Cat Fanciers Glossary
Copyright © 1994-2004 Orca Starbuck
Contents
AB: Allbreed.
ACA: The American Cat
Association, a cat registering association based in the US.
ACFA: The American Cat Fanciers
Association, a cat registering association based in the US.
AOV:
Any Other Variety.
ASH:
American Shorthair, a breed.
BEW: Blue Eyed White.
BSH:
British Shorthair, a breed.
CEW: Copper Eyed White.
CFA: The Cat Fanciers' Association, a
cat registering association based in the US.
CFF: The Cat Fanciers' Federation, a
cat registering association based in the US.
CH: Champion,
a title.
CPSH:
Colorpoint Shorthair, a breed.
DGC: Double
Grand Champion,
a title.
DGM:
Double Grand Master,
a title.
DLH:
Domestic Longhair.
DM: Distinguished Merit,
a title.
DMH:
Domestic Mediumhair.
DSH:
Domestic Shorthair.
EC: European
Champion,
a title.
EP: European
Premior,
a title.
ESH:
Exotic Shorthair.
FIFe: Federation Internationale Feline, a cat registering association based in Europe.
GC: Grand Champion,
a title.
GCCF: The Governing Council of the Cat
Fancy, a cat registering association based in the UK.
GIC: Grand International
Champion,
a title.
GIP: Grand International
Premior,
a title.
GM: Grand Master,
a title.
GP: Grand Premier,
a title.
HHP:
Household Pet.
IC: International
Champion, a title.
IP: International
Premior, a title.
ISFA: The International
Scottish Fold Association,
a breed club.
IW: International
Winner, a title.
JBT:
Japanese Bobtail, a breed.
LH: Longhair.
MC:
Maine Coon.
MCBFA:
Maine Coon Breeders and Fanciers Association, a breed club.
MGC: Master Grand
Champion, a title.
MGP: Master Grand
Premier, a title.
NW: National
Winner, a title.
OD: Outstanding
Dam, a title.
OEW: Odd Eyed White.
OS: Outstanding
Sire, a title.
OSA:
Oriental Shorthairs of America, a breed club.
OSH:
Oriental Shorthair, a breed.
PR: Premier,
a title. (In FIFe, it is spelled "Premior.")
QGC: Quadruple Grand
Champion, a title.
QGM: Quadruple Grand
Master, a title.
RFCI: Ragdoll
Fanciers' Club International, a breed club.
RW: Regional
Winner, a title.
SGC: Supreme Grand
Champion, a title.
SGM: Supreme Grand
Master, a title.
SH: Shorthair.
SP: Specialty.
TCA: The Traditional Cat Association, a cat
registering association based in the US.
TGC: Triple Grand
Champion, a title.
TGM: Triple Grand
Master, a title.
TICA: The International Cat Association,
a cat registering association based in the US.
WW: World
Winner, a title.
allbreed (AB):
An "allbreed ring" at a show is a ring
in which cats of all breeds are judged and ranked against each other. An
"allbreed judge" is a judge who is licensed to judge allbreed rings.
Compare with specialty.
alter: To spay or
neuter a cat. An "alter" is an altered cat.
Any Other Variety (AOV):
The AOV class at a North American show is open to
purebred and
registered cats that are not eligible to compete because their
color, hair length, or another characteristic does not meet the
standard for their breed. For example,
a Manx cat with a tail would
compete in the AOV class. AOVs compete against each other, but are
not eligible to compete
for titles, regional awards,
or national awards.
bloodline: A group of related cats.
blue: The color also known as "gray" or "maltese."
blue slip: An application to
register a cat of a registered litter.
breed standard: The ideal
characteristics for the breed, as agreed upon by a group of breeders.
breed true: To produce kittens
that closely resemble the parents.
breeder: By convention, the breeder
of a cat is the owner of the cat's dam at the time of mating.
breeding program: An ongoing
program in which cats are mated together and kittens selected for
breeding according to how close they come to an ideal.
breeding quality: A cat that
meets its breed standard closely enough
to be valuable to a breeding program,
but may not be competitive as a show cat.
call name: The name that a cat is
called. Often a shortened form of the cat's
registered name. For example, "Ashley" is the call name for
the cat registered as "CH Sheenah's Ashley of Ashmanor, DM."
calling: The characteristic
vocalizations (typically yowling, howling, or screaming) made by a
queen in heat.
cat fancy: The overall group of
individuals, clubs, and registering associations involved with
breeding and showing cats.
cattery: A group of cats that are
part of a breeding program.
