The Exotic Shorthair - Kyina & Talisker Cats Breeders of Russian ...

THE EXOTIC SHORTHAIRRosemonde S. Peltz and Joan S. UzeeTHE BEGINNINGS: CAUSE AND EFFECTApparently there is great pleasure in maintaining an aura of mysteryaround the beginnings of a breed. How ironic it is that a breedwith the fanciful name of Exotic Shorthair was created to turn sinnersinto saints and to provide baptism for the ill-begotten. Perhapsin years hence the beginnings of this breed will have its own legend;but for now the record should be kept straight.The background of the Exotic Shorthairbegins in England and concerns not onlythe British Shorthair there, but also thesilver shorthairs in this country. It hadbeen a common practice in England tocross Persian with domestic cats to producea cat of Persian type with a short,thick, dense coat. The cats in Englandwere of many colors, but the primarycross that occurred in the United Statesinvolved silver and the silver tabby patitishBlue. Cream Pensylva tern. The color silver, which results fromSt3:tip of Heritage (Imp.) Br. the chinchilla alleles reducing yellowJ. Richards, Ow. D. Hansen &melanin faster than black, occurred firstR. Peitz.as a mutation in the Persian cat. Therefore,most, if not all, silver shorthairs have resulted from a transferof silver from longhair to shorthair. It is conceivable, of course, thatchinchilla occurred as a separate mutation later in shorthairs, butthis would be extremely difficult either to prove or disapprove andis extremely unlikely.Year Book, 1972 403

The practice of crossing Persian to Domestic Shorthair was quiteprevalent in the 1950's and continues to this day. At that time, theDomestic Shorthair, later called American Shorthair, was neither ashorthair nor did it resemble the hardcoated, sleek, hearthside cat of our homes.The naivete of novice as well as experiencedbreeder was taxed considerably forthese very beautiful cats received greatacclaim in the show ring as AmericanShorthairs. As in the Emperors NewClothes, judges, breeders and the fancyturned blind eyes toward these cats andeither refused to see or could not admitwhat they truly saw. The questioningsPensylva full face; showing shortmuzzle and blaze.and murmurings of the unindoctrinatedwere muffled for a time. There were those,who at the beginning, thought that thesecats were, indeed, true American Shorthairs fancified to exceptionalbeauty. Yet those breeders, who could in no way reconcile what theysaw with what they believed to be true, began seeking answers. Becauseof their integrity, certain breeders frankly admitted the practiceof hybridizing. Much credit is due them for the amazing catsthey produced. It is a difficult feat in the Persian-American Shorthaircross to achieve proper coat and tabby pattern in the same cat.Interestingly enough, other breeders were unaware of the heritage oftheir cats. They accepted pedigrees at face value and felt that silverwas a natural shorthair color. The practice of crossing Persian toshorthair continued and was soon to become legitimate.In 1966 Mrs. Jane Martinke suggested a program for hybrid recognition,one part of which provided a place for chinchilla and shadedsilver American Shorthairs. This new "breed" was to be called SterlingShorthairs. (1) In spite of the honorable intentions of this programGrayfire's Cheyenne — Owner: Doris Walkingstick404 C.F.A.

