Just curious...

[beach bum]

Originally Posted by kluchetta

When you said he likes water a lot, and seeing his beautiful ears and face shape, I'm inclined to think Turkish Angora or Van...

With the greatest respect, I don't know the breed of this little one, if in fact he is pure-bred, but I know what he is not, and that is Turkish Van or Turkish Angora. Which detracts not a whit from his beauty. Moggie or whatever, he is a charmer. I would say the only thing he shares with me are his hairy feet.

And while I agree that it may be a myth that cats, in general, dislike water, are there any other breeds besides that of Molly and me who appear specifically designed by Mother Nature to go swimming? Who in the wild caught fish in lakes and streams as part of their natural diet? I don't really know, and there may be others.

And just to clarify the record, neither Molly or I care for water all that much, perhaps because water invariably means a bath.

Happy holidays to all, all over the world,

Samwise

 

[beach bum]

Our apologies to any who tried to get our siggy slide shows to work. Looks like Dad has to try to figure out what happened.

Samwise and Molly

 

[tiffanyjbt]

Originally Posted by Beach Bum

And while I agree that it may be a myth that cats, in general, dislike water, are there any other breeds besides that of Molly and me who appear specifically designed by Mother Nature to go swimming? Who in the wild caught fish in lakes and streams as part of their natural diet? I don't really know, and there may be others.

I think ALL cats would dip a paw or two for some pretty (and tasty looking) fishies!

Other than that, I believe Maine Coons and Norwegian Forest Cats are said to be good 'fishers'. Bengals are descended from Asian Leopard Cats (small forest dwelling tree cats that like to fish) and they love water as well. My Siamese cat LOVES water (as many meezer do)! We have an outdoor pond with fish that we bring in during the winter months. The filter/pump sits on top of the clear storage container that we keep the fish in. Not only is Duke (my meezer) facinated by the fishies, but he loves to stick his head under the filter outlet (where the clean water pours back into the 'pond') and take a long drink and splash around a bit. I put a small tub of water in the bathroom tub and Duke jumped right in. Correction: NFCs DO have an undercoat, but its covered by a smooth the upper coat that, for all intents and purposes, makes them as waterproof as the other cats mentioned. Also, the rexes should be added to the list and pretty much any cat originating from warmer climates.

All of the above mentioned cats (and I think this includes your lovely self as well) lack the fluffy undercoat that would hold water and cause drag. What other features did mother nature give you to aid in swimming?

btw, I know you probably don't need any encouragement to flaunt it, but I'm in LOVE with your TAIL!!!!

 

[beach bum]

Originally Posted by Beach Bum

Our apologies to any who tried to get our siggy slide shows to work. Looks like Dad has to try to figure out what happened.

Samwise and Molly

Dad says that he may have fixed our slide shows in our siggy. This will test it. Molly and I love you all.

Samwise

 

[beach bum]

Originally Posted by tiffanyjbt

All of the above mentioned cats (and I think this includes your lovely self as well) lack the fluffy undercoat that would hold water and cause drag. What other features did mother nature give you to aid in swimming?

btw, I know you probably don't need any encouragement to flaunt it, but I'm in LOVE with your TAIL!!!!

Hi, Tiffany.

You are right in all respects. Aside from our lack of an undercoat many say that we do have at least three more attributes from our swimming days in the wild in Turkey and Armenia.

First, we Vans have a very strong upper body, developed by Mother Nature to help us dive and swim. We are great leapers and climbers. Mom says that I drive her crazy jumping up on every horizontal surface in our house, no matter how high.

Secondly, we Vans really do have furry feet, and they are a great help in swimming. Dad says they are web-feet, but not really. They do cause us a problem when Mom and Dad get up the courage to trim our toenails -- they alway grab a little hair with their clippers, and it hurts.

And the third attribute we also share with some other breeds, and that is our slightly oily coat, which sheds water just like a duck's coat. This leads to too many baths. It did particularly before Molly and I retired from the cat show circuit, which we never did really like. If you are interested in what we had to go through before every cat show, look here, and you will see The Recipe for a Turkish Van Bath. Attachment 11762. Ugh.

