Felis Historica - June 2022, Volume 2 Number 12 by purrcasso

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 COLUMNISTS/CONTRIBUTORS

Karen Lawrence (St. Catharines, Canada)

Lorraine Shelton (California, USA)

Dr. Leslie Lyons (Missouri, USA)

Chloe Chung (Hong Kong)

Laura Vocelle (Muscat, Oman)

Florent Fissot (Monsegur, France)

Dr. Victor Zaalov (Acre, Israel)

Valerie Sheldrake Feline Historian (Suffolk, UK)

Jamie Christian (Ohio, USA)

PHOTOGRAPHY / GRAPHICS

Helmi & Ken Flick (Florida, USA)

Jack Terry (Florida, USA)

JUNE 2022

VOLUME 2 NUMBER 12

EDITORIAL The Editor outlines the contents of Felis Historica – Volume 2 No.12

Contents

CONTRIBUTING TEAM MEMBERS Gallery of our Team of Columnists, Contributors & Correspondents

6 8

THE JAPANESE BOBTAIL - by Marianne Clarke An Introduction to the JBT Breed by the Breed Council Secretary

THE SILVER LILY (1897) - by John Smithson The story of a Chinchilla female sired by Ch. Silver Lambkin.

HARRISON WEIR’S LETTERS – notes from ‘The Poet of Nature’ Files What Harrison Weir’s letters reveal - by John Smithson

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GENETICS YOU CAN LEARN FROM YOUR CAT! - by Dr. Leslie Lyons The ABC’s of Cat Blood Type Genetics

INTERNATIONAL CELEBRATION GALLERY – THE JBT LH & SH

GARDENING WITH CATS – Cartoons by Graham Harrop A Cats Guide to the Flower Bed!

THE AMERICAN SHORTHAIR – New Book Release information.

ROMEO (1898) – by John Smithson An early imported Sealpoint Siamese male.

THE CAT THAT LOOKED AT A KING – Future Book release info…

THE DESCENDANTS OF BASTET – by Karen Lawrence. New Book release information…

A PERSIAN RHAPSODY IN BLUE – by John Smithson. New Book release information…

FELIS HISTORICA

CELEBRATING MODERN DAY LEADING CATS – Our Feature Cats: Japanese Bobtail Longhair & The Domestic Shorthair CFA GC, BWR, NW NUDAWNZ DOBUTSU NO MORI 82 ‘TINA’ – An everyday cat for everybody! 96

Editorial Editorial ’FELIS HISTORICA’ JOHN G. SMITHSON EDITOR

OUR COVER PHOTO ‘TINA’ ACOMB Domestic Shorthair, and Rescue Kitten. Born in 2008. Beloved family pet of Linda and Jack Acomb at the Scrimshaw Cattery

Photo: Helmi Flick COPYRIGHT

ISSN: 2744-4430 National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa © A-CAT-EMY CONCEPTS / FELIS HISTORICA THE HARRISON WEIR COLLECTION No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, screen capture, or otherwise, without prior written permission. No responsibility is accepted for accuracy of advertisements or information. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED www.felis-historica.com www.harrisonweir.com

Our June 2022 edition of Felis Historica, is in essence a celebration of the Domestic cat – a subject which was close to the heart of the founder of the Cat Fancy, Harrison William Weir – and it was his passion to acknowledge the cats place in society that drove him to push for its acknowledgement and contribution to mankind, that foresaw the establishment of cat shows. It is prudent I believe, to remind ourselves of the answer to the question, just what sis the difference between a domestic cat and a ‘pedigreed’ breed. The answer is ‘very little!’ The difference is that one has a recorded lineage, which only required mankind to name and track that lineage, and to classify cats of similar attributes into named breeds. The other is no less valuable or less important, and in fact there is a good argument that it will become more important as time goes by. Many of the ‘breeds’ we recognise today, are based on domestic populations, that have simply been recognised for their specific traits or attributes and simply with a recorded pedigree from a specific point in time. Among them to name just a few, are the British Shorthair and the American Shorthair, one which has a heritage built on the foundation of the other, but which have now been developed along very different, specific and ‘selective’ phenotypical criteria for many generations. The Japanese Bobtail is a street cat from Japan - and can still be imported as such and registered as foundation stock. The two cats in this issue, the first being a Japanese Bobtail Longhair who has earned the distinction of being named Best Championship Cat in the CFA Annual Awards for the show season only recently completed. That amazing female is CFA G

TINA ACOMB IN COVERT Photo: Courtesy of Linda Acomb

IN CELEBRATION OF

JUNE 2022

JAPANESE BRITISHBOBTAIL SHs & LHs CATS

GC, BWR, NW NUDAWNZ DOBUTSU NO MORI – superbly exhibited and lovingly presented by Lorna Dawn Friemoth. Our other feature cat is a rescue cat named ‘Tina’ owned by Linda and Jack Acomb of Scrimshaw cattery fame, who as a domestic shorthair has enriched all our lives for the last seven plus years, by Linda sharing her images on her facebook feed along with many meaningful quotes. Tina is this months ‘cover’ cat, and we include a small gallery of her images and a short resume on her adoption into the Scrimshaw family of felines. Dr Lyons provides us with an exceptionally insightful piece on the ABC’s of Cat Blood Type genetics, a must read for all breeders! Marianne Clark, who is the Breed Council Secretary for Japanese Bobtails, provides a thumbnail history of the breed in CFA – her Kurisumasu cats have been a leading brand in the breed for decades! I have personally added a piece from the Archives of the Harrison Weir Collection, on just a few sample letters written by the man who started the Cat Fancying journey, and what the letters reveal to us about the man himself. Our historical files this month cover, a very early Chinchilla and one of the best sired by the ‘father of the Chinchilla breed, Ch. Silver Lambkin. Her name is ‘The Silver Lily’, born in 1897. Our second historical piece is about the Siamese male ‘Romeo’ born in 1898, an early import to the UK. We hope that you enjoy this month’s issue, feel free to give us your feedback!

John

EDITOR

Above and below: CFA GC, BWR, NW NUDAWNZ DOBUTSU NO MORI Mike – (Black Tortoriseshell & White) Japanese Bobtail Longhair CFA CAT OF THE YEAR 2022 Photos: Samantha Kerr.

OUR TEAM OF COLUMNISTS & CONTRIBUTORS

KAREN LAWRENCE

LORRAINE SHELTON

LESLIE A. LYONS Ph. D

ADVERTISING MANAGER advertising@felis-historica.com Director: CFA Foundation, Inc Manager: Feline Historical Museum Co-Editor: The History Project

AUTHOR/LECTURER ‘Robinson’s Genetics for Cat Breeders & Veterinarians’ Director: CFA Foundation, Inc www.wegies.net www.featherland.net

RESEARCHER/COLUMNIST FELINE GENETICS SPECIALIST Prof. of Comparative Medicine Dept. of Vet. Medicine & Surgery University of Missouri

JAMIE CHRISTIAN

CHLOE CHUNG

LAURA A. VOCELLE

WRITER/COLUMNIST TICA INTERNATIONAL JUDGE OF THE YEAR 2016

COLUMNIST/PRESENTER CAT BEHAVIOURALIST/LECTURER CFA ALL BREEDS JUDGE Based in China & Hong Kong

COLUMNIST/AUTHOR FELINE HISTORY & ART HISTORIAN Creator and Founder The Great Cat www.thegreatcat.org

DR. VICTOR ZAALOV

HELMI & KEN FLICK

JACK TERRY

CEO – WORLD GOLDEN CAT

HELMI FLICK CAT PHOTOGRAPHY www.helmiflick.com

‘THE RESTORIAN’ Photo & Graphics Specialist Photo Humourist

President of World Organisation of Cats

OUR TEAM OF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS

DARRELL NEWKIRK

PAM DELABAR

GAVIN CAO

(CFA, USA)

