through the Federação dos Criadores de Gatos do Brasil, that was TICA affiliated, in 1992. Then in TICA, I became a Specialty Judge in 1993, achieving full Allbreed status in 2000, Ring and School Instructor in 2005, culminating in Distinguished Judge in 2018.

I have served as TICA South America Regional Director; Interim, 2003-2005, 2014-2015; Elected, 2016-2018, 2019-2021. I am current member of many clubs in my region but am more involved with my duties as Regional Director. Additionally, I have worked as both a School and Ring Instructor; and am actively involved in the training of new judges.

I have judged for TICA many times in Europe, United States, South and Central America and Malaysia. As guest judge, I judged once in New Zealand and nine shows for different Associations in Australia.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

I grew up surrounded by animals: dogs, birds, fish, turtles, but mostly cats - which continued when I left home. Although I loved cats, I never thought of owning a pedigreed cat, especially as shelters are full of loving household pets.

However, in 1989 my partner convinced me to get a pedigreed cat...........a Ragdoll. A seal bicolor girl entered our home and our hearts as we completely fell in love with the breed.

TICA

We could not stop at owning just one Ragdoll and after adopting several pet Ragdolls we took the big decision to start breeding.

On advice of our mentor, we started showing as well. We attended some traditional shows in the Netherlands but found it not so interesting. Then our mentor asked us to help her out at her TICA show: a Ragdoll congress.

Reluctantly, we said yes after our experience of traditional shows, but you don't say no to a friend ... so, we were her agent at our first TICA show and we were hooked on TICA from that day on.

LIESBETH van MULLEM (TICA, EUROPE NORTH) UTRECHT, THE NETHERLANDS TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR EUROPE NORTH BOARD MEMBER CatsandTulips

We started getting more and more involved in TICA, putting up TICA shows and getting more involved with the Dutch TICA Club. Right now, I am still a Board member of the Dutch TICA Club ‘CatsandTulips’.

In the meantime, we kept on breeding under the cattery name ‘Pacificats’ and successfully exhibited our Ragdolls in TICA. My love for cats, and the drive to keep on learning about different breeds, as well as loving to handle them and my belief in the values of TICA brought me to the decision to enter the TICA judging program and run for Regional Director Europe North in 2018.

In 2019 I was accepted as a TICA Specialty Judge and started as Regional Director for Europe North.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

My name is Steven Jones, born and raised in England, but substantially more European in nature these days, having lived in 6 different European countries over the last 35 years. I have lived in Norway for the last 20 years.

I have been involved in the cat fancy for over 30 years, first breeding British and currently breeding Siberians. I am still active as a breeder, producing at least 5 litters per year. Currently, I live with 10 Siberians.

FIFe

I have been active in the organizational side of the cat fancy for over 25 years both at National and International level. I was President of my local club for 10 years and I have also served as President for the Norwegian member of FIFe, NRR. I have been working for FIFe for the last 15 years as Secretary for the FIFe Judges and Standards Commission, which has the responsibility within FIFe, for training new judges, maintaining breed standards and managing the recognition of new breeds.

STEVEN JONES (FIFe, NORWAY) STAVANGER, NORWAY

I have been a FIFe Judge for 20 years and am now an All-Breed Judge. I am rather active as a judge, usually away 20+ weekends in a year. I have judged in over 30 FIFe countries.

In the little time that I have left over after providing for the cats, I work as a consulting engineer in the offshore oil and gas industry.

SECRETARY FIFE JUDGES & STANDARDS COMMISSION

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

My name is Donatella Mastrangelo, I’m Italian, from Rome, and have been around in the cat fancy for about 30 years. I’m a former breeder of Europeans and Korats, and have occasionally bred also Siamese and Orientals, and now focusing on Norwegian Forest Cats.

I still have at home my last Korat, a 17 years old boy, which I love and spoil as much as I can, and a couple of Norwegians, which I hope will give me some nice babies at some point.

FIFe

I have been involved in FIFe since the early 90’s and I’ve always been active in the cat fancy since the very beginning. I have exhibited my cats extensively in Europe, as well as in systems differing from FIFe, and have always enjoyed the competition at all levels.

My interest and passion for cats of all breeds, made me go a step forward in accepting the next challenge, which was to start in Judges training in 2001. Step by step I achieved All Breed Judge and after about 10 years, I still have the same enthusiasm that I had at the beginning, and consider it a high privilege to handle so many beautiful cats, for about 20-30 weekends per year.

