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| THE CHANGING CAT FANCY - PART 1 |
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Gabrielle Kaufman will need no introduction to most readers. A cat breeder for 30 years, a Shorthair judge in the Victorian F. C. C., she has often judged in Canberra and has recently become an N. C A. S. Longhair judge.
It is generally conceded that the birth of cat shows occurred at the Crystal Palace in 1871. This was organised by the artist, Harrison Weir, who also added to our knowledge of this event by the publication of a book some eighteen years later, He had greatly admired the large number of domestic cats around London and the enormous success of the show venture led him and his contemporaries to sponsor more shows to start to classify exhibits. The majority were shorthair cats and the most prized colours initially were the Torties, Torti and Whites and the full range of Tabbies including the Spotted Tabby. The Longhairs were also frequently Tabbies and Tabbies and White, Black and White. Strangely enough Blues were initially shown as A.O.C.s and Frances Simpson in her books claims to have shown the first Blues free of white lockets. Creams and Reds were known but usually were tabby marked.
Fanciers were beginning to work hard on the Chinchillas and Silvers in the 1880's. The Shorthairs also had a Silver variety by this time known as the British Ticked. This was almost surely a forerunner of the Abyssinian. By the 1920's the Aby had been adopted and bred by many of the most influential breeders.
Cat Shows have been held in Australia since the 1920's. The initial shows appear to have been of pet cats with the occasional imported Longhair. It would have been no mean venture to embark for the journey with a cat even in the 1920's. In 1925 there was a memorable show on the Tennis Court of the late Ted Lonsdale's home in Strathfield, Sydney at which there were a number of Longhairs of various colours, and more notably the first pair of registered Siamese to be imported for breeding. These were Woodroffe Adam and Wing of Woodroffe. They were Seal Points, the main colour then recognised, but Adam is reputed to have been carrying a Blue Point factor, while Wing was closely related to the Chocolate known as Chocolate Cream.
They were obviously not prolific breeders as only Princess Siang of Undoona and Princess Siam of Undoona appear on later pedigrees. This was a period during which a number of Cat Clubs were forming in both Sydney and Melbourne. There was an exchange of stock between these centres in the thirties and forties. Then came the World War II In Britain these years were disastrous and it was only the very dedicated breeders in the country with access to some game and farm produce who could possibly hope to maintain stock. In Australia, Clubs went into recess. Some did not survive at all. Breeding stock was kept at a minimum as food was difficult.
With the re-introduction of shows a big interest was generated in breeds and improving stock. This was simultaneous in Sydney and Melbourne. The other States were still not organised yet. The big importing boom began in about 1949. This required an import licence and money overseas. No money could be sent from Australia because of the adverse balance of overseas payments. There was one local event that should go down on record because it brought into t he Fancy a number of breeders who had a very important effect on Siamese breeding of the future. This was the litter of six born in 1946 to the Seal Point queen, Rosanna of Warringal, sired by Marco Pollo. Rosanna was owned by Mrs. Lyons of Tallangatta, Vic and Marco Pollo was -he beloved pet of Dr and Mrs. Kinna of the Stockton Mental Hospital, near Newcastle, N.S.W. (On some pedigrees he went down as Taffins, or Taffy which was his pet name). Remember that at this time petrol rationing was in full force and air travel was non-existent (particularly for livestock). Rosanna stayed three weeks and subsequently had a good healthy litter. Two females are of note and these were Princess Nicolette, who went to Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Chandler then of Hawthorn, Vic. and Nougat who went to Mr. and Mrs. Jack Hine of Lara, Vic. These two queens proved to be very good breeders and competent mothers, Nougat, particularly, had increased the population of local Siamese as she had litters of ten, nine, and eight. My foundation queen Chandaling, was out of her third litter, (eight in number), born in 1948. Mrs. Henry purchased a queen kitten from Mr. & Mrs. Chandler's early litters which would have been the first Queensland Siamese. Mrs. Henry subsequently purchased from N.S.W. breeders and by special dispensation registered with R.A.S.C.C. of N.S.W. for many years.