(CFA, EUROPE)

(CFA, CHINA)

NEVADA, UNITED STATES PRESIDENT CFA

TAMPERE, FINLAND

CFA DIRECTOR, REGION 9

CHENGDU, CHINA CFA CHINA BUSINESS ADVISOR

JOHN HANSSON

CHERYLE U’REN

ANNELIESE HACKMANN

(GCCF, UK)

(CCC of A, AUSTRALIA)

(WCF, EUROPE)

LONDON, ENGLAND PAST CHAIRMAN GCCF

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA PRESIDENT CCC of A VICE-PRESIDENT WCC

ESSEN, GERMANY PRESIDENT WCF

JOHAN LAMPRECHT

BOB GLEASON

JANE WEBSTER

(SOUTH AFRICA)

(CCA, CANADA)

(NZCF, NEW ZEALAND)

DURBANVILLE, SOUTH AFRICA PRESIDENT, C.A.S.A. (WCF)

LONDON, CANADA CHAIR - CANADIAN CAT ASSOC. LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE

PALMERSTON NORTH, NZ NZCF HISTORIAN

OUR TEAM OF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS

JUN KOHNO

RUSSELL LAW

CHATE RUENGRUGLIKIT

(CFA, JAPAN)

(CFA, HONG KONG)

(CFA, THAILAND)

TOKYO, JAPAN SEC: MICINA CAT FANCIERS

HONG KONG SEC: UNITED FELINE ODYSSEY

CHAYAPON PUCHAROENYOS

ROBBIE WALKER

BANGKOK, THAILAND SEC: SIAM BLE-EYED CAT FANCIERS

SANDRA ALSUMAIT

(WCF, ASIA)

(ACF, AUSTRALIA)

(CFA, KUWAIT)

BANGKOK, THAILAND CHAIR: WCF DISCIPLINARY COMMISSION

GOLD COAST, QLD, AUSTRALIA PRESIDENT, FCCQ. QLD

KUWAIT CITY, KUWAIT PRESIDENT, K-CATS CLUB

IZADDIN SYAH YUSOF

FARAH DIANA

BAMBI J. EDWARDS (ANCATS, AUSTRALIA)

(CFA, MALAYSIA)

(CFA, INDONESIA)

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA NAT.SEC: ANCATS AUSTRALIA

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA CFA INT.DIV. CLERK OF THE YEAR 2016

JAKARTA, INDONESIA RICIMACKA CATTERY

OUR TEAM OF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENTS

ELLEN CROCKETT

STEVEN MESERVE

LUIZ PAULO FACCIOLI

(TICA, UNITED STATES)

(TICA, EUROPE SOUTH)

(TICA, SOUTH AMERICA)

PORT TOWNSEND, WA, USA TICA DISTINGUISED JUDGE

VILA DE CUCUJAES, PORTUGAL TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

PORT ALEGRE, SOUTH BRAZIL TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

LIESBETH VAN MULLEM

EVA PORAT

DONATELLA MASTRANGELO

(TICA, EUROPE NORTH)

(FIFe, SWEDEN)

(FIFe, BELGIUM)

UTRECHT, THE NETHERLANDS TICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

OREBRO, SWEDEN PRESIDENT SVERAK, (FIFe)

ROME, ITALY CHAIR: JUDGES & STANDARDS COMM.

STEVEN JONES

JINSON CHOI

LISBETH FALLING

(FIFe, NORWAY)

(CFA, SOUTH KOREA)

(NRR, NORWAY)

STAVANGER, NORWAY SEC: JUDGES & STANDARDS COMM

PAJU-SI, SOUTH KOREA PRES. CAT FANCIERS OF KOREA

OSLO, NORWAY PHOTOGRAPHER/EDITOR - ARISTOKATT

The Japanese Bobtail A Thumbnail history of The Japanese Bobtail cat in CFA

by MARIANNE CLARK

Marianne Clark is Kurisumasu, breeding and showing Japanese Bobtails exclusively since 1989, located in the Portland, Oregon area. Kurisumasu is a CFA Cattery of Distinction, Tier Backgrounds © wwwGoGraph.com VII, Superior. Kurisumasu has 212 Grands, 27 Distinguished Merit Cats (2 nd highest in CFA), Multiple breed winners. She has been CFA’s Breed Council Secretary since 2017. Backgrounds © www.gograph.com

Why do owners of Japanese Bobtails consider them the smartest and sweetest cats ever?

kittens, he ordered her to be bred again. (Guess he didn't know that cats needed no help in procreating).

Is it their endearing clown activities, the affectionate kisses and hugs, the demand to be with us in our activities and their dog like habit of following people around?

I'm quite certain they also didn't obey the Emperor and managed to escape to become the street cats they are today.

The history as to how they came to be in our hearts begins with Buddhist Monks who came to the Japanese Islands around 700 B.C. It is said they brought cats to keep rats out of the rice paper prayer scrolls. Besides breeding their cute little tails, they managed to become pets of not only the monks, but the Emperor and royalty. Peasants were forbidden to own them. They were kept on leashes and pampered. One of the Emperors so loved his little white bobtail when she had kittens, he ordered her to be bred again. (Guess he didn't know that cats

It is also said, in the 16th Century there was a panic in silk production as mice were eating the silkworms. The Emperor knew they were great hunters, so he ordered the cats to be released to save the silk worms. They managed for years to survive and endear themselves to the people of Japan. Even today the street cats live a pretty charmed life with many people feeding them in neighborhoods, temple and park colonies. I speak from having been gifted with several street cats from my Japanese friends.

A Japanese Bobtail enjoying the view from a window of visitors to Kinryzan Temple. Painting by Hiroshige (1797-1858)

‘O UKI SAN’ – An early 20th century Japanese Bobtail, (known then as a Japanese Manx) One of several imported into the United Kingdom by Mrs. McLaren Morrison. Image: ‘The Tatler’ October, 1901. Courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

The trip to pampered pets in the USA began after World War II when returning military personnel had their cats accompany them home. Even today many Japanese Bobtails have made their way to the US from their native land. In the 1960s Japan started having cat shows sponsored by the Cat Fanciers’ Association. Many judges fell in love with them being shown in the Household Pet category and recognized their uniqueness in the world of cats. Judges included Betty O’Brien (now deceased) and Robert Zenda, who still judges today. Bess Higuchi, later a CFA judge, exhibited bobtails in the Household pet class along with American Judy Crawford and the two working together were instrumental in sending the first “official” breeding pair to

working together were instrumental in sending the first “official” breeding pair to Elizabeth Freret in Virginia in 1968. In 1970 Judy moved to Seattle and brought 38 cats with her. In 1969, at the CFA Board meeting Elizabeth presented 3 Japanese Bobtails with a proposed standard. The breed was accepted and registration granted to cats who had certificates of Japanese origin. This is still a practice today of CFA whose registry is open to all “street” cats from Japan who have a bobtail; hence genetic vigor is encouraged. CFA is the birthplace of Japanese Bobtail recognition. Early breeders were concerned there would be a definite distinction between the Manx cat and the Japanese Bobtail, at least in the show ring. The standard was written for a smaller medium cat, representing fine porcelain.

A tailed Japanese street cat resting in the lap of a statue of Buddha, c.1960 Photo: Courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection.

CH, GP, NW KITAI’S MITU OF NEKOLADY – CFA’S FIRST NATIONAL WINNER JAPANESE BOBTAIL Photo: Jane Howard.

for a smaller medium cat, representing fine porcelain. However, street cats in Japan vary from large, cobby and thick coats and these types are often seen in the ancient art of Japan. It wasn’t until twenty-four years later that the longhair variety of the JBT was accepted for championship status in CFA. Most registries have accepted both coat lengths except for FIFe as at the time of writing. It was a slow start for awards and prizes for the Japanese Bobtail in CFA due to few being shown and lack of interest in the average exhibitors, although many CFA judges owned and promoted them. The first Grand Champion was a colorful mi-ke Maryott’s Quan Yin of Amberleigh, owned by Mary Olsen and Patti LeBlanc.