DONATELLA MASTRANGELO (FIFe, BELGIUM) ROME, ITALY PRESIDENT Club Italia CHAIRMAN FIFE JUDGES & STANDARDS COMMISSION

I am the President of a small cat club, affiliated to ‘Felis Belgica’, the FIFe Member for the country of Belgium. Our “Club Italia”, was formed by members of different nationalities and I’m very proud of our little community, made up of breeders of high quality and professionalism.

I hold the position as Chairperson of the FIFe Judges and Standards Commission, where I have been a member since 2012. Working in Judges training and with the Standards in FIFe, is always very exciting and dynamic.

I am justly proud of how the Commission has worked for the recognition of many beautiful breeds during these years and contributed to the development of our training system, not forgetting to mention the many judges and students seminars we organize on regular basis.

My regular job is in the field of Public Administration, in the Italian Environmental Laboratories network, where I’ve been working for almost 35 years.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

Eva has been active in the cat fancy since early 1980’s. She first started her breeding with sacred Birmans, then later also took on breeding Norwegian Forest cats for some years. Today, she lives with 6 Birmans which she exhibits often, maintaining her breeding program on a small scale.

Her business interests involve the ownership and management of two large pet shops. One is based in her home city and one in a city close by.

FIFe

She been a member of her local cat club, Nerikes Kattklubb, for almost 40 years, and has served as its President since 1992. In 1989 she became an international FIFe judge for category 2, Semi Longhairs, and then some years later also for category 1, Longhair.

She has been active in the Swedish federation, SVERAK, since 1988. At first she worked for some years on the Disciplinary Commission and since 1998 has been a member of the SVERAK Board, both as the President of their Judges Commission, Vice President of the Board and since this year, as the President of SVERAK. In FIFE she has worked in the Judges and Standards Commission for 9 years, and for 15 years I’ve also served as the delegate for SVERAK at the FIFe General Assembly.

EVA PORAT OREBRO, SWEDEN

SVERAK is the largest member in FIFe. SVERAK is a federation, started in 1955, and has today 41 different clubs with about 7000 members altogether. SVERAK clubs arrange between 6070 shows a year. Most shows have about 350-400 cats entered but there are also some shows with up to 800 cats, so that every year there are about 25000 cats entered into their shows.

SVERAK have 26 judges and 10 student judges and register about 12000 cats a year.

PRESIDENT OF SVERAK The Swedish Cat Clubs Association A member of FIFE

SVERAK works alot with governmental authorities and has a strong impact concerning the laws about cats and animal welfare. They are also involved in running a large registry for id chipped cats.

(FIFe, SWEDEN)

Eva is honoured to be a correspondent for Felis Historica and hope’s that she can contribute meaningful input about what’s happening in her part of the world.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

SANDRA ALSUMAIT (CFA, KUWAIT) KUWAIT CITY, KUWAIT ASIA WEST, AFRICA REGION of the International Division PRESIDENT K-CATS CLUB www.facebook.com/kuwaitcatclub

My journey in CFA began with the purchase of my first CFA registered cat in 2006 from Europe.

While long haired Persian type cats were plentiful in the Middle East, registered, pedigree cats were impossible to buy locally. There simply was no cat fancy in this region. I decided to register a Cattery name with CFA and took the next step into breeding. I fortunately acquired an excellent mentor, who guided and encouraged me every step of the way. The next logical step was to attend a cat show. However, there were no CFA shows in the Middle East. So, in order to have a show, we needed a CFA club. In 2010 I attempted to get a small group of cat lovers to join me in forming a club. I placed messages on local pet groups on Facebook. I got a few responses and a couple of weeks later a group of 5 strangers who shared a love of cats, met in a cafe. We agreed to meet up again 2 weeks later. We grew to 10 members and in 2011, applied to register a club with CFA. K-cats became the first CFA club in the Arabic speaking world.

In January 2012 we hosted the first CFA show in Kuwait. At that time, it was an ambitious step forward in a country that had so few CFA registered cats and had never hosted a cat show. None of our members had even attended a CFA show! We did a lot of research online and what we lacked in experience I would like to think we made up for with enthusiasm. It was a small start with just 64 entries and 4 rings. We struggled to get entries as many cats did not have the necessary paperwork. We arranged to import cages and do set-up according to the many videos we watched of CFA shows..I will always be grateful to the 4 brave CFA judges who attended our first show, not knowing what to expect. They encouraged us and heaped praise on our efforts.