In closing, I am so happy you noticed my tail. I always thought my handsomest profile was from the rear.

My tail is a problam, though. Invariably when I try to hide, which you know is a favorite trick of us felines, my tail betrays my whereabouts. Here is a photo Dad took when I thought I was hiding in a cupboard.

Awfully nice having a few meows with you, Tiffany. I hope Molly and I see you next year.

Samwise

 

[tiffanyjbt]

LOL! That picture is a riot... Ahem... I mean... Tail??? What Tail???

Thanks for the information Samwise. I can see how the first two attributes you listed would aid in swimming (though I think they may exist in a few other breeds), but please do tell me more about this 'oily coat'. I've never heard of this before.

Its pretty obvious that you were a stunning show cat. How did you do? (#31 in your instruction doc sounds very important

)

Thanks for chatting/chittering!

 

[beach bum]

Originally Posted by tiffanyjbt

LOL! That picture is a riot... Ahem... I mean... Tail??? What Tail???

Thanks for the information Samwise. I can see how the first two attributes you listed would aid in swimming (though I think they may exist in a few other breeds), but please do tell me more about this 'oily coat'. I've never heard of this before.

Its pretty obvious that you were a stunning show cat. How did you do? (#31 in your instruction doc sounds very important

)

Thanks for chatting/chittering!

Golly, Tiff. You are my favorite buddy!

Here is an article from the Cat Fanciers' Association web site which mentions my oily coat, and here is another one about the Turkish Van, which probably tells you more than you really want to know.

Since you mention #31 on The Recipe, here is a photo Dad took of me right after a bath. I don't think it is my most flattering photograph ever. I am not very happy here, and I really do not like to show this photo to people.

While I am very modest, as I am sure you have observed,

I did quite well on the show circuit. My full name is Grand Champion, Grand Premier Caravanserai Samwise. Molly's real name is Grand Champion Aledo Galadriel of Caravanserai. Mom thinks that is too big a mouthful, so my half-sister's house name is Molly.

You may have noticed that both Samwise and Galadriel were characters in The Lord of the Rings. I was the little Hobbit that protected Frodo during all his adventures. Galadriel was the lovely white fairy, played by Cate Blanchett. I tease Molly and tell her that she is lovely, but Cate Blanchett....Wow!

Molly and I have the same cat-Dad: Lord-of-the-Rings, and all of his kittens are named after one of Tolkien's characters. Since our cat-Dad is GC, DM, you can see that he has about used up all the names from the book and movies. Molly's cat-Mom, by the way, is also a GC, DM, so she has quite a pedigree. She never really cared for cat shows, though, and she did not have to go back through the Premier series as I did.

So nice meowing with you,

Samwise

 

[tiffanyjbt]

Originally Posted by Beach Bum

Since you mention #31 on The Recipe, here is a photo Dad took of me right after a bath. I don't think it is my most flattering photograph ever. I am not very happy here, and I really do not like to show this photo to people.

Oh, you poor thing!

You're terribly cute in that photo though. Such charming (large) eyes!

Congrats to you and your sisfur on the Grands and extra scritches behind the ears for you on the Premier!

Just be glad you weren't named Gollum! (I think theres a Smeagol on this site though)

 

[sweatereyes]

Okay, at least i'm learning a bit about different breeds! I've tried to look up different breeds, but I'm so much difficulty, because I don't know genetics properly, so I can't say that a certain attribute is from his supposedly pure breed mom. Whatever he is though he is still my baby, and i absolutely adore him regardless.

I took this photo to see if it helps anyone recognize.. it shows the pattern on his back a bit better.

(i've been trying to a get a picture with his tail out.. but he always tucks it under him, but to me, it looks something inbetween a short hair and a long hair cat.. it is longer than the rest of his hair though)

 

[laureen227]

he really is gorgeous! definitely a spotted tabby, pattern-wise. you can read all about the different tabby patterns here. i can't say as far as breeds go, but i'm really glad you rescued him! i agree that he looks like he'll be a big boy once he reaches full growth!