But unfortunately “Quanie” passed from Feline Leukemia, as there was no test nor vaccines at that time. Many cat owners suffered the same loss. The next few years was dominated by a father/son combo, GC Mr. Lee of Far, the 2nd grand champion and his son GC Ranwins Fugi San of Far East. Ran was Best of Breed for 3 years from 1978-79-80. Just as the Cat Fancy began to grow so did the number of Japanese Bobtail Breeders. Many dedicated breeders showed and were successful in the 1980s. Ch/GP NW Kitai’s Mitu of Nekolady was the first National Winner in CFA. She was owned by Barbara Romanos and Barbara was a tireless promoter of the breed sharing her lines and knowledge to newcomers.

GC, BW, NW BASSETTI’S PACHINKO – FIRST TIME DOUBLE NATIONAL WINNER AS A KITTEN & ADULT Photo: Chanan

Big names that came out of the 80s were (alphabetically): Bassetti (Janet Bassetti), Choneko (Dee Hinkle), Kiddlyn (Linda Donaldson), Kurisumasu (Marianne Clark), Maricho (Marilyn Knopp), Nekomo (Doug Myers / Allen Scruggs) and Wyndchyme (Karen Bishop / Jill Archibald / Lynn Search). Today Kurisumasu and Kiddlyn are still breeding and showing. Throughout the years JBTs became very successful with many National Winners, Regional Winners and Grand Champions. Bobtails from the US were exported to many countries. I personally exported to South Africa, Poland, Germany, Denmark, U.K., Switzerland, New Zealand and Australia.

Some Pioneer highlights are: - GC BW NW Nekomo Hirohito, first NW in Championship, 1988 - GC BW NW Bassetti’s Pachinko, first time double NW as a kitten and adult, 1988 - GC BW RW Bassetti’s Saisho in 1989 first male Distinguished Merit (DM*) who still has the most Grands – 30 - GP Kurisumasu Kindei, first longhair grand, 1994 - GC BW NW Choneko Yoyo of Nekomo, highest finish in standings for a JBT 1995 - GC RW Kurisumasu Kohana, DM, first Longhair DM, 1996 - GC GP BW NW Maricho’s Hoseki, first National Winning LH (Premier). 1996

GP KURISUMASU KINDEI – CFA’S FIRST JAPANESE BOBTAIL LONGHAIR GRAND. Photo: Carl Widmer.

- GC BW Kurisumasu Ki-to, DM and GC Kurisumasu Momiji, DM the first and so far only littermate breed winners in the same year, either division, 1997

- GC BW NW Kenipurr’s Hajime of Kurisumasu, DM 15th Best Cat, Smoke Mi-ke.

- GC BW NW Bassetti’s Sugureta Kin, 1994, first time a JBT was the Best Shorthair Cat in CFA

From 2006 and onward. For even more information on Pioneer Cats, visit https://www.japanesebobtailbc.org/INTROPIONEER-CATS.pdf

- GC BW NW Wyndchymes Mask-of-Zorro, 2001, 2nd Best Cat & Best Shorthair Cat in CFA - GC BW RW Kiddlyn’s Watagashi, Only two time Breed Winner, 2002 & 2004 In 2006 two cats to be noted are due to their unusual colors, a departure from the traditional red, white, and black, both National Winners and many breed winners followed in their paw steps of different colors.

- GC BW NW Ginchika Okonomiyaka, DM, 17th Best Cat, Silver Patterned/White.

One breeder who “swims” against the current is Linda Donaldson of Kiddlyn. Linda has devoted her JBT life since 1985 to breeding the “odd” colors, she has granded a myriad of colors, solids of black, white, blue, red tabby, classic tabbies, tortoiseshells, blue-crème and others. But of course, she had “normal” colors, too! Ginchika consists of Jennifer Reding and Nikki Crandall-Seibert

Above left: GC, BW, NW CHONEKO YOYO of NEKOMO finished highest in the Standings for a JBT in 1995. Right: GC, RW KURISUMASU KOHANA DM – the first Japanese Bobtail Longhair DM, 1996. Photos: Left: Jane Howard. and Right: Chanan.

Nikki Crandall-Seibert who began to specialize in silvers in 2002 with an import from Japan. Most Japanese Bobtails love to show and everything involved, tolerant of the long car rides and plane rides and the admiration of strangers – judges and spectators. There hasn’t been a year go by that at least one Japanese Bobtail doesn’t appear in the Top National Winning cats. This year is a first (2022) where the Cat of the Year in CFA is a Japanese Bobtail, a longhair, GC BW NW Nudawnz Dobutsu No Mori, “Acey”; owned by Lorna Friemoth and her extended family. Congratulations and it’s been a long wait coming, where the Persians/Exotics have formerly dominated. “Acey” joins an exclusive club of breeds which include a Burmilla, a Bombay, American Shorthairs, Sphynx, Russian Blue to overcome the Perisan parade.

American Shorthairs, a Sphynx, and Russian Blue, to overcome the Persian parade. 2022 is a year for the “different” in our Breed. The 2nd Best Longhair Japanese is a Silver Patterened & White male, GC RW Kiddlyn’s Honjomasamune and in the Shorthair Division Best is a Seal Point and White Female, GC BW RW Songgwangsa The Point Is: Bunny! Second best is GC RW Kurisumasu SuisaiCho, an odd-eyed dilute female, and 3rd is GC RW Kiddlyn’s Klassic Kuda, a solid red tabby. JBT owners are as active and crazy as their cats, people say. In the show hall you can find many of us are not content showing just one, but many! Smart judges hide their toys before the JBTs come to their ring. Don’t be surprised if one pops out of a kitchen cabinet or deftly opens up a door. Fetching is just one of their pass

HIGHEST SCORING JBT’S 2021-2022 SHOW SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP GC, BWR, NW NUDAWNZ DOBUTSU NO MORI