That led to our second show in 2013 which was very successful due to great media coverage in the local press. This time we had 102 entries and did 8 rings over 2 days. The club grew, the exhibitor base grew, and CFA took hold in the region, with exhibitors traveling from neighbouring countries to attend the shows in Kuwait, with K-Cats continuing its growth and with a strong base the shows increased in size. Originally classified as GCC countries, CFA expanded the region to include Egypt and Africa and we became AWA (Asia West – Africa Region) in the International Division.. Egypt was the next country to form a CFA club and host shows. This last season saw the first CFA show in Turkey. The region now has clubs in Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, India, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. It’s a growing region with lots of potential and I am confident it will continue to move forward in promoting CFA, responsible breeding practices and the welfare of pedigree cats.

INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT

SOUTH KOREA

JINSON CHOI (CFA, STH. KOREA) PAJU-SI, SOUTH KOREA PRESIDENT CAT FANCIERS OF KOREA

In 2002, Jinson had her first encounter with a cat, a Russian Blue. This was the start of her loveaffair with cats. Through intense study, she was impressed by the work involved in breeding healthy cats that met the standards. In 2001, the Cat Associations CFA and TICA were established in South Korea. It was from this time that the idea of catteries and ethical breeding began to take root in South Korea. Curious, Jinson attended a show, experiencing first-hand, how highly organised and complex the show systems were. She was attracted to the Scottish Fold, its round face and gentle, expressive eyes. With no cattery specializing in them in South Korea, this was the breed which personally appealed to her the most.

In 2003, Jinson registered the cattery name ‘DALBODRE’ with CFA and TICA, buying her first breeding cat from Japan, and exhibited at shows. In 2004, she brought a male Scottish Fold LH kitten from "Kinross cattery" (Canada), participating in shows in Germany, Austria, and Belgium, noting the excellent cats bred elsewhere, longing to see catteries specialising in other breeds established in South Korea. In 2004/2005, during the CFA show season, Jinson produced a Divisional Winner for the first time, and the Scottish Fold LH male became the world's third best Scottish Fold LH! In early 2005, Jinson bred her first litter under the DALBODRE prefix. The same year, she exhibited a white Scottish Fold SH male, gaining her first CFA Grand Championship! In 2007, the first Grand Champion to carry the ‘DALBODRE’ cattery name was born.

When show rules changed to allow Divisional Winners by country in the International Division, Jinson exhibited at cat shows in Asia, such as in Thailand and Malaysia. In the 2016-2017 show season, she gained Korea's first CFA Cattery of Distinction Tier one Superior. In the 2018-2019 show season, a National Winner she bred, was born for the first time in South Korea. Jinson joined with other South Korean breeders in 2014, to form the CFA club called ‘Cat Fanciers of Korea’. Their first cat show was held in 2015, with the club regularly inviting overseas judges and hosting two to three cat shows every year. Jinson consistently held Clerking Schools, and as a result, the ‘Cat Fanciers of Korea’ Club has produced six Certified Ring Clerks, among them being Korea's first Master Clerk. Her goal is to assist to qualify at least 15 certified Ring Clerks, 5 certified Master Clerks, and 2 CFA judges in South Korea by the year of 2025.

PLACE YOUR ORDER BY USING OR COPYING THE BELOW LINK INTO YOUR BROWSER

https://www.castlebaths.com/spa-gift-basket-24.html

The first Virtual Museum of the Cat! – online now at: www.cat-o-pedia.org

THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

BY

JOHN G. SMITHSON CURATOR THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

For most cat fanciers with any interest in feline history, the name of Harrison William Weir, will immediately be associated with the Crystal Palace Show of July 1871 and a general acknowledgement of him, as ‘Father of the Cat Fancy’.

But very few will connect him with the reality that during his lifetime he was renown to the British public as a leading naturalist, and the most recognised animal illustrator in the world.