Chandaling was the first of the Bluemeads (Longhairs had been bred under the Rowan prefix) and her first litter goes down on record as the first Siamese litter ever put on the Show bench. This litter, born in 1949, contained five kittens which included Bluemead Temple Tien, a prolific sire for those days, and a sire of some of the first Chocolate Points born in N.S.W in 1950. Another was Bluemead Oriental Idol (later Champion) who went to New Zealand, where Cat Shows were increasing in number and variety.
At the first Royal Easter Show in Sydney after the War there were three Siamese entered by a Miss Christy but these were completely covered over by towels the moment the public were let into the hall. The Siamese had a reputation for being very fragile and only a very small proportion reached adulthood. They also appeared to be very prone to calcium deficiency. In fact, owners were very reluctant to show them at all, and even as late as 1950 there was a Federal Show at Chatswood where I was the only Siamese exhibitor with a benching of four.
By 1951 the full effect of the big sea lift of British Siamese was in evidence. The Chandlers had a pair on the water first for Melbourne. However, Lela Do, a six year old Blue Point Male died in quarantine. His Seal Point companion, Doneraile Dantess, was the dam later for a number of Westwood kittens. The Hines had sent their wool clip to London for sale so had the required sterling in England. They had an agent, Mrs. Ella Martin, who was able to purchase for them some outstanding cats and kittens. In all they imported thirteen breeders. Some did not live up to their potential but the majority of the stars had a major influence on Siamese breeding in most states for some years to come.
Most notable were the Blue Point pair, Velvetmask Delphine and her mate Kaybee Clematis; the Seal Point males, Gladson Gridle and Inwood Glow were big forces. I was very fortunate to be able to secure Inwood Glow for N.S.W. to mate to my own imported queen Long Crendon Fa-Ying who bore the famous Sealsleeve blood lines. I was also able to purchase Causeway Cluns, a handsome seal point who was Melbourne's first Siamese Champion.
At the 1951 Sydney Royal, N.S.W. fancies saw their first Blue points as the Hines brought up a contingent of their imports including Delphine and a litter of six, as well as a selection of their Seal Point imports. Bluemead showed one of our home-bred Chocolate Points, Bluemead Petit Polisson, which beat the imported Blue Point, Jupiter Prince Camb; All colours competed in the one class. Blue Points became very popular in Melbourne but were passed over by Sydney fanciers. The occasional Chocolate Point -was shown in Melbourne beginning with Mrs. Dehle's son of the old Melbourne stud, Timoshenko.
At this time, while the odd Tabby (Brown and Silver) and Whites were in evidence the main movement in Longhairs continued to be in Blues, Chinchillas and Shaded Silvers. There were usually a couple of Smokes on the bench with a fairly constant handful of Torties. Sydney had some Red Tabbies and one breeder seemed to be constantly there with Orange Tabbies of not so wonderful type. (By Orange, I mean a colour between a hot cream and a Red Tabby).
Melbourne had some good creams at this time and Sydney had a few Blue Cream females, and a couple of cream males, who were producing cream kittens from time to time. Both Sydney and Melbourne had imported Blues which had a very big influence in improving type, well into the 1960's. These included some Pensford Blues.
After the Chocolate Points and the Blue Points came our first glimpse of the Red Points. Mrs. Finch of N.S.W. is credited with producing the initial Red Point male Dominic Soleil. This was not only a break through in breeding a new colour in Siamese for Australia but it was a breakthrough in thinking as breeders and officials were forced to face the fact that the breeds we had were the creations of clever breeders of the past and had not been there for ever. The real movement in reds came many years later with imports from the well-established Chingford stock from N.Z. These went to Victoria, S.A. & W.A.
While still glancing back at the 1950's it is amusing to remember the reception meted out to the first Lynx or Tabby Points. Mrs. Springall of Armadale, Melbourne produced two litters of Silver (Seal) Tabby Points in 1953. These were sired by her stud Bluemead Chaseur De Lune. When these were benched the powers-that-be threw up their hands in horror. These were dainty and from descriptions, of good type and pretty colour. Mrs. Springall's Seal Points were very well in the winning lists at the Melbourne Shows at that time. |
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| Gabrielle M. Kaufman |
| ACT Cat Alliance Inc. |
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| Last Update: 06/02/07 14:34 |
Views: 2877 |
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