MI-KE

4355.45

Ow: L FRIEMOTH, S FRIEMOTH, K FRIEMOTH, J FRIEMOTH, L GALLION, P GALLION, L GALLION

GC, BWR, RW SONGGWANGSA THE POINT IS: BUNNY!!! BLUE POINT-WHITE F

1538.25

Br/Ow: OLIVIER GRIN

GC, RW KURISUMASU SUISAI-CHO

DILUTE MI-KE

958.80

RED CLASSIC TABBY M

698.00

Br/Ow: MARIANNE CLARK

GC, RW KIDDLYN'S KLASSIC KUDA Ow: LINDA K DONALDSON, SCOTT THORNILEY

GC, RW KIDDLYN HONJOMASUMUNE

SILVER PATTERNED-WHITE 618.95

Ow: LINDA K DONALDSON, SCOTT THORNILEY

GINCHIKA NO QUIERO SABER

SILVER PATTERNED MI-KE 196.40

Ow: J REDING, N CRANDALL-SEIBERT, C SEIBERT, M CAMPBELL

GC, AW WYNDCHYMES KOBE

BLACK-WHITE M

175.10

SMOKE MI-KE

147.60

Ow: KAREN BISHOP, JILL ARCHIBALD

GINCHIKA JIJI

Ow: J REDING, M CAMPBELL, N CRANDALL-SEIBERT, C SEIBERT

CH RW KIDDLYN’S RYUJIN

SILVER PATTERN/-WH M

81.60

Ow: LINDA K DONALDSON, SCOTT THORNILEY

KURISUMASU KIZETSU CHO

SILVER PATTERN MI-KE LH* 70.95

Br/Ow: MARIANNE CLARK

KITTENS GC, RW NUDAWNZ ODOROKUBEKI ISAN

DILUTE PATTRN MI-KE LH*

911.80

Ow: LORNA FRIEMOTH, JASON GALLION, LUCY GALLION, LINUS GALLION

CH, RW KIDDLYN'S HIKARI OF KURAMAKATZ

BLACK SMOKE-WHITE F*

437.10

Ow: A. DIEHM, C JENSEN, S THORNILEY, LINDA DONALDSON

GP,

KIDDLYN'S ITSUTSU HOSHI

RED MAC TBY-WH N

225.55

BLACK-WHITE M

178.45

Ow: LINDA K DONALDSON, SCOTT THORNILEY

WYNDCHYMES KOBE Ow: KAREN BISHOP, JILL ARCHIBALD

KURISUMASU TOUKA-CHO OF RAGTIME

CAMEO PATTERN/WHITE F* 142.60

Ow: MARIANNE CLARK, LAURA GREGORY, JOHN GREGORY

No title

NUDAWNZ NEVER HAVE I EVER

CAMEO PATTERN/-WH N*

114.35

SILVER PATTERN/-WH F

111.25

BLUE-WHITE F

104.90

BLACK SMOKE-WHITE N

97.85

BLACK-WHITE N

97.45

Ow: CAROL POWELL

WYNDCHYMES SILVER BELLE Ow: L SEARCH, V CRAWFORD, K BISHOP, J ARCHIBALD

KIDDLYN'S GRACE OF CATSNTATS Ow: BECKY SMITH, LINDA K DONALDSON

GINCHIKA OH NO! THERE GOES TOKYO! Ow: PATTY MAHANY

GP, RW

KURISUMASU TORA-USAGI Ow: MARIANNE CLARK, BETTY CARRUTHERS

HIGHEST SCORING JBT’S 2021-2022 SHOW SEASON PREMIERSHIP (ALTERS/DESEXED) GP, RW

BENHANA ARAMIS OF KEMAGE

BLACK-WHITE N

1724.75

Ow: ANNE MATHIS, KEVIN E MATHIS

GP, NW, AC KAWAIIKATS KEIKO CATSUI OF BUNIKATS PATTERNED MI-KE LH S*

1470.40

Ow: JAIME KARTAK LERNER

GP, NW, AC KAWAIIKATS TAKENGEI

BROWN PATTERN/-WH*

1429.80

Ow: JENNIFER SPADAFINO, TYLER DEEL

GP, RW

MISHA'S NAWO

BROWN PATTERNED-WH N 624.95

Ow: YUMI MASUDA

GP, RW

KURISUMASU TEXAS BUNNY OF GULFCATS RED PATTERNED-WH N

615.40

Ow: MARIANNE CLARK, TONI HUFF

CH, GP, RW KURISUMASU KACHIMUSHI

RED SMOKE-WHITE *

590.70

Ow: MARIANNE CLARK, DEBI GOMEZ, LINDA OSBURN

GP, RW

KURISUMASU KEMURI-CHO

SMOKE MI-KE LH *

409.10

BLACK-WHITE N

370.35

Br/Ow: MARIANNE CLARK

KURISUMASU RAIHATSU OF ARROW Ow: LINDA J OSBURN, MARIANNE CLARK

KENIPURR'S JILLIAN

BLACK SMOKE-WHITE SPAY 198.80

Br/Ow: KENDALL SMITH

GC, GP, RW GINCHIKA ISHITSUKURI

SILVER PATTERN/-WHITE N 163.85

Ow: PATTY MAHANY

passions and we don’t need to teach them! They just seem to know! Most like the water and will jump into the shower or tub. We are kept young by their silliness. But like potato chips, most people can’t just have one! Marianne Clark

FOR MORE IMAGES OF PRESENT AND PAST JAPANESE BOBTAIL WINNERS AND EXHIBITS AT SHOWS TURN TO OUR GALLERY OF JAPANESE BOBTAILS BEGINNING ON PAGE 50

NOTE: Marianne Clark is Kurisumasu, breeding and showing Japanese Bobtails exclusively since 1989, located in the Portland, Oregon area. Kurisumasu is a CFA Cattery of Distinction, Tier VII, Superior. Kurisumasu has produced 212 Grand Champions, 27 Distinguished Merit Cats (2nd highest n CFA) and Multiple Breed winners. Marianne has been CFA’s Breed Council Secretary for the Japanese Bobtail breed since 2017. *DM, a male cat that has produced 15 Grand Champions, or a female cat that has produced 5.

THE CELEBRATED ‘SILVER LILY’ – Born May 15th, 1897 Photo by W. Muntz, Southport. © Cropped from a Studio photo in The Harrison Weir Collection. Article backgrounds © www.gographic.com

AN HISTORICAL PORTRAIT OF

JOHN G. SMITHSON

A Chinchilla female born in 1897, sired by Ch. Silver Lambkin Bred by Mrs. Wellbye. Owned by Miss Bluhm / Miss Simon

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

restricted to only the very tip of the hair shaft.

‘The Silver Lily’ is arguably the most renown of all of the progeny from ‘Dossie’ and ‘The Silver Lambkin’. Along with her full and half siblings, she represented an equal first at the peak of attainment for the Chinchilla breed, at a time when everyone was seriously striving to breed for ‘clarity of coat’, free from barring, the lighter the better.

That the breeders did ultimately achieve this goal in what was in reality, a very short space of time, is nothing short of remarkable. This was especially so, given the lack of genetic knowledge, and without an understanding of the actions of what we know today to be the ‘Inhibitor’ gene.

In this respect she was ahead of litter sister ‘Silver Jessamine’ (featured in our May issue), who was more shaded and was more barred. Both were prized daughters of an outstanding foundation sire, so their value also lay in their potential as breeders and to produce an improved generation of silvers, that everyone hoped would show promise of even clearer coats, in the quest for what was then, the so-called ‘self silver’.

Equally amazingly, was that many breeders of the day had begun to realise that the use of smokes in the background (which today we know are ‘non-agouti’), helped to clear the coats of barring, inherited initially from the Silver tabby (agouti) background.

This quest was erroneous in the respect that such a cat does not exist, as all silvers are not selfcoloured, but tipped. So in reality, the quest was only a search for a coat free from barring and of the very lightest of shades, essentially with colour restricted to only the very tip of the hair shaft.

From when ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ was born in 1889, to when the first relatively unbarred specimens started appearing around 1900, then to a time when the ticking was also limited to the very tips and no longer appeared ‘shaded’, was a space of approximately only 20 plus years. During this time also, the allowable eye colour which originally included both ‘green’ and ‘yellow’ eyes, was generally accepted by the majority to be “preferably green”, with the standard for the Chinchilla in time, eventually being amended to only ‘green’ as acceptable.

THE SILVER LILY as a Kitten.

CHAMPION SILVER LAMBKIN

Photo: ‘Our Cats’ Magazine, February 1900. © The Harrison Weir Collection

Father of the Chinchilla Silver Persian Variety. Sire of ‘The Silver Lily’ Photo: US Stud Book & Register, 1906)

originally included both ‘green’ and ‘yellow’ eyes, was generally accepted by the majority to be “preferably green”, with the standard for the Chinchilla in time, eventually being amended to only ‘green’ as acceptable.

timelessly memorable ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ (shown above) owned by Mrs Balding, and her dam was ‘Dossie’, a very modest Chinchilla female owned by Mrs. Wellbye and bred by Lady Fitzhardinge.²

“Lily’ (also known as ‘The Silver Lily’) was one of those rare cats that was a great show specimen, but also valued as a breeder. Amazingly, she was successful at both.