In this column, we will introduce readers to anecdotes, aspects of life and artwork from his long career as an artist, author, naturalist, horticulturist, poultryman, cat fancier and more…

Excerpts and adapted text from ‘The Poet of Nature’ © John G. Smithson

It is more than appropriate that history has seen fit to honour Harrison Weir with the distinction of being called “the Father of the Cat Fancy”. Although that statement is true, it is a focused and narrow view of a man whose interests were many and varied, and whose talents far outweigh such a cursory distinction. But this is usually the limit of what we are told about this truly remarkable Victorian gentleman. Although he receives due credit for classifying the early cat breeds and in writing the first standards by which those breeds should be judged, we are told very little about the man himself and why, or how, he came to make the decisions that he did. In short, little attention has been paid to this exceptionally talented and insightful individual, who had a lot of heart and who saw well beyond what others saw. In truth, he was a visionary with the most honourable motives.

Instead, we should be asking ourselves, what in his character or his background motivated him? What was his career path?

And how did it influence him? What people crossed his path, possibly influencing his decisions? What were his other interests? Did he, in turn influence the decisions of others? And ultimately, what brought him to draw the conclusions that this was just one of the endeavours he wished to pursue?

The Weir boys were the product of a middle-class upbringing, their father John Weir, having established himself firstly as a Coal Merchant, and then a Bank Manager in Lewes, later working as an Administration Clerk in the Legacy Duty Office, based at Somerset House in London. Their mother was Elizabeth Jenner. Harrison was the second son, the first being John Jenner Weir, born August 9, 1822, followed by Harrison William Weir, on May 5, 1824. Both were born and initially raised, at Lewes in East Sussex, originally situated predominantly on the west bank of the River Ouse, which cuts through the South Downs.

This an old historic Sussex town whose modern history dates from the Norman conquest.

Both brothers also grew up with a deep and abiding affection and appreciation for nature. It becomes increasingly clear that this love for nature was largely due to the attitudes, efforts and influence of their parents, as in the fullness of time both boys developed a healthy respect for the natural environment and became enthusiastic amateur hobby Naturalists. Harrison personally endorsed this, in the preface to his 1889 publication “Our Cats and All About them” in which he simply stated: “From a tiny child to the present, the love of Nature has been my chief delight; animals and birds have not only been objects of study, but of deep and absorbing interest. I have noted their habits, watched their ways, and found lasting pleasure in their companionship. This love of animal life and Nature, with all its moods and phases, has grown with me from childhood to manhood, and is not the least enjoyable part of my old age.”

Of his father’s ability to draw, we can quote from two biographical sketches, one written by Harrison, published in 1901 and the other a third person quotation, recorded by a journalist from the Sevenoaks Chronicle in 1899: “When but mere children, my late and only brother, John Jenner Weir, F.L.S., F.Z.S., etc and myself, were taught by our father to love animals, birds and flowers. He would often draw dogs, cats, pigs, ducks, cocks and hens before us for our amusement, and so lead us to observe and become familiar with such surroundings.”

“When he and his brother, the late John Jenner Weir, were quite ‘little things’ their father, who was an artist of no small ability, was wont to sketch birds and dogs before his sons, giving each a pencil and paper, telling them to make a copy of his drawings. Thus, it was that before Mr. Weir was five years old he could scribble a little.”

THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

An image of ‘Chailey Green’ in Sussex, which would have been a familiar landscape for the sons and daughters of Thomas Jenner of Warrs, Chailey, the maternal grandfather of both John Jenner Weir, and Harrison William Weir.

Image: Mid 19th century postcard of Chailey Green. Archives of the Harrison Weir Collection.

These were the seeds of a love of creation and particularly for animals, planted in the young fertile mind of his son Harrison, that John Weir would thankfully live long enough to see bear fruit.

Their mother, Elizabeth Jenner, was just one of the many women from the extended Jenner family out of the yeoman farming community of ‘Chailey’ and its surrounding districts. She similarly contributed to this love of Kentish and Sussex country life and was instrumental in introducing the boys to their many relatives situated their farming homesteads across both counties.