to set things straight, it was not met with unbridled enthusiasm.Why should breeders of these cats suddenly transfer them to a hybridclass ? For years the judges had obviously sanctioned their catsas American Shorthairs.The matter was pursued by Mrs. Martinke, and in September, 1966,through Mrs. Jean Rose, she suggested that "a hybrid class for Domesticsof mixed Persian and American Shorthair parentage" beestablished to be called "Exotic Shorthairs". A new standard basedon the Persian Standard was to be written for Exotic Shorthairs,and they were to be given Championship classification. The ExoticShorthair breed thus came into being., 2 , Although the minutes ofthat CFA Board meeting reflect that the class was designated forPersian-American Shorthair crosses, it was later more broadly interpretedto include all shorthairs. A standard was established which,for all practical purposes, described a shorthaired Persian. Onestriking difference was the absence of a nosebreak in the ExoticShorthair. This was done in an effort to avoid difficulties with noseand mouth malformations that have occurred in some overly typedPersians.After the standard was accepted, those breeders who wished totransfer their American Shorthairs of the "exotic" type to the newbreed were given the opportunity. The numbers doing so were notoverwhelming.Much credit is due Jane Martinke for envisioning and championingthe program. For with the recognition of the Exotic Shorthair, twosignificant events occurred. The first of these was the founding ofan honest place in the show ring for a breed that ultimately will bethe ideal one in the fancy. Second, and equally important, the trueAmerican Shorthair once again could be judged properly by its correctstandard.With the 1967-1968 show season the new breed was placed in competition.As this is being written, the Exotic Shorthair has a history offive years in the show ring, and approximately 350 cats have beenregistered. For a breed so new, acceptance by most of the judges andthe fancy has been an unusual if not an extraordinary accomplishment.What has been most exciting to breeders is the acclaim of thepublic. These cats are striking in appearance, and they attract agreat deal of attention from cat lovers who are more interested in asweet faced, beautiful cat than its pedigree.Aby — SH Silver Cross, 8 weeks old. (Stripes fade with age.)Year Book, 1972 405

THE IDEAL EXOTICThe Exotic Shorthair is around, sturdy cat that comesequipped with all of the architectureof the Persian, butwith none of the entanglementsof a long coat. It is avery practical cat; an idealone for those who do not relishthe grooming tasks of thePersian breeder.The overall appearance ofthe show quality ExoticShorthair should resemble asquare, but with roundedHeatherwood's Happy Day. B-0: Dr. Peltz.edges, for a soft effect. More thananything else, it is an attractive catwith a sweet expression. The head,like that of the Persian, is large,broad and round, with full cheeks.The nose is short and wide, but withouta break. The eyes, full of expression,are big, round and should be asdeep and clear as possible. The earsare small, rounded at the tip, and nottoo open at the base. They are setwide on the head, with a forward tilt.Ch. Gay-0 Naughty Lass of Hi Camp —Kay Campbell.The neck is short and thick, and blends into the broad chest andshort straight back. The legs are short, wide and heavy boned. Forelegsshould be perfectly straight. Thetail is short, broad from base to tip,with no tapering, and never fluffy.The Exotic chest is broad and deep,fronting a body that is solid and compact.When lifted, the cat shouldcome up in one piece—not in sectionslike a string of railroad cars. Eachpart (i.e. legs, tail, head, etc.) shouldbe in proportion to the whole, givingthe impression of total balance. Thechin is firm and in line with the upperjaw. It is never undercut or shallow.Many people become totally confusedover the coat of the Exotic.Heatherwoods Jasmin. B. 0. Dr. Peitz. The standard, quite definitely, calls406C.P.A.

Gr. Ch. Dacia Dao's Patricia. Owner: Mr.& Mrs. Don Yoder.for a short coat, however, in this casethe coat is longer than that of mostshorthairs. It is a thick, plush coat ofclosely set hair which lies flat, butbecause of its density at the base,has a tendency to puff out a bit, givingthe cat a sort of chubby appearance.Most importantly the coatshould have a very soft, cottony feeling.The texture of the hair is totallydifferent from the hard coat of theAmerican, and has none of the glassyslickness of the Siamese. In short, itis the Persian undercoat, consistingmainly of awn, awn down and downhairs.Finally, although the Exotic isprobably the easiest cat to groomand maintain, even the finest show animal will immediately reflectany neglect on the part of the owner. In order for the coat and eyesto appear shiny and bright the cat must be in excellent health. Poorcare will not only dull the appearance of any animal, it also contributesmuch to ruin the generally happy personality of the breed.BREEDING EXOTICSAlthough it may not be apparent at first, the Exotic is not a catfor the novice or dilettante. The breeder who feels that the shortroad to fame in the cat fancy is to be traveled with the Exotic is duefor a few surprises.The cat fancier interested in any breed contends with type, coat,color and health. The exotic breeder must deal with each of thesefactors, not just in one breed but rather in three. In other words, theproblems are tripled for the Exotic Shorthair breeder. Each breedcoming together to produce the third must be considered. The breedermust know in advance or at least have a fair notion, of not only whateach breed has to offer, but how the two breeds will interact to producethe third. It would seem obvious that the shorthair breed whichis most like the Persian in type would prove to be a better selectionthan one of the elongated body types.Consider then what each shorthair breed has to offer with aPersian cross.Abyssinian To some extent the ticking of the Aby coat can bean asset in working with silvers. The authors feel that the Abycrosses produce an almost stereotyped pencilling on the head andcoat. The resultant cross is also higher on its legs and finer bonedthan the Exotic requires. The coat of the Abyssinian is hard andspringy, and this too must be considered in using this shorthairedbreed.Year Book, 1972 407