We know little about her ownership, other than she is listed in the National Cat Club Register as owned by Mrs Bluhm, for whom she clearly had had a number of litters. But she is also shown later, possibly upon her retirement from breeding, on her named studio photograph, taken by W. Muntz of Southport, as being the property of Miss Simon. This image is clearly overprinted with title, ‘The Celebrated Silver Lily’.

PARENTAGE & OWNERSHIP ‘Silver Jessamine’ was born 15th May 1897, bred by Mrs. Wellbye. Her sire was the timelessly memorable ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ owned by Mrs Balding, and her dam was

DOSSIE – Dam of ‘The Silver Lily’ Granddaughter of Charlbury Silver King, A full sibling to Ch. Silver Lambkin. Photo: E. Landor. Wrench Series Postcard.

Simon. This image is also clearly overprinted with title, ‘The Celebrated Silver Lily’.

FULL SIBLINGS Of siblings, ‘Silver Lily’ has just one full litter sister, ‘Silver Jessamine’, but also a younger full brother in ‘Silver Monarch’ born two years later, and in between these litters, two damsiblings, sired by ‘The Silver Squire’ (aka ‘The Squire’) which were ‘Silver Lotus’ and ‘Silver Veronica’(aka St. Veronica). ‘Silver Jessamine’ appears to have been the ‘poster girl’, popular with the public, possibly because of her very expressive eyes, as she appears on a number of postcards in both black and white and early

SILVER JESSAMINE by Ch. Silver Lambkin ex Dossie A full litter sibling to ‘The Silver Lily’ Photo: Rapid Classic Series Postcard.

because of her very expressive eyes, as she appears on a number of postcards in both black and white and early colour printings, either in embossed or plate sunk formats, showing her face in rounded frames or as a full-frontal portrait. (as shown above). ‘Silver Lily’ by comparison, was hardly ever seen, unless shown as a cute kitten, in conjunction with her equally cute litter sister, usually subtitled as ‘Dossies Daughters’. In the two photographs which follow overleaf, we are shown ‘Dossie’s daughters’ but which? an alternative pairing of photographed kittens from a later litter to a male called ‘The Silver Squire’, these are always denoted as ‘The Daughters of The Squire’, but in this case, the appellation is simply ‘Dossie’s

DOSSIE’S DAUGHTERS Left: A Rotary Photographic Circle Plate Sunk Series Postcard entitled “Dossie’s Daughters’. Right: A Rotary Photographic Series Postcard, entitled “Birdie”.¹² Images courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection.

In an alternative pairing of photographed kittens from a later litter to a male called ‘The Silver Squire’, these are always denoted as ‘The Daughters of The Squire’, but in this case, the appellation is simply ‘Dossie’s Daughters’. So we are inclined to believe that in this case, the above images are representative of the baby ‘Jessamine’ and ‘The Silver Lily’. Certainly, the kitten on the right in the first photo above is the clearer coated and the kitten shown in the second image is one and the same kitten. Comparing the adult photos to the kitten photos, we are therefore inclined to accept that the kitten on the right is ‘The Silver Lily’ as a very young kitten.

Another full sibling to be born later, was the male ‘Silver Monarch’ but between the first litter by ‘Silver Lambkin’ and the second, born in June 1st 1899, Mrs. Wellbye chose to try a new variation on a related theme, this time choosing to breed her ‘Dossie’ to another of Mrs. Balding’s males, a son of ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ known as ‘The Silver Squire’. This was a move with exceptional foresight, as ‘Silver Squire’ was the product of a half-brother to half-sister mating, doubling on the dam of ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ himself. (In essence he was

already ‘line-bred’). When she had bred ‘Dossie’ directly to ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ and produced both ‘Jessamine’ and ‘The Silver Lily’, she had simply doubled on ‘Ch. Silver

Lambkin’ s’ dam, through Dossie’s grandsire, ‘Charlbury Silver King’.

THE DAUGHTERS OF ‘THE SQUIRE’ & ‘DOSSIE’ – ‘Dam’ half-siblings of ‘Silver Lily’ and ‘Silver Jessamine’ Left: ‘Silver Lotus’, from Raphael Tuck & Sons, Art Series Postcard. Above right, ‘Silver Veronica’, cropped from a C.W. Faulkner & Co.Series Postcard. Photos by Landor. Images courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

‘The Silver Lily’, she had simply doubled on ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ s’ dam, through Dossie’s grandsire, ‘Charlbury Silver King’. But by choosing to breed to ‘Silver Squire’, she was in fact choosing to TRIPLE exclusively on ‘Beauty of Bridgeyate’

NOTABLE DAM-SIBLINGS From this breeding came two more females and a male, the females being photographed extensively by E. Landor, (Ealing), both as kittens and young cats and who became well known simply as “the daughters of The Squire”. The male was registered as ‘Lucifer’, but although he is listed under Mrs. Wellbye’s name, there are no photographs extant and no records of any

progeny from him.

although he is listed under Mrs. Wellbye’s name, there are no photographs extant and no records of any progeny from him. Both the females, however, were shown very successfully as attested to by the commentary of Frances Simpson in ‘The Book of the Cat’ (1903) in which she states: “...which may also be said of those of Mrs. Wellbye, whose ‘Silver Lotus’ and ‘Veronica,’ daughters of ‘Silver Squire’ and ‘Dossie,’ did so much winning in their day”. Of show wins for ‘The Silver Lily’ we have only those listed at the time of her registration in the Register of the National Cat Club. These were: 1st and 2nd, Crystal Palace 1898.

young male. His eye colour appears to be especially sound and of intense colouration.

BREEDING & PROGENY Although breeding records are sketchy at best, we have tracked four litters from ‘The Silver Lily’. The earliest is a breeding which took place to ‘Shah’ (most probably ‘Shah of Lyndhurst’ born in 1892), which produced a Chinchilla female named ‘Silver Patti’, born 28th July 1898. The breeder is recorded as Mrs Bluhm (who owned the probable sire), and the owner as Mrs Earwalker. ¹⁰

SILVER MONARCH by Ch. Silver Lambkin ex Dossie A full younger sibling to ‘The Silver Lily’ Photo: Rapid Classic Series Postcard.

Register of the National Cat Club. These were: 1st and 2nd, Crystal Palace 1898. Then in a litter from a repeat mating to ‘The Silver Lambkin’ born June 1st 1899, came the male shown above, ‘Silver Monarch’. While ‘The Silver Lily’ shows all the highly desirable refinements of the newly emerging breed, with an especially clear-coated face, free of shading or barring, her younger brother ‘Silver Monarch’ bears a striking resemblance to their famous sire, displaying the more welldeveloped, fully rounded expression, you

would expect to find in a young.

From a second known litter born on 2nd April, 1900, sired by Mrs Bluhm’s ‘The Silver Sultan’, came two notable kittens, a male, named ‘Cairo Ramadan’ ¹⁰ (aka ‘Cairo Ramaden’), originally owned by Mrs Parker Brough, (and later by Miss E.Bonner)¹¹, and a female named ‘Ashbrittle San Toy’, owned by Mrs Clarke. Fortunately, we were able to trace images of both of these young cats.¹¹ (shown opposite). Also shown opposite is the sire of both these cats, Mrs. Bluhms, ‘The Silver Sultan’. The last litter of record, but by no means the least famous, is undated but could not have been born earlier than 1902 and probably not until 1903 or 1904. This was from a breeding to ‘The Silver Knight’, himself a son of ‘The Silver Sultan’ born 2nd May 1901. From this mating came ‘The Silver Lily Boy’ (date of birth also unknown), but whose own first recorded litters date from 1907. This valuable son of ‘The Silver Lily’ bears her famous name, and went on to sire ‘Silver Robin’ born 27th May 1908, who is found on a number of pedigrees dating from a later period.

