Did i "wasted" a show cat?

abymummy

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For showing:

Good muscle tone = more play and good food, maybe supplements.

Good/great coat = supplements (B complex, Omega 3 & 6) and conditioning.

Conditioning = regular bathing (around every 2 weeks for SH and weekly for LH) and general grooming with the right products.

You can absolutely do these at home! My show Abys get bathed monthly in between shows actually - about 2-3 months before show they get bathed every 14-21 days.

The MOST important ingredient?
 

epona

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We do things slightly differently here - if I were to suggest to any of the experienced SH exhibitors I know that they ought to bathe their cat for a show, they would likely collapse with laughter
 

missymotus

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Same over here Epona. I'm one of the very few who bathes them.
 

goldenkitty45

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Seriously - you guys don't bath the cats prior to the shows??? I would think that letting them outside in the yard in the grass, etc. would be reason enough to give them a bath to get out any dirt
 

epona

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Seriously - you guys don't bath the cats prior to the shows??? I would think that letting them outside in the yard in the grass, etc. would be reason enough to give them a bath to get out any dirt
Nope, cats are very much viewed as 'self-cleaning', certainly for shorthairs no-one I know ever bathes them, not for showing, and certainly not as a routine thing - only if they've managed to cover themselves in something or been ill and let their coat get into a state because of not being well.

My previous post was slightly incorrect as I do remember a conversation with people who show about bathing cats, only half of them fell about laughing, the others were horrified.

Show preparation for shorthairs is clip claws, clean ears, check that eyes and bum are clean, then in the carrier and wipe down coat with a soft cloth or chamois leather upon arrival at the show - that's it. I suppose people with white cats bathe them if they look grubby or there's any staining/yellowing.

We don't have all that palaver about decorating cages either, everything that goes in or around the cage has to be white.
 

goldenkitty45

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Plain and simple????


I have more fun matching the colors to the cats. Now what I object to is maine coon owners using leopard spotted curtains for their cats - only spotted cats should be allowed leopard spotted curtains.....
 

epona

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Plain and simple????


I have more fun matching the colors to the cats. Now what I object to is maine coon owners using leopard spotted curtains for their cats - only spotted cats should be allowed leopard spotted curtains.....
I think the idea is to provide comfort and a bit of seclusion for the cat but keeping it to a level playing field with everyone using the same plain drapes/towels so as not to distract from the cats.

People do get a chance to show off their artistic flair once a year at the Supreme where there is a themed cage decorating competition and people really go to town on it. 2007 theme was cartoon cats, and some of the cages were amazing. I remember thinking that if my boys were in a decorated cage I would give the decorations approximately 20 seconds, and that's if I were being generous
 
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cattiew

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i would love to have a chance to decorate my cage with something special!!!! i am so going to have everything in pink!!!... even though he is in fact a boy :p
 

pat

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Originally Posted by Cattiew

i would love to have a chance to decorate my cage with something special!!!! i am so going to have everything in pink!!!... even though he is in fact a boy :p
I must warn you, now that I know they are related...if he's anything like Denebola, he will flip his pink doughnut bed over in the benching cage, and crawl underneath it...then peer out with just his face showing...we decided he just liked looking like a turtle


Because I had a pink charmeuse set of cage curtains
 

persi & alley

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Originally Posted by Kai Bengals

Fixed cats can be and are shown all the time. The breed cats that are fixed are shown in Alter Class. Moggies are shown in HHP Class.
Not being familiar with shows at all I think my mistake was in that declawed cats cannot be shown???
 

goldenkitty45

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CFA bans any declawed cat (pedigree or mixed). ACFA and TICA allow them but don't promote it.

We did find that in the wire cages, Charlie had a tendency to hide under the beds in the cage. However, since we got our own portable one that is more "enclosed", he doesn't hide any more - just curls up and sleeps on top of the spotted bed.
 

siggav

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I've just seen the rules for GCCF shows over here and yeah, everything needs to be regulation white. Even the litterbox and food and water bowls etc. need to be the same standard white. Basically the cages are all supposed to look identical and you'll get disqualified from the show if you break that.
 

missymotus

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We have the plain white rule in at least 1 state, in my state we are allowed coloured curtains but nothing to identify the cat as yours (visible cattery name etc) and you cannot approach your cage and touch the cat once benched until after judging has finished. You cannot bring your own cage.

Open judging is somewhat new too, and several shows are still closed judging.
 
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cattiew

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I've just seen the rules for GCCF shows over here and yeah, everything needs to be regulation white. Even the litterbox and food and water bowls etc. need to be the same standard white. Basically the cages are all supposed to look identical and you'll get disqualified from the show if you break that.
i want to protest... i want every thing in pink please. everything white?! that's like going to funeral.... :p

I must warn you, now that I know they are related...if he's anything like Denebola, he will flip his pink doughnut bed over in the benching cage, and crawl underneath it...then peer out with just his face showing...we decided he just liked looking like a turtle
i don't mind if that's gonna make him happy. he can tear everything else but hiself!!! personally i like to bring something he used to with us when i take him out. i found that it claims him down especially when i am not being with him! well... then do i need to start using white stuffs instead of pink?! he doesn't have a problem to all teh pink stuffs at home thogh escept "normal" damage
 

pat

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It depends on what association you are showing in (forgive me if you already said)...in CFA and in TICA, you are allowed to decorate your benching cage.
 
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cattiew

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whenever i leave the flat, BuBee (my boy's name) always runs outside of my flat to the end of common corridor and roll over his body until i pick him up
good that there are only 3 flats on the same floor and the corrridor is a contained area, otherwise i would have a hard time to look for him outside my flat
however when he hear any strange sound, he would run as fast as he can back to my fast tho
 

epona

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Originally Posted by missymotus

We have the plain white rule in at least 1 state, in my state we are allowed coloured curtains but nothing to identify the cat as yours (visible cattery name etc) and you cannot approach your cage and touch the cat once benched until after judging has finished. You cannot bring your own cage.

Open judging is somewhat new too, and several shows are still closed judging.
In the GCCF, exhibitors are not even in the hall when judging for the open classes is taking place. You vet in and settle your cat in its cage, then have to leave the hall for at least 2 hours. Once the open judging is finished at lunchtime, exhibitors are allowed back in to attend to and feed their cats, and the show opens to the public. Then any miscellaneous classes are judged during the afternoon.

Cats are benched according to section, breed, and colour, so if you're showing a Siamese and a Maine Coone, they will be at opposite ends of the hall. The judges go from cage to cage with a trolley, steward, and clipboard- the steward removes the cat from his cage, places him on the trolley, and assists in handling. The judge writes comments in a judging book, and a tear off slip is pinned to a large board so that when judging is over the exhibitor can pick up the comments for his/her cats, and then rosettes and challenge certificates can be collected and attached to the cage. If there are miscellaneous classes being judged while the hall is open, no-one may approach the judges as they go from cage to cage. The only time the cats are removed from their cage to another pen is for best in show judging. Spectators and exhibitors do not really get to see or hear any judging taking place.

It's quite sterile and dry really, apparently TICA shows are a much more relaxed atmosphere.
 

missymotus

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UK GCCF seems quite similar to ours apart from the closed hall.

I wish they would use teasers with the cats like they seem to in the US, looks like more fun.
 

goldenkitty45

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As far as I know every association in the US (CFA, TICA, ACFA - the major ones) allow you to decorate your benching cages and bring your own portable ones now.

Of course the judges rings cages are all white and plain - just dividers between so the cats can see each other.
 
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