The American Curl is a rare breed, born in America, in the Ruga family. Georgette send us her point of vue about the breeding of this tremendous Cat.There is nothing like the knowledge of specialised breeders when you deal with a rare breed. Georgette sent us a few precisions on the American Curl, which we are now publishing.
Here are a few precisions about the wonderful story of Salumith's adoption by the Ruga family. It was Grace who first saw the two kittens and gave them food. Joe was more than reluctant. Panda did not disappear; she died three days after, when a door knocked her on the face. Meanwhile, Shu took care of his sister and only settled at the Rugas after her death. By this time, Shulamith had become Joe's cat, and the day she met her first tomcat, she did not let him mate with her until she had introduced him to Joe. Once Joe had patted him, and consequently accepted him, she let herself be mated in the middle of the small street where the Rugas lived. Their neighbours, who were coming back from work, had to wait for the cats to have finished their love plays before being able to park their car.
An AMERICAN CURL (Shulamith) was exhibited for the first time in 1983 in Palm Springs. The judged came to have a look at Shu ands her progeny, and they made fun of them and their owners, adding: "those funny cats had no future in the world of cat fancy."
It is better to avoid the word "fold" when describing the ears. A regular arc shows no fold. This word is rather used in the Scottish Folds. It is even a fault with the American Curls. The definition of the degrees is such: 1st degree: 1°-44°, 2nd degree: 45°-89°, 3rd degree: 90°-180°.
Not only are the Straight ears American Curls useful, they are also necessary in any serious breeding program, as by "thickening" the cartilage of the ears with many generations of crossings Curl x Curl, the size of the ears and of the auditory canal often decrease. The Straight Ears allow us to maintain a good size of the ears.
From the morphological point of view, the standard was written after Shulamith, small female weighing 2,2 kilos. The judges who handled and judged her described her as a cat of the " Turkish Angora kind". This cat has other specificities than its ears. The body must be long and thin (once and a half time longer than tall, and not from one to once and a half time, as written in the LOOF's standard,) with a tail in proportion with the body. Its legs are thin, but muscled, with round paws. The standard deals a lot with balance and proportion; Most of the breeders agree that the American Curl's head should be once and a half time longer than large; the muzzle must be straight with "a change of direction" beginning under the eyes, and going back up to the forehead. The American Curl's coat must be silky, with no undercoat, short or semi-long. In the case of a semi-long haired cat, the tail must be well furnished, with hairs twice as long as those of the body. Unfortunately, the AMERICAN CURL has suffered a lot from regional influences, and American breeders now talk about a "French Curl", as the French representatives of the breed really do not have much in common with their American counterparts, i.e. a little, elegant cat.
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