We Adopted This Cat
by Kristi
(Parma Heights, Ohio)
My Norwegian Forest Cat ?
I am still trying to get to the bottom of weather he's a Norwegian Forrest Cat because we adopted him from a animal shelter that had no information on him because he was brought in after his owner died. The more information I read about them and the more pictures I see really lead me to believe he is. I'd love him just as much if he wasn't but I'm curious. He has a double coat that feels like silk or cotton. He's the grey and white cat in the picture. Opinions?....
Hi Kristi: Thanks for sharing. I think that you will agree that he looks very much like a Norwegian Forest Cat. The general conformation is correct to me and the face is right too. Also his coloring and pattern (a tabby and white) is spot on, isn't it? This is a popular color pattern for NFCs. I think the NFC has a very particular face. It is less square than the similar looking Maine Coon, for example and I am not talking cat fancy language.
At the least he is probably a Norwegian Forest Cat "mix". There are, it seems, lots of "purebred mix" cat at rescue homes. When I search for purebred rescue cats and they come up through Petfinder.com I discover that they are say, "Maine Coon Mix" or "Norwegian Forest Cat Mix". That sort of thing.
As you probably realize, you'll need a pedigree to establish whether he is a purebred cat or not. That means 3 years of lineage mapped out. If he is purebred he should be on a database at a cat association and it is possible (although not probable) that the person who previously lived with him was involved in the cat fancy. Although a long shot, if you could find out the name of this person (you might know it already) you might find a connection with the cat fancy and thence to the name of your fine cat; he may have a cat fancy name (a show cat name). You will then be able to research the pedigree.
With a show cat's full name a Google search sometimes brings up the required information because breeders present pictures of their cats on their websites together with their full names. He may be a retired show cat. This is one possibility. He looks handsome enough. He has very nice symmetrical markings. He's a bit of a star isn't he!
