Sometimes good things turn out even better than expected. That pretty much sums up first-time exhibitor Deena Stevens’ experiences with her shaded silver Persian, GC Castlegate’s Khoja of AsyuWishPurr. As a show cat, Khoja placed second in the Silver/Golden division in Region 2 as both a kitten and an adult, and 10th overall in the CFA Silver/Golden division in the 2016-2017season. As a therapy cat, he brought joy and extra benefits to seniors with serious illnesses.
Khoja came to Deena with a very special extra—a true mentor, his breeder, Barbara Bosco. “Barbara was amazing,” says Deena. “She gave me the opportunity. Of course I had to let her know that I was serious. She made sure I understood the ramifications of choosing a shaded silver Persian as my first show cat, and how difficult that can be.”
Once the decision was made and Deena had her show-quality Castlegate kitten, the help Barbara gave Deena went above and beyond. Their relationship didn’t end when Barbara placed her kitten with Deena quite the opposite. With Deena on the West Coast and her mentor on the East Coast, there weren’t a lot of opportunities for hands-on and face-to-face sessions, but that didn’t mean Barbara wasn’t there to help. She spoke with Deena often, offered suggestions and advice to help Deena succeed, and even sent videos showing how she bathes her cats.
Sometimes, though, even detailed information can be a little confusing and things don’t go quite as expected. That was the case with Deena’s initial experiences bathing Khoja. She got it right eventually, and “… in hindsight it’s funny,” she says; but like most people starting out with all that’s involved in bathing a show cat or kitten, she discovered it’s a bit more complicated than it seems:
Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Cat Talk.
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Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Cat Talk.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Checklist For What to Look For in Your Club's Next Show Venue
Show Manager To Ring One, Please
Tonkinese
When You're Well and Truly Tonked
AVOIDING The Kitten Fear Period
Young kittens seem fearless.4 As soon as those eyes open and they can get their legs under them, they are off to see the world if their mama and humans let them.
No Milk For You!
Milk Issues and Kittens
Fostering Kittens
When asked if I would be interested in fostering a queen and her eight newborn kittens, I volunteered without question.
Do You present ? Polish! OR DO YOU
IT’S ALL IN THE DETAILS!
No Kitten! Cats Are Part of the Military!
Felines have graced the decks of boats and ships back nearly to the beginning of time, roaming freely on passenger ships, war vessels, and merchant schooners, keeping vermin at bay.
Feline Summer Movie Fun!
School is almost OUT! Huzzah! But raindrops are plunking against the window, the amusement and water parks haven’t opened yet, camping is out, and roasted hot dogs and S’mores are another month away.
Kittens Are Special...
...and so are some of the show rules for them:
Genetic Pleiotropy and the Risks in Breeding Recessive Mutations
Nearly everyone loves what’s rare and unique. A slight defect in the minting process of a coin can create a demand and a value well beyond the face value of the coin. The coin is functionally no different than its perfectly minted counterpart, but its scarcity and uniqueness alone make it more desirable than the rest.
