Cat Ultra-Typing - A Breed Too Far?

The December 11 edition of the British "Sunday Express" newspaper printed the following:

Judges at the 1994 National Cat Show at Olympia were so concerned by the increase in breeding extremely freakish cats that they voted to ban the Over-Typed Persian from competing.

Other previously banned mutant breeds include the Rag Doll, which is so flaccid and passive as a sofa cushion that it cannot protect itself at all; the American Munchkin, which has legs so short it can barely walk, the Peke-faced Persian, whose face is so flat that its eyes and sinuses are deformed and it has to be on antibiotics for life, the Scottish Fold and the American Curl, which have deformed ears, often accompanied by deformed skulls and joints, and the Sphynx which is virtually hairless and so very vulnerable to cold.

All these breeds were developed by intensive inbreeding (offspring back to mother) of spontaneous mutants which once would have been humanely put down at birth but have been propagated in response to a fashion in recent years for extremely bizarre pets.

"It's a perversion we view with abhorrence" say the RSPCA, and even the Cat Fancy admits that "The whole idea that you can create breeds of cats like a fashion designer designs clothes is terribly cruel". Which is better late than never, considering that one breeder at the 1994 show claimed that "90 per cent of Persians, whether they're ultras or not, have blocked tear ducts." The RSPCA are also concerned at a new breed, the Bengal, which is a cross between a wild cat and a domestic, and could be dangerous, especially to children."

The account was alarmist and contained a number of inaccuracies and misconceptions about the breeds themselves, but it reflected the concerns over ultra-typing and concerns about 'novelty breeds' where the cats' health could be compromised.

(Continued on next page)