"Cattery" is also sometimes used to refer
to the physical structure that houses such a group of cats.
cattery name: A name registered
with a cat registering association, used to identify cats bred by a
particular breeder. A registered cattery
name always appears a prefix on the names of
cats bred by that breeder. It may be added as a suffix to the names of cats owned, but not bred
by, that breeder.
certificate:
In European associations like FIFe, cats are
awarded certificates at shows, which are
accumulated towards titles much in the way that
points are accumulated in North American
associations.
certified pedigree: A pedigree officially issued by a cat registering
association.
championship: The championship
class at a North American show is open
to whole
adult cats that are purebred and
registered and meet the standard for
their breed. Altered cats compete in the
premiership class.
coat: A cat's fur.
crossbreed: The mating of
cats of two different breeds. The offspring of such a mating is considered a
hybrid.
cryptorchid: An adult male cat whose
testicles have not descended into the scrotal sac. This is a
disqualification in all
associations.
dam: The female parent.
disqualification: A quality that
makes a cat ineligible for show. Disqualifications are often
mentioned in the
breed standard. For example, a
Maine Coon with an incorrect
number of toes is disqualified from show.
domestic longhair
(DLH): A longhair of unknown or
mixed parentage.
domestic mediumhair
(DMH): A semi-longhair of
unknown or mixed parentage.
domestic shorthair
(DSH): A shorthair of unknown or
mixed parentage.
exhibitor: Someone who shows cats.
heat: A queen's
estrus period, during which time she is fertile and
receptive to the advances of a tom. Queens in
heat usually call, and some may spray.
household pet (HHP): The
household pet class at a North American
show is open to all cats,
purebred or not, that are not eligible to
compete in any
other class. The term "household pet" is also used to refer to
mixed-breed cats.
hybrid: A cat produced by
crossbreeding cats of two different breeds
together. Some hybrids may be registered
as one of the two parent breeds, others may not. This depends on the
breed standards. For example, it is
allowable to mate a Bombay with a
Burmese to produce hybrid Bombays.
inbreed: To mate together closely
related cats, for example brother and sister, or father and daughter.
kitten: A young, immature cat.
The kitten class at a North American show is open to
purebred and
registered kittens that are between the ages of four and seven
months (inclusive) and meet the standard for
their breed. Adult cats compete in the championship
or premiership (alter) classes.
linebreed: To mate together
cats that have some of the same ancestors. For example,
two cats that have the same grandfather.
litter: One or more kittens produced
by a single pregnancy. Litter size averages three or four, but some
litters may have six to ten kittens!
litter registration:
The recording by a cat registering association of the birth of a
litter, including the date of birth,
number of kittens, sire and dam,
and the breeder of the litter.
longhair: A cat with relatively long
fur, often varying in length over different parts of the cat. Some
longhairs have shortish fur on the body, but all longhairs have long fur
on the tail, forming a "plume" or "brush," and most have long fur
around the neck forming a "ruff."
mixed breed: A cat of unknown or
mixed parentage. Mixed breed cats can be shown in the
household pet (HHP) competitive class.
moggy: The UK term for mixed breed.
monorchid: An adult male cat which
has only one descended testicle. This is a
disqualification in all
associations.
national/international award:
An award given
to cats that earn enough points during a
show year to be ranked among the highest
scoring cats in the entire association for that year.
Some associations add a title
to the
registered name of each award winner. The number of
high scoring cats receiving national/international awards depends
on the association and the competitive class
(e.g. kitten,
premiership,
championship,
household pet, etc.). For example,
CFA gives national awards to the top 25 cats
in Championship each year.
neuter: To castrate a male cat.
A "neuter" is a male cat which has been neutered. Sometimes the term
"neuter" is also used to refer to spaying female cats.
not for breeding: A cat that
has been designated by the breeder
as not to be used for breeding.
Such a cat cannot have registered offspring.
odd-eyed: A cat with one blue eye
and one green, gold, or copper eye.
open: A cat that is not
yet a Champion.
outcross: The mating of cats that
have no common ancestors within several generations.
papers: The pedigree and registration
slip for a cat.
pedigree: A document recording the
ancestors of a cat. Pedigrees may show few or many generations.
A "3 generation pedigree" shows the cat itself plus three
generations back. Most pedigrees show three to five generations.
pedigreed cat: A cat with a pedigree.
Note that this does not necessarily mean that the cat is purebred or registered!
pet quality: A cat that does not
meet the breed standard closely enough
to be valuable to a breeding
program. Of course, pet quality cats are just as healthy and
friendly as other cats.
points: Units of achievement awarded
to a cat in a show that are accumulated towards a
towards a title, a regional award,
or a national award. Each association has
its own way of determining how many points are awarded for a particular
type of show win, and may have several different point scales for
different titles or awards. In European associations such as
FIFe, certificates are awarded and
accumulated towards titles instead of points.
prefix: The cattery name at the beginning of the cat's
name, indicating the breeder's cattery.
