breed standard – Page 2

Chausie breed standard – concise and illustrated

September 16, 2023 by Michael Broad

The Chausie Breed Standard should be seen with the best pictures of the best cats followed by a commentary on the TICA (The International Cat Association) standard (the CFA does not recognize this breed) which is what I have done here. All the photos are by Helmi Flick. The Chausie is a wild cat …

‘Modified wedge’ terminology used in the cat fancy (infographic)

September 13, 2023 by Michael Broad

NFC (Norwegian Forest Cat) head is an equilateral triangle

This is an infographic on the well-used cat fancy phrase ‘modified wedge’. It is used all the time in cat association breed standards. I see it used a lot in the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) breed standards and I’ve extracted some examples for the infographic below. The cat fancy administrators were drawn into using the phrase ‘modified wedge’ because they had to find a way to describe the head and face shape of their registered cats. Fundamentally, the wedge shape fits the feline head shape but only in a very general way which is why it is ‘modified’!

Modified wedge terminology used in the cat fancy breed standards explained in an infographic.

Infographic on extreme Maine Coon muzzle versus Grand Champion muzzle

December 27, 2022December 27, 2022 by Michael Broad

Maine Coon muzzle in relation to CFA breed standard

The Maine Coon muzzle is a part of this cat breed’s anatomy which cuts it out from the pack of other cat breeds and tells us that we are looking at a Maine Coon. There are other appearance features which achieve this including the overall size, the lynx-tipped ears, the shaggy, medium-longhaired coat and …

Ragdoll appearance – summarized in words and image

May 26, 2022May 26, 2022 by Michael Broad

The Ragdoll appearance is presented in a heavily summarized CFA standard. The photo is strictly copyright Helmi Flick – text Michael @PoC. The cat is BLOSSOM LOVE STRUCK BABY SAGE. This page is designed for people in a hurry and who want to skim the basic information about the appearance of this cat breed. …

Norwegian Forest Cat’s head should be an equilateral triangle (cf. Maine Coon)

March 25, 2022November 16, 2021 by Michael Broad

According to the Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) breed standard for the Norwegian Forest Cat (NFC) the head shape should be an ‘equilateral triangle’ “where all sides are of equal length as measured from the outside of the base of the ear to the point of the chin. The neck is short and heavily muscled.” …

What does breeding true mean?

May 5, 2021 by Michael Broad

“Breeding true” means that the offspring look like their parents. It is achieved by “line breeding” which is a form of inbreeding which ideally does not transfer undesirable traits together with those traits that the breeder wants such as the correct phenotype (appearance as per the breed standard). It is a fine balance being …

Hypocritical Cat Fanciers’ Association’s utterly confused breed standards

April 10, 2021 by Michael Broad

Tear duct overflow due to a deformed drainage system in a flat-faced Persian who also seems to be suffering from a deformed mouth due to the same reason: extreme breeding

I don’t want to criticise the almighty Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA), probably the most influential cat association on the planet but…they are hypocritical in a very fundamental way. It has to be stated until they do something about it. Yes, I am addressing that thorn in the flesh, long-term problem: the runny eyes, tear …

Picture of a blue Abyssinian cat discussed

March 12, 2021 by Michael Broad

The slender athletic Abyssinian in the picture on the left of the montage below is blue and the image cat caught my eye. It is the same cat on the right, I believe. She is very elegant. Perhaps the cat is too slender for a typical Abyssinian? Perhaps this is because she is not …

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