Burmese The Burm has been used successfully in producing goodExotic Shorthairs. Again the breeder must select a very typy Burmeseto produce the best Exotic Shorthair. Although sable brown ofthe Burmese is recessive, inbreeding will produce colors that, atpresent, are not allowed for showing.American Shorthair This breed is an ideal cross not only in type,but it offers also a tremendous variety of coat colors and patterns.To be considered is the fact that many present day Americans havePersian behind them ; and if the breeder is unaware, he or she will pesurprised to find a large number of longhaired kits showing up inlitters that should contain only shorthairs.Manx The Manx is mentioned merely for the purpose of deploringsuch a cross. This breed has absolutely nothing to contribute to theExotic Shorthair.Rex The Rex has nothing to offer to the Exotic Shorthair.Korat This breed will prove interesting to cross to the blue orcream Persian and should be explored not only for color but for coatquality.Siamese The Siamese can offer color but little else to the ExoticShorthair.Perhaps the brief resume of some of the possible crosses to thePersian will afford the potential Exotic Shorthair breeder a glimpseof the not so insignificant problems he can expect.What is to be stressed, is that if the breed is to continue to bevaluable to the fancy, it must not be a stock pile of mismatings, ahodgepodge of trial and error breedings. Type must be emphasizedabove all else; color will come. If type is stressed, line breeding mustoccur and with it will come a number of longhaired kittens. Thesewill be the "no where" by-products of hybridization for which thebreeder must find homes. This is a serious problem, and the breedermust find a happy solution.Already there is a tendency to cross Exotic to Exotic, and oneGrayfire Cree 8 Kitten. Owner: Doris Walkingstick408 C.F.A.