For example, in the name "CH Sheenah's Ashley of Ashmanor, DM"
the prefix is "Sheenah's" ("CH" is
a title).
premiership: The premiership
class at a North American
show is open to altered
adult cats that are purebred and
registered and meet the standard for
their breed. In some associations, this class is called the "alter class."
prepotent: A cat who has such a strong
genetic influence on its offspring that the offspring consistently resemble the
parent. Most prepotent cats are linebred on one
or more outstanding ancestors.
purebred: A cat whose ancestors are
all of the same breed, or whose ancestry includes
crossbreeding that is allowed in the breed
standard. For example, a purebred
Bombay may also have
Burmese cats in its background.
pyometra: An illness of female cats
in which the uterus becomes infected and filled with pus. It is
most common in cats who have gone through several heats without being spayed.
queen: A whole
female cat.
red: The color also known as "orange,"
"ginger," or "marmalade."
region: A geographic area
that makes up some of the territory of an association.
Each region typically has its own
regional director, awards its own year-end
regional awards, and may operate under slightly different rules.
For example, CFA has nine regions: seven in
the US, one in Japan, and one in Europe.
regional award: An award given
to cats that earn enough points during a
show year to be ranked among the highest
scoring cats in the region for that year.
Some associations add a title
to the
registered name of each regional award winner. The number of
high scoring cats receiving regional awards depends on the association
and the competitive class (e.g. kitten,
premiership,
championship,
household pet, etc.). For example,
CFA gives regional awards to the top 25 cats
in Championship in each region.
registered cat: A cat whose ancestry
is documented and recorded with a cat registering association.
registered name: The official
name of a registered cat. This name is
often quite long, and may include one or more titles and cattery names.
ring: An area at a show
where one judge examines cats and awards prizes. A show may have several
simultaneous rings.
semi-longhair: A
longhair that does not have an extremely long coat.
For example, the Maine Coon
is considered a semi-longhair, but the
Persian is not.
shorthair: A cat with a relatively
short coat. The coat may be very close-lying and
sleek, or it may be thick and plush.
show: An exhibition of cats, during which
the cats are evaluated by licensed judges and awarded prizes for their
conformance to breed standards.
show cat: A cat that is exhibited
in show.
show quality: A cat that meets
its breed standard closely enough to be
competitive in show.
show year or
show season: The year long period
during which show cats accumulate
points for regional,
national, and international
awards. In North America, the show year traditionally runs from May to April.
sire: The male parent.
spay: To surgically remove the
reproductive organs of the female cat. A "spay" is a spayed female cat.
specialty: A "specialty ring" is a
ring where the breeds are separated into categories
such as "longhair" and "shorthair" for the purposes of judging and awarding
prizes. A "specialty judge" is a judge that is licensed only to judge in a
specialty ring, not in an allbreed ring.
speuter: An agglomeration of spay and neuter. Another word
for alter.
spray: The behavior, commonly seen in
the tom cat, of urinating everywhere (typically
on the walls, floor, etc) to establish territory.
standard: A breed standard.
stud cat: A whole
male cat that is part of a breeding program.
suffix: The cattery name at the end of the cat's
name, if any, indicating the cattery in which
the cat resides. Usually preceded by "of." In the name "CH Sheenah's Ashley
of Ashmanor, DM" the suffix is "Ashmanor" ("DM"
is a title) which indicates that this cat lives at the
Ashmanor cattery.
title: An award earned by a cat that may
be added to the cat's name according to the rules of a cat registering
association. Depending on the particular title, it may be earned either by
defeating other cats in one or more shows, earning
some number of year-end points, or producing
some number of offspring that earn titles themselves. Typically, a title
is added to the beginning of the name of the cat, before the cattery name
prefix, but some titles are added to
the end of the cat's name. For example, in the name "CH Sheenah's Ashley
of Ashmanor, DM" there are two titles. The
title "CH" (Champion) is at the beginning of the name. The
title "DM" (Distinguished Merit) is at the end of the name.
See the List of Titles for more information.
tom: A whole male cat.
van or van pattern: A color
pattern which restricts color to the head and the tail, leaving the
body and most of the extremities white. Most standards for this pattern allow for no more than
two small spots of color on the body. The name comes from the Turkish Van breed, which always
exhibit this pattern.
whole: Not neutered
or spayed.