Harrison relates one such story, of a visit to “the Fletchers Farm” in his preface to ‘The Poultry Book’: “Early in May, 1829, when scarcely five years old, I travelled with my mother by coach to Tunbridge Wells, and thence by a hired conveyance along the Hastings road to Pembury, another mile; then up a long, narrow, wheel-rutted, sanded lane, whose high and low side-banks and hedges amid their greenery fairly glowed with the rich rural colourings of spring, through a five barred gateway, past a pond darkened by overhanging trees, a wider and more open space of the grass-fringed trackway, and we were at “Fletchers”, the ancient family home of a near relative; an old-world; primitive, half-stone, brick, timber and weather-tile built house, thatched out-buildings, barn, cart-house and piggeries, with a surrounding of hop gardens, arable, meadow and other cultivated land. The homestead was some centuries old, also the out-buildings; fields were scattered among the woods, joining other woods in almost never-ending variety of forms and masses, while in front of the leaden easement-windowed house was the trim and gay flower garden, defended from cattle and other incursions by the whitest of wooden palings. A thrush sang amid the trees of the blossomy orchard close by, and a chaffinch gave voice from a lilac bush. All about was old, even the very fruit-trees, and yet to me – so new. To this day, everything I saw and heard is as fresh and as bright in my memory as though it were but yesterday; the house, the woods, the hedged-in fields, the birds, the wild and garden flowers, were to me then, as now, a very wonderment of lovable things and an adorning beauty unadorned.”

Already we see, well-developed, in a very young Harrison William Weir, those keen powers of observation, coupled with extraordinary attention to detail, which together, would stand him in such good stead for the rest of his natural life. As he matured, these powers of observation, supported by that detail, coupled with an excellent memory, would enable him to have instant and detailed recall in his studies as a naturalist, as a recorder of important facts, both in his writings, and particularly in the accurate renditions from these memories, in the form of his art. These were gifts that set his art above that of so many of his contemporaries. Accordingly, it was at once, descriptive, detailed, natural, and historically accurate.

THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

And this seedling talent, then so very new, was nurtured by his mother, as this next anecdote from the same preface demonstrates: “The day after our arrival I was missed, and by much searching, found in the cow-yard with a pencil and paper, endeavouring to draw ‘the cocks and hens.’ For many years these drawings, with their slight resemblance to fowls, were treasured and proudly shown by my mother.”

In yet another recollection of the same visit written in 1901, he emphasizes: “Being with my mother on a visit to a farmhouse in Pembury, Kent, on my fifth birthday, I was missed, and found with a pencil and paper busy in trying to draw some of the farm poultry. As portraits they were not good, but they were treasured by my mother for many a year afterwards. That 5 th May is well over seventy-one years ago and yet it is as fresh in my memory as though it were but yesterday.”

In fact, this Pembury, Kent farmhouse, was the residence of his auntie, Elizabeth’s younger sister, Grace Jenner, who with her farmer-husband Daniel Hartridge, worked the land that comprised the Fletcher’s Farm. Many years later, Harrison would name his second daughter after this favoured aunt.

It is clear from Harrison’s own words, that his personal joy in nature, was very clearly rooted in these formative years, influenced largely by his parents. His exposure to the natural charms of the forests and farms of Kent and East Sussex, firmly grounded him as a naturalist. He describes it best, in this descriptive excerpt from an autobiographical sketch written in his late seventies: “From then until now the love of and the entrancing study of Nature in all its varied phases have not only been a pleasure but my chief delight. The woods, with their branch-mingling trees, full of wondrous and many living sounds, the air fragrant with ‘the breath of flowers,’ the berried hedgerows of winter, and again with their spring adorning; the meadows, meads and fields either clothed in simple verdure or decked in floral beauty bright, new and rare – all have charmed and remain an ever-present heartfelt joy. So, early or late, day in, day out, weeks, months, years, summer and winter, in sunshine or storm, ‘the country’ of my native land has always been to me, ‘a thing of beauty and joy forever.”

THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

Opposite: Hen and chickens. Early drawing by Harrison Weir, done at the ‘Old Farm’. From the Preface to ‘Our Poultry’ in 1902.

Above: Other sketches drawn at the ‘Old Farm’, drawn more than 60 years earlier.

The influence of Harrison’s father, John Weir Snr, cannot be underestimated on both his son’s artistic ability and his ethical standing when it came to his dealings with either animals, or people, or work! John Weir was a man of principle, and this was demonstrated in practical terms, early in the lives of both his young sons. Before the boys were even two and four years old, the whole of England was affected by a national run on the banks in 1825. During this time, the main bank in Lewes, was the Old Bank, which survived long enough to be merged into Barclays Bank towards the end of the century. The Lewes Bank, (established in Lewes in 1805), which was basically sound, had like most banks, borrowed for the short term and lent long, and like the other banks, started calling in some of its loans. Jesse Cooke, who was in partnership with John Weir as a coal merchant, was mainly a miller and corn merchant, and had seriously extended himself shortly before the banking crisis. He consequently became insolvent when the banks called in their loans.