cannot help but wonder if this is happening too soon. The question is,should it ever happen? The breed was envisioned as a hybrid offeringan ideal cat and should remain so.CATTERIES AND BREEDERSSince the history of the Exotic is short, at this point in time thenumbers of breeders are limited. Heatherwood cattery registered in1960 has used Aberdeen stock in crossing silver tabby AmericanShorthairs to Kohinoor and Delphi Persian stock of Carnival cattery.The first litter was born in 1970. The Don Yoders of Texas establishedDocia-Dao cattery in 1962 and in recent years have exhibited somefine Exotics. In 1967 Doris Walkingstick of Oklahoma registeredGrayf ire cattery. Joan Uzee of Atlanta, Georgia registered Carnivalcattery in 1968, the same year that Mal and Kay Campbell of Redmond,Washington registered Hi-Camp. Mrs. Campbell acquired acomplete cattery of Shaded Silver American Shorthairs, and was oneof the first breeders to publicly acknowledge that she had transferredall of her Shaded Silver Americans to the Exotic breed. In 1969Leprechaun cattery was registered by Nancy and Robert Lane ofDelaware, and in the same year John and Mary Martin registeredJo-Mar. In 1972 the authors registered The Saints cattery in orderto work more closely with silver Exotic Shorthairs.The Exotic Shorthair Fanciers, the first breed club, was begun byNancy and Robert Lane in 1969. The membership list continues togrow.THE' CATS THEMSELVESIn spite of the fact that the Exotic Shorthair history is a limitedone, some very fine cats have been bred.Kay Campbell's cat Silver Secret of Gay-O, although a GrandChampion Domestic Shorthair in another association was, started asa novice Exotic Shorthair in CFA and was the first Exotic ShorthairGrand Champion and was CFA National Award Exotic in 1971. FortunatelySecret sired many fine kittens before his recent death. Inaddition Mrs. Campbell has two excellent females Gay-0 Silver Lullabyof Hi-Camp and her litter sister Lassie.Nancy and Robert Lane's Gr. Ch. Leprechaun's Texas Tea, an extraordinaryblack male, went from novice to grand champion in threeshows at the age of ten months ; and hasconsistently been in the top five cats.Gr. Ch. Grayfire's Cheyenne is the sparklingchinchilla exotic bred by the Walkingstick'sof Oklahoma. Cheyenne placed highin the regional awards of his area andachieved grand championship status in twoshows. Litter sister and son Pow Wow arealso grands.John and Mary Martin acquired Leprechaun'sTornado, litter brother of Texas Tea,and have shown this fine black male quitesuccessfully.Gay-0 Si'ver Lu!laby of Hi Campand Lassie. Owner: Kay Camptell.Dao's Patricia, a very lovelyThe Yoders have produced Gr. Ch. Dociacopper-eyedYear Book, 1972 409

white Exotic.Thus far, Joan Uzee and RosemondePeltz have bred seven shaded silversand Dr. Peltz has one shell cameomale. Ch. Heatherwood's Hasty Pudding,Ch. Heatherwood's Hi Hope andCh. Heatherwood's Happy Day havebeen shown only once or twice andhave done well. Heatherwood's Jasminehas done extremely well as akitten.THE BRITISH SHORTHAIRAlthough the practice of hybridizingPersian or Russian Blue linesinto the British Shorthair beganmany years ago, for just as manyCh. Leprechaun's Tornado of Jo-Mar. B:N. 8 R. Lane; 0: J. & M. Martin.years notable breeders have deplored the practice.(3) No doubt, hybridizationhas continued in some catteries. The situation is no differentfrom that of many breeds in the United States. Sub rosa breedingoccurs in all countries ; the British are about the only ones who arefrank about it. The truth is, however, that the numbers of Britishcatteries interested in the British Shorthair and producing pureBritish Shorthairs constitute the majority. The blue shorthair ofEngland has been the most popular import, and in some associationshas been shown as the British Blue. In other associations it has beencalled an American Shorthair. Now, neither of these designations isentirely correct. It would seem most appropriate to call the breedwhat it is, simply, the British Shorthair. To do so would not establisha precedent since Persian, Siamese, Russian Blue and Rex have beenimported from the United Kingdom and have retained their respectivebreed names.The British Shorthairs imported to this country are now calledExotic Shorthairs. As a result of the action we again have two differenttypes of cats in the same class, being judged by the same standard.This has a familiar ring.A recent popular cat book written and published in Britain describestwo different British Shorthairs in succeeding chapters. The problemscan be summarized by the two following descriptions:"These are the most amenable of cats and their coats are incrediblysoft and silky".(4)"In adulthood it is a large cobby-shaped cat, with a good deep flank,strong broad chest, thick-set shortish legs with well rounded feet. Thetail is slightly thicker at the root, tapering only very slightly towardsthe tip, and is approximately the same length as the body."The texture of the coat is deceptively hard . . . is really short".(5,Therefore, there are two types of British Shorthairs, one of whichfits the Exotic standard, the other of which does not. It is not difficultto understand why the Cat Fanciers' Association found it bothtruthful and expedient to call these cats Exotic Shorthairs. But whatof the American breeder who goes to significant expense and diffi-410 C.F.A.