Progeny of ‘The Silver Lily’, born 2nd April, 1900. Sired by ‘The Silver Sultan’ Above left: ‘Cairo Ramaden’ Photo: Cover pic from ‘Our Cats’ 14th February, 1903 ¹¹ Above right: ‘Ashbrittle San Toy’ Photo: Cover pic from ‘Our Cats’ 16 th May, 1903 ¹¹ Below: ‘The Silver Sultan’ – owned by Mrs. Bluhm, the sire of ‘Cairo Ramaden’ and ‘Ashbrittle San Toy’ © Images courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

‘The Daughters of The Squire’, noted half-siblings to ‘The Silver Lily’ through their common dam, ‘Dossie’ Colour image above: ‘Silver Lotus’ and ‘Silver Veronica’ from a F.Frith & Co.Ltd Postcard.⁹ Images courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

IN SUMMARY There can be no doubt, that ‘The Silver Lily’ was the daughter of the great ‘Ch. Silver Lambkin’ with the ‘wow’ factor, closely followed by ‘Silver Lotus’ (both out of ‘Dossie’. There can also be little doubt that it was seeing cats such as this that drove breeders to keep the dream of the Silver Persian alive, encouraging the many who shared in that dream, to strive even further.

In drawing our attention to the most famous progeny of ‘The Silver Lambkin’ Frances Simpson, in ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903) lists several notable males, but only the one notable female, Mrs Bluhms ‘The Silver Lily’. In addition, only a handful of females have been given the distinction of being accorded the title of ‘The’ before their name, to signify the wide popularity and respect that they have earned.

‘The Silver Lily’ Named, cropped Studio Photo: by W.Muntz, Southport. For Miss Simon ¹ © Image courtesy of The Harrison Weir Collection

In Chinchilla females, only two come immediately to mind, ‘The Seraph’ (born 1896) and ‘The Silver Lily’ (1897). The above photo shows ‘The Silver Lily as a well-bone, silver queen with a tipped/shaded coat, relatively clear of barring with sound eye colour of good intensity and clear, clean eye mascara. It is possibly one of the best and certainly the clearest, of any of the direct progeny of ‘The Silver Lambkin’. It contains an intangible quality, ‘a promise of things hoped for, but as yet unseen’.

John G. Smithson

References: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Studio Photograph by W. Muntz, Southport. ‘The National Cat Club Register’. Rotary Photographic Circle Plate Sunk Series Postcard. Rotary Photographic Series Postcard. Rotary Photographic Plate Sunk Series Postcard. Rapid Photo, ‘Classic Series’ Postcard. ‘The Book of The Cat’ (1903) by Frances Simpson. C.W.Faulkner Series Postcard. F.Frith & Co.Ltd Postcard. The Cat Club Register. ‘Our Cats’ Magazine 1903. ‘Our Cats’ Magazine, February 1900. Text © John G Smithson, 2014, 2018 and 2022. Photos and Quotations as per credits noted.

The Harrison Weir Collection

HARRISON WILLIAM WEIR (1824-1906) Carte de Viste photograph by Elliott & Fry c.1871, 55 Baker St, Portman Square, London. © The Harrison Weir Collection, 2022

The Harrison Weir Collection

Harrison Weir’s Letters PART ONE Abridged from notes for ‘The Poet of Nature’ – a biographical sketch of Harrison William Weir by John G. Smithson About 15 or more years ago, I made a conscious decision that it was high time that someone should compile a biographical sketch of Harrison William Weir; and as there did not appear to be anyone at that time who might be remotely interested in doing just that, I decided to volunteer for the job. Where researchers attempt to do such a thing, the first and best source of information is frankly to go the ‘horse’s mouth’ but as my candidate had died in 1906, the only option for source material, other than published commentaries or articles referencing his comments, would be his letters. This is a fairly normal remedy for anyone attempting a biography, but not all subjects are great letter writers, so it is necessary to also check out their acquaintances to see if anyone they knew well, had mentioned them in letters also. Cambridge University for instance, has accumulated the world‘s largest collection of correspondence from the world renown naturalist and pioneer of natural selection, Charles Darwin – and as well as a huge catalogue of his own letters, they have accumulated an impressive collection of letters written to the man by others. Amongst them, are numerous instances of letters

letters that passed between Harrison Weir’s older brother ‘Jenner’ and Charles Darwin, some of which mention Harrison on more than one occasion. How is that you may well ask? Well, Harrison’s brother John Jenner Weir, was an eminent amateur entymologist and a Fellow of the Zoological Society, and Charles Darwin therefore consulted him on matters relating to the behaviour of insects, observations on the relationships between Insects and plants, and similarly his wide knowledge in the field of ornithology, a common interest shared by both of the Weir brothers. In fact, when Charles Darwin decided that he needed to study and breed pigeons and learn of their hereditary traits, it was to Tegetmeier and the Weir brothers that he turned for advice. He even called on Harrison Weir, at his home ‘Weirleigh’ near Brenchley in Kent, primarily to view pigeons there and to buy stock from Harrison for his own burgeoning breeding program. But I digress. When I began looking for letters written by Harrison Weir, there were at the time very few available, but there were a handful and these I dutifully acquired. I also looked for books signed by him and to my delight discovered that he was in the habit of

The Harrison Weir Collection

A handwritten bill sent to the Proprietors of ‘The Field’ (circa 1870’s) – addressed to J. Beard Esq. It was attached inside a book he had illustrated entitled ‘FAVOURITE FABLES’ in Prose and Verse, published by Griffith and Farran, in 1870.

attaching personal letters to books he had either written, or compiled, or more commonly, had illustrated. In fact, in the beginning, with a few minor exceptions, many of the first letters I obtained were duly attached inside the cover pages of books he had gifted to their recipients in this manner. In a rarer example, given above, a book had been described as containing a letter to J. Beard, but when it arrived, although there was a note inscribed to J. Beard inside the cover as stated, when I turned over the page of

the attached note, overleaf was a handwritten bill to ‘The Field’ listing his charges for the production of not less than 12 drawings for that periodical, for a total of £21.0.0! Such finds are of historical significance as they provide an insight to his own pricing of his commissioned work, but to also over time, allowed the reader to see into his habits, to find revelations about his personal life, his health, and events that were either joyous or burdensome to him at various times throughout his long life.

The Harrison Weir Collection

A hurried note sent on a pre-paid postcard to R.I. Ellis Esq., who was a fellow horticulturalist on the day before the recipient was due to arrive at ‘Weirleigh’, Harrison’s country home in Kent, probably to luncheon there and to inspect Weir’s gardens and propagation of plants. Dated May 20, 1881.

Looking back, with the benefit of hindsight, the decision early on to seek out and acquire as much of Weir’s correspondence as I could possibly find proved to be a wise one. Not only because it opened up a wealth of information about his life that beforehand had remained relatively unknown, but because over time, as the collection grew, and pieces or fragments from his life became scarcer to find, I began to value even more, those pieces that I had been fortunate enough to stumble upon. This related not just to his letters, but also to jotted notes, some preparatory sketches or draughts for drawings or paintings, and even some doodling on end papers, and in one instance a doodle drawing he did while waiting at the bank to received back his deposit book!

