CFA-show
CFA International Cat Show November 2006
Held in the San Mateo Expo Centre
The International Cat Show is celebrating its 100th year with more than 850 cats representing 41 breeds.
As I walked into the Expo building one of the first cats I saw was ‘Woody”, the 2005-2006, 2nd Best Cat in Championship for the National Awards Twenty-five Best Cats, on display with the Royal Canin stand.
Better known as GC, BW, NW DotDotDot’s Stradivarious, chocolate spotted male Ocicat owned by Nancy and Roger Brown. ‘NW’ stands for National Winner.
This is me standing with Roger Brown and Woody at the Royal Canin stand
A professional photo of Woody.
Woody has done a lot for the exposure of the Ocicat. There is now more recognition of the Ocicat. CFA in America does not recognise the Bengal, (TICA does recognise the Bengal and is an organisation that takes on new breeds.)
The Ocicat does not have to compete against the Bengal at CFA shows, yet.
For more information on how the show works, please visit the CFA site:
The owners had the most amazingly comfortable “cages” for their cats. I was so impressed with The owners had the most the cages that I bought one for myself. I’ll show it off at the next cat show and we’ll see what everyone thinks of it.
The cats were arranged in alphabetically order. Starting at the Abyssinians and finishing with the Turkish Vans.
The rings, all 12 of them, were arranged in the centre of the hall and the owners brought the cat to the ring for judging when they were summoned via P.A or from the overhead screen indicting their number.
Note the lady behind cage 177; she is placing her cat into the cage for judging. The cage can be opened from both behind and in front.
The judge collects the cat herself and presents it to the bench. When the judge has finished this section, he/she will award the cages with their ribbons. Note the blue, red and yellow ribbons attached to cages.
When this ring is complete the owners collect their cats and ribbons from behind and return them to their home cages. A steward will spray and clean each cage before the next cats arrives. You can imagine the number of people walking around with their cats hanging over their shoulder as they travel from ring to cage. It does seem a very efficient process.
You will notice that the judging is also done alphabetically. The Abys are with the American shorthairs and the Oci’s with the Orientals. The Abys are judged against each other, but the judge will also take note of one breed against another breed for future references. I don’t know how the judges remember it all!
This lady, Joan Millar, was the breed showcase presenter. She had a display of various cat breeds which she presented with a very informative commentary on the breed
This is an American Curl. Originated in 1981 when a spontaneous genetic mutation produced the breeds’ signature backward-curling ears.
The trade was very impressive; I went crazy with the credit card. So much cat stuff, I just couldn’t resist!
And, of course, a Christmas theme for the season. The trades also had many great products on display. Lots of new products from cat litter to herbal therapy.
Now some pictures of Ocicats:
This is Eddie,above.
Elizabeth Hodgkin with her Ocicat.
This is Justin from Sunstone Cattery.
Unfortunately the judges do not say much, they save the commentary for the finals. I was told they never give constructive criticism, which the breeders find disappointing. They only say nice things about the cats that have made the finals. Apparently it is a little difficult to even speak to the judges after the showing. This is definitely a plus for our showing. Although our judges are subjective, they do give a good advice if wanted, (my experience anyway).
The show also has a Feline Agility Competition. The cats race their way through an obstacle course of stairs, hoops, jumps and tunnels. Very amusing, especially for the cats!
Sue Riley putting Kathy Gumm’s Merritage through the hoops! Only when he is ready, of course.
There is a lot I don’t understand about how the show works. I was only there for Friday, so I only got a glimpse of the procedures. But it was very enjoyable and the people are very friendly.
Some pictures of Abys for Jody and anyone interested. The day I was at the show was Friday and Day 1 of 3. It was also a main presentation of kittens although many of the other adult cats were present. There were a lot of abys, they are still very popular.
A beautiful red aby kitten
A blue aby kitten. They come in blue??
A fawn aby kitten
‘An American Bob-tail is a short tailed cat. Medium-to-large frame. This is a breed development through natural selection, a completely domestic cat with no wild strains. Affectionate and gentle.’