British B'ue Male. Pensylva Carrini of Dundorhan.Breeder: Joan Richards; Owner;D. Hansen.culty to acquire a British Shorthair,and either accidently or purposefullyobtains the second type ? All are classifiedthe same and are judged accordinglyto the Exotic Shorthairstandard. Interestingly enough, incompetition the British Shorthair ofthe second, harsh coated type hasdone exceedingly well. Apparentlythirty years of breeding was not fornaught or judges have not learnedtheir home work. Or perhaps this isthe way the Exotic Shorthair shouldlook. Either the American breederincorporates the British Shorthair toimprove his stock and thereby causesthe heritage of the British Shorthairto become subservient to a five year old breed, or he breeds BritishShorthair to British Shorthair. The latter course is an expensiveproposition, but not necessarily a foolhardy one. For the time being,the British Shorthair is in the Exotic Shorthair breed.Perhaps the ambiguity of breed designation has discouraged manybreeders. Dallas Sidlo of California has exhibited the blue BritishShorthair for many years. Her cat Timothy is a well known exampleof the British Blue.Dorothy Hansen of Florida has imported fine British Blues fromMrs. Joan Richards of England and has had recent successful showseasons.Mrs. Hansen and Dr. Peitz have established Heritage Cattery forthe purpose of continuing British Shorthair breeding in this country.Their first import is a blue cream Pensylva Startip, sired by PensylvaPrince D'Or ; the dam is Pensylva Carissima. The cat was bred byMrs. Joan Richards.If British Shorthair breeding is to continue in this country, greaterinterest must be shown in importingthe best possible stock.THE FUTURE OF THEEXOTIC SHORTHAIREach breed can be described byone or two adjectives which, intruth, define its essential characteristics.The rest is embellishment.Ticked and resilient defineAbyssinian ; cobby and sable meanBurmese ; shorthaired Persian isthe Exotic Shorthair. The emphasisis on both words—shorthair andPersian type; and this emphasis should remain.British Blue Female. D. Monty's Julia."Monty", Sire; Sabrina Capulet, Dam.If this breed is to continue to be as successful in the future as itsincredible debut would indicate, there are requirements upon whichbreeders must insist here and now.Year Book, 1972 411

First, intelligent breeding must be utilized to produce healthy,beautiful cats of good disposition ; second, only the best cats must beshown. An esprit de corps must permeate Exotic Shorthair breeders.to such an extent that they will not tolerate the exhibition of secondrate cats. There should be a no nonsense attitude toward judges whorepeatedly demonstrate their lack of understanding of the breed characteristics.There are and will be judges under whom the ExoticShorthair will win too easily. There are other judges to whom theidea of a hybrid is an anathema. Both extremes should be avoideduntil there is a realization that each breed deserves the unprejudicedobjectivity for which the judge is being paid.This is the only path for any breed. The road opened for the ExoticShorthair breeders in 1966. It will remain open and without too manyimpediments if Exotic Shorthair breeders decide now, and continueto observe among themselves and the fancy at large that honor andcooperation among breeders that benefits all.Heatherwood's Hi Hope of Carnival. Breeder: R. Peitz; Owner: J. UzeeREFERENCESChristine Streetman, ed., Year BookCat Fanciers' Association, Inc., 1966, p. 113.(2, Christine Streetman, ed., Year BookCat Fanciers' Association, Inc., 1967, p. 142.(3, Grace Pond, The Observers Book of Cats, Frederick Warne & Co., Ltd., London,1959, p. 65.(4) May Eustace, The World of Show Cats, Pelham Books, Ltd., London, 1970 p.143.(5' Ibid, p. 150-151.NOTE -About five years ago the authors began a plan for breeding silvershorthairs. We were fortunate to be members of the fancy when theSterling Silvers and ultimately the Exotic Shorthairs came into being.The ideas of Jane Martinke fitted our scheme, and we proceeded fromthat point.We wish to thank all of the breeders who contributed photographsand information to this article.412 C.F.A.