For those of you who read the article that I wrote for last month’s issue entitled ‘The Billingsgate Poet’, you may recall how, after giving a presentation to the Lewes Historic Society in April of 2017, I was contacted by email from an attendee about a painting by Weir, executed in 1859, which I had hoped I might one day find, and indeed, did find due to this unexpected contact. That in turn resulted in a trip to Cambridgeshire to inspect the painting and to discover that with the painting came a letter from Weir himself to the original owner, describing in some detail how he came to produce the said painting. That letter as it happened, revealed much. No only his reasoning behind production of the painting, but reinforcing another key established

The Harrison Weir Collection friendship, but providing new light on a little known but nevertheless important second friendship with a young poet that he mentored and the later discovery that the said poet, had dedicated a published book of poems in his honour. I am somes asked whether some letters have revealed more significant information than others, and this next example is one for which the answer is both no, and yes! It is one thing to read someone else’s transcript of a letter, and quite something else, to see the original letter in the flesh and to hold in your hands so to speak, the evidence of the statements that were quoted second hand. Knowing as I do now, the extent to which Weir longed to improve the lot of animals, especially birds, including pigeons, but also cats, dogs, and horses, and that he strived to do so by teaching empathy for animal life through his art; the unexpected event which in this instance was the cause of this letter being written was just amazing. Further, that it survived and was reported word for word in the memoirs of Lady Dorothy Nevill (to whom it was addressed) is also nothing short of miraculous. When It was brought to my attention that it was for sale, I pounced on it. Its intrinsic value is that it opens the heart of a man who was immensely private, but who had a huge agenda which he wished to push in the public arena – but, he wished to do so in a way that was quiet, respectful, and educational to the younger generation. I can do no better than to reproduce a transcript of it here now, and opposite I show you the first page of the letter, which Lady Dorothy published in her ‘Reminiscences of Lady Dorothy Nevill’, in 1906, after his death.

9 Lyndhurst Road Peckham, S.E My dear Lady Dorothy Nevill Thank you for your letter. My daughter never looked in the pocket of the Portmanteau, she has now, and all is right, I am sorry to have troubled you. I am a little better, but still very unwell and weak. I hope Mr. Nevill continues to improve in health and that you are well. When I am well enough I shall look in for a chat. I must tell you of a little incident which occurred to me when returning to Kent from Dangstein. For years as I told you, people had told me of the good my work had done and was doing, but I never could learn it in any other way, excepting by the publisher being well satisfied, etc., etc., but the other day, when travelling, two gentlemen were talking in the compartment where I was sittng; one had “The Animal World”. Presently he said: “This is doing good, and more than the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.” “Well,” said the other, “I think the love of, and kindness to animals has much increased of late years, and I believe it is entirely due to one man, a man by the name of Harrison Weir, who has done it all by his pen and pencil.” “There I quite agree with you,” said the other, “It is wonderful the good this man has done,” etc., You may guess how I felt as I sat in my corner. I never, never felt so proud, and never, never so happy before. Do you know I thought I should cried I felt so full of joy, as it was such an uncalled-for confirmation of what I had worked for night and day for more than thirty years. But I am afraid my work in nearly ended (I hope not); I have only been able to work two days since I left you, and this is much pain and suffering.

The Harrison Weir Collection

Letter from Harrison Weir to Lady Dorothy Nevill – circa mid 1870’s Image © The Harrison Weir Collection

The Harrison Weir Collection In the early stages of a recovery, he was struck by a severe melancholy over the recent death of his eldest daughter, (Edith Cole), after a long and painful illness. Each letter reveals in it’s own way, another aspect of the great man’s personality and how he dealt with the seeds of misfortune, and yet rebounded with characteristic humour. In the letter opposite, written on Boxing Day, December 26th, 1893 to a near neighbour in Sevenoaks, he does what he is known to have done fairly often, add little humorous sketches to his correspondence. He is known to have done thi in his correspondence to Lady Dorothy Nevill and does so again in this one to Mrs Potter, the wife of a local Conservative Party man with whom Weir was very well acquainted.

Letter to Dr. Coffin, re his illness and death of his eldest daughter. Image © The Harrison Weir Collection

With sincere regards to yourself and Mr. Nevill, believe me, my dear Lady Dorothy Nevill. Your very truly Harrison Weir However, not all of his letters were about good news, some were quite the opposite. During his lifetime he outlived two wives and three of his four children. In the letter immediately above written to Dr. Coffin, January 23rd, circa 1889/1890 – he recounts a severe attack of influenza which had ‘crushed him greatly’, in so much as to render him useless in both mind and body. He then goes on to relate how, when

At the top he adds stick figures of two men boxing above the words ‘Boxing Day’. In the body of the letter he thanks her sending him a box of nuts, and relates that Mrs. Weir has been suffering from an attack of Asthsma. He finished the letter - ‘With all good wishes in the coming New Year – observe the new year is fat, the old year is worn out’ - providing a mirthful cartoon sketch representative of both. Such letters, when they are found are usually more expensive to purchase, due to the addition of the ‘art’. In our next edition, we will reveal more letters by Harrison Weir, including some which mention his works and his links to other wellknown events, such as early cat shows, and his artwork for some of his epic books. These all in their own way, reveal the character of the man whose mantra in life, was constantly the care for and welfare of all animal life.

The Harrison Weir Collection

Everything you need to know about Genetics… You can learn from your Cat! BY

DR. LESLIE LYONS

College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri

The ABC’s of CAT BLOODTYPE GENETICS Tale of the tails!

Most everyone is familiar with the concept of a blood type (a.k.a., blood group antigens). For humans, we are generally aware of two blood group systems, i.e., the ABO blood group and the rhesus blood group. Each blood group is caused by a different gene. The blood group genes produce proteins with attached sugars (a.k.a. antigens) that stick out of the surface of the red cell and these antigens are recognized by antibodies. Generally, a person does not have antibodies to their own antigens (autoantibodies) but we will produce antibodies against foreign antigens, called alloantibodies.

EDITOR: This is the Twenty-fourth article in a series based on feline genetics by Dr Leslie Lyons published in FELIS HISTORICA during the 2020/2022 period

Humans will develop alloantibodies (become sensitized) if they have a transfusion with a different blood type from their own, or if not matched properly for an organ transplantation or commonly with pregnancies. Humans have eight common blood types from these two blood group systems: A positive, A negative, B positive, B negative, AB positive, AB negative, O positive and O negative. The positive and negative refers to your Rh type (rhesus blood group). Individuals who are O negative are termed universal donors as they do not have either any A, B or Rh antigens on their red cells thus their blood can be donated to most anyone. Type O people have antibodies to Type A and Type B in their plasma. In addition to ABO and Rh, humans have 34 other recognized blood group systems.1 Cattle, horses, and dogs also have a variety of recognized blood group systems.2 As we all know, cats are different for many things, including their blood type. Cats have only one major blood type, known as the AB blood group.3

‘KIKU’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

However, this blood group is not the same as the human ABO blood group as the cat red cell surface antigens are caused by a different gene, known as CMAH (cytidine monophospho-Nacetylneuraminic acid hydroxylase).4 Humans do not have CMAH in their genome, only a remnant, which is known as a pseudo-gene.5 Cytidine monophospho-Nacetylneuraminic acid hydroxylase (CMAH) is an enzyme that converts N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) to Nglycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc), which are the red cell antigens for the cat.6 College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri

Cats with the Neu5Ac antigen on their red cells are known as Type B, while cats with Neu5Gc antigen presenting on the membranes of their red cells are Type A.7 When CMAH is functioning normally, cats are Type A. DNA variants within CMAH can cause the enzyme to not function, hence, a cat would be Type B if the CMAH enzyme is not functioning.

‘KIKU’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

The alleles for enzymes are generally recessive as both copies of the gene, maternal and paternal, need to be disrupted to reduce enzymatic activity low enough to not produce any gene product.

EDITOR: This is the Twenty-fourth article in a series based on feline genetics by Dr Leslie Lyons published in FELIS HISTORICA during the 2020/2022 period

Thus, cat Type B blood is recessive to Type A blood. Two DNA variants that disrupt the enzyme function must be present to not convert Neu5Ac (Type B antigen) to the Neu5Gc (Type A antigen). Cats can be Type A while carrying Type B, known as type Ab (not Type AB – see below), since the B blood type is recessive. Even when only one copy of the DNA variant is present that disrupts the enzyme, enough enzyme is present from the working allele to convert all the red cell surface sugars to the Type A form (Neu5Gc). Cats are also interesting since, usually, an individual needs to be exposed to a foreign blood group (become sensitized), like a blood transfusion, in order to make antibodies to the foreign antigen, which then they always have in their body.