It is particularly worthy of note that John Weir, quickly determined to dissolve the partnership with Cooke, and to publicly take responsibility for all monies owed by the former partnership. In doing so, he undertook to run the coal business as a sole entity by himself. It is apparent that he was determined that no-one in his wider community should suffer any losses due to the demise of a former business in which he held an equal interest. Having dissolved the partnership publicly by mutual consent on December 31,1825; Weir worked hard to continue supplying his loyal customers and to systematically defray all debts owed by the former business. By these honourable actions, which he concluded in less than five months, he proved beyond doubt that the original business had always been viable. He then succeeded to market it, and soon sold it as a going concern, demonstrating that he was a master of follow-through and a man able to turn words into action.

These qualities had a considerable long-term influence on both his sons. Quite late in life, Harrison Weir wrote that “Proverbs, ‘wise saws and modern incidences’, have always had a peculiar charm for me, and many is the time that they have turned my ‘doings’ to good account.” And then he listed some examples by which he had tried to live: ‘Be thou familiar but by no mean vulgar’.

‘How far that little candle throws its beams, so shines a good deed in a naughty world’.

‘Enough is as good as a feast’.

‘Be temperate in all things’.

‘He that hath most, most wanteth’.

‘He doth much, that doth a thing well’.

‘He that would have the fruit, must climb the tree’.

‘If a man break his word once, it is once too much’.

It is in this last tenet, that we can particularly see the influence of his father. And in his future life, Harrison Weir demonstrates time and again that he is in all sincerity a man of his word. As a grown man, he also jealously guards against entering into any arrangement in which his morality or commitment may be unduly tested. From his father it would seem, that Harrison inherited two critical talents, one possibly genetic in nature, ‘his natural talent as an artist’; and one probably environmental, ‘that of being truthful, kind and of strong moral fibre’.

Of his father’s ability to draw, we can quote from two biographical sketches, one written by Harrison, published in 1901 and the other a third person quotation, recorded by a journalist from the Sevenoaks Chronicle in 1899: “When but mere children, my late and only brother, John Jenner Weir, F.L.S.,F.Z.S., etc and myself, were taught by our father to love animals, birds and flowers. He would often draw dogs, cats, pigs, ducks, cocks and hens before us for our amusement, and so lead us to observe and become familiar with such surroundings”.

THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION

“When he and his brother, the late John Jenner Weir, were quite ‘little things’ their father, who was an artist of no small ability, was wont to sketch birds and dogs before his sons, giving each a pencil and paper, telling them to make a copy of his drawings. Thus, it was that before Mr. Weir was five years old he could scribble a little.”

The above are examples of Harrison Weir’s work featuring poultry from his adult life. He was one of the most sought-after judges of Poultry in England. In 1902, he completed ‘Our Poultry’ an epic work, considered to be the most definitive on the subject.

IN OUR NEXT ISSUE …

• CHAMPION DON PEDRO OF THORPE (Silver Tabby Longhair) - born 1901.

• CHAMPION JAMES II (Silver Tabby Shorthair) – born 1901 • MR. W. LUKER JNR - Cover Image (London based artist who created colour Illustrations for ‘The Book of The Cat’) • THE MANEKI NEKO – The Good Luck Cat • CLERKING SCHOOLS – In South East Asia • CATS & KITTENS! Lend me your ears!

• GC. NW. RW PAJEAN’S TRINKET LOVE • GC. NW. KIT’S MAGIC BULLET OF RICHSON

DO YOU‌ ..have an interest in the history of cats? ..want to know the early history of your breed? ..wish you could see trophies of the past? ..enjoy reading catalogues from early cat shows? ..care about the preservation of early pedigree records?

..hope that artifacts are saved for future generations?

SUPPORT The CFA Foundation’s Feline Historical Museum!

Donations to The CFA Foundation, whether they be monetary archival or estate donations, all help to maintain YOUR museum.

The CFA Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 not-for-profit organisation and all contributions are deductible for Federal income, gift and estate tax purposes.

THE CFA FOUNDATION, PO Box 2155, Alliance, OH 44601 330-680-4444 www.FelineHistoricalFoundation.org