‘KIKU’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri

Then, with subsequent exposures to the foreign antigen occur, such as a second transfusion or a second baby with a different blood type, the antibodies will attack the foreign blood type and cause break down of the red cells, leading to anemia and other blood flow complications. .

For mostly unknown reasons, cats already have naturallyoccurring alloantibodies to the alternative blood group, they don’t need be sensitized via a transfusion or by having a litter of kittens with a different blood type to prime their immune response to foreign antigens. Cats can have a severe reaction during the first blood transfusion! Cats with transfusion reactions can have severe shock reactions including marked hypotension, cessation of respiration and sometimes atrio-ventricular blocks, within two minutes of the injection of incompatible cells!8 A significant concern for cat breeders is blood type incompatibilities that can cause neonatal isoerythrolysis (NI).9 Neonatal isoerythrolysis, also known as hemolytic icterus or hemolytic anemia in animals and erythroblastosis fetalis or Rh disease, in humans. Because the placenta is different in humans versus cats, human antibodies can cross the placenta during pregnancies and Rh disease can affect the developing fetus. NI in cats becomes a problem after the delivery of the kittens and once the kittens begin to nurse.10,11 In cats, the antibodies from the queen are absorbed by the kitten via nursing the colostrum (first milk) and the antibodies then can pass through the newborn kitten’s gut, into the blood stream, and cause red cell breakdown (hemolysis).12 Colostrum is high in protein, vitamins, minerals and immunoglobulins (antibodies). The queen’s later milk always has some antibodies but much lower levels than colostrum, which is produced only for a few days. In addition, the kitten’s gut changes after a few days and the mature antibodies from the queen can no longer pass into the blood stream of the kitten.13

EDITOR: This is the Twenty-fourth article in a series based on feline genetics by Dr Leslie Lyons published in FELIS HISTORICA during the 2020/2022 period

Withholding colostrum is a significant problem as if a breeder does not allow the kitten to receive maternal antibodies via the colostrum, where many of the antibodies that fight off other infections are also present, these kittens may be more susceptible to infectious diseases until their own immune system develops.9-14 NI symptoms include lethargy, weakness, depression, pale mucus membranes, fever, and blood in the urine. Low oxygen due to the loss of red cell may lead to forebrain disease, increased heart rate and respiratory rate, and liver or kidney disease.9-13 Often, kittens may lose an ear tip, a tail tip, or even a toe because of poor blood supply due to the breakdown of the red cells.15

‘KIKU’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

NI most commonly occurs in kittens with type A blood born to queens with type B blood since type B cats (the queen) form very strong anti-type A antibodies. The condition is less common (and less severe) in type B kittens born to type A mothers as the antibodies are not as reactive, perhaps because a kitten needs to have the type B antigen (Neu5Ac) before the antigen is converted to the type A antigen (Neu5Gc) by CMAH. A rare Type AB blood type has also been noted.16 The cats are not type A carrying type B but cats that have both type A and type B antigens on their red cells. Type AB is considered a third allele for the AB blood group, allele C. These cats are very rare, less than 1% in most studies, however the ragdoll breed has a higher frequency of type AB cats. Since cats with Type AB do not have antibodies to either Type A or Type B antigens, NI is not a major concern for queens or kittens with the Type AB blood type and these cats could be considered universal donors! The prevalence of these blood types varies among breeds and geographic locations, with type A generally being the most common. For cats in New Zealand, 79 – 89.1% are type A, 10.3 20% type B, and < 1%) type AB. Thus ~18.3 - 31.9% of random blood transfusions are estimated to be at risk for transfusion reactions, and neonatal isoerythrolysis is a risk in 9.2 - 16.1% of random matings between non-pedigree cats.17 In the Sydney area of Australia, the prevalence of type-A, type-B and type-AB blood types in random bred cats is 62%, 36% and 1.6%, respectively, which is a very high rate of type B cats.18

EDITOR: This is the Twenty-fourth article in a series based on feline genetics by Dr Leslie Lyons published in FELIS HISTORICA during the 2020/2022 period

Random bred cats in Turkey have a very high rate of type B (in some areas type B is more common than type A), as well as the Turkish Van and Turkish Angora breeds originating from Turkey.19,20 Other breeds with high rates of type B cats (20 – 45%), include, Exotic, British Shorthair Cats, Cornish Rex, and Devon Rex. Breeds with moderate levels of type B (11 - 20%) include Abyssinian, Birman, Persian, Somali, Sphinx, Scottish fold and low levels of type B (1 – 10%) include Maine Coon and the Norwegian forest breeds. Historically, breeds with no type B cats have included Siamese and related breeds, Burmese, Tonkinese and Russian blue.21 Japanese bobtails also a breed known to have a high frequency of type B blood. However, new estimates of blood types may now be available since DNA testing for the AB blood group is possible for cats.

‘KIKU’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

Our laboratory identified the major cause of type B cats with the discovery of DNA variants with the CMAH gene.4 Since that time, several studies have focused on CMAH to find additional variants, which are less common and or specific to breeds and populations of random bred cats and to rule out causal variants with additional blood typing results.22-27 These variants include a c.364C>T variant highly associated with blood type AB in Ragdoll cats, but not all type AB cats.22 Overall, at least six or more variants need to be genotyped to accurately define the AB blood group for cats. Like other species, cats will likely have minor blood types that are rare and may need to be monitored as their identity are determined. In 2007, a novel feline RBC antigen named Mik was recognized in a group of domestic cats and appeared to be common with only 4 Mik-negative cats identified among 66 type A cats.28 Some Mik-negative cats presented naturally-occurring antibodies against Mik that could mediate a clinically relevant transfusion reaction despite blood donor and recipient being AB-matched.29 Several other blood crossmatch studies documented the presence of naturally-occurring antibodies outside the AB system with 0% - 29% of transfusion-naive cats showing at least one non-AB related incompatibility. Thus, crossmatching still needs to be considered with for blood transfusions within cats but the effect on NI is yet unknown! Overall, genotyping of the CMAH DNA variants can help predict the type A, B and AB cats and should be considered by breeders to help avoid NI in their kittens. EDITOR: This is the Twenty-fourth article in a series based on feline genetics by Dr Leslie Lyons published in FELIS HISTORICA during the 2020/2022 period

Breeders need to identify commercial services that test all know variants in CMAH for cat blood type, which is at least 6 or more variants. Since type B has a high frequency in the natural, random bred cat population of the Near east, such as Turkey, perhaps type B cats have an advantage of some kind “in the wild”. Breeders also know how to manage kittens at risk for NI, thus, blood group variants really do not have to be eliminated from a breed, but closely monitored as perhaps type B cats could have an advantage from viral, bacteria or parasitic infections.

‘FUJI’ Photo: Helmi Flick Cat Photography

References

College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri

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GALLERY OF ‘JAPANESE BOBTAILS’ INTRODUCTION TO A GALLERY OF JAPANESE BOBTAIL CATS Japanese Bobtail cats are in fact, one of the minority breeds of the Cat Fancy, but are also one of ancient origin. They hold a peculiar charm, and their sweet expressions and feline antics are unique. Their tails are also unique, and they are both lithe, and athletic, and yet graceful,- whilst possessing exceptional personalities. We wish to thank the breeders who have provided their own photographs, and give a special acknowledgement to the Helmi Flick Cat Photography team, and to photographers Chanan, and Marika Lahti, for their contributions to this gallery. Some of the cats are named, but some may not be named, or may be only identified by their pet names, where provided, but in all cases the photographers whose work they represent, are duly acknowledged.