SelkirkRexInfo

SELKIRK REX BREED ORIGINS

Selkirk Rex originated in the USA. In 1987, a breeder in Sheridan, Montana,
was asked to look at an unusual kitten that was in a local shelter. It had slight
curls and waves in the coat. The breeder, Jeri Newman, was interested in feline
genetics, so she adopted the kitten and later bred it to one of her Persians, Photo
Finish of Deekay. On July 4th 1988, the stray, wavy “kitten”, now named Miss
DePesto of NoFace (photo below) gave birth to six kittens. Three of them had a
curly coat and three were straight coated.

Jeri knew this 50% ratio was exactly what would have been expected from a
dominant gene for curl. She was fascinated with this concept and decided to
explore the development of a new breed based on the curly coat. She gave the
breed the name “Selkirk” rex to keep the same theme as the Cornish and Devon
regional names, after the Selkirk Mountains and a stream near to her house.
After several years of showing the Selkirks on exhibition, the breed was
admitted to Championship status by TICA in 1994.

GENERAL BREED DESCRIPTION

The Selkirk Rex is produced by a dominant gene affecting the guard, awn and
down hairs. The curls are more prominent around the neck, underside and rear
in both coat lengths. Guard hairs tend to have a coarser texture, especially over
the back, but the coat is very dense and the overall texture is soft and plush.
The whiskers and eyebrows are curly.
Kittens are curly from birth, especially the whiskers. They may lose the curl as
they develop but the adult curly coat should be there again from 8 – 10 months.
The coat continues to develop until about 2 years of age.
The Selkirk Rex is similar in type to the British shorthair. It is a medium to large
cat with solid muscle tone and substantial boning. This gives surprising weight
and an impression of power.
The breed has an alert and active personality coupled with a sweet, endearing
disposition that is very appealing. They are friendly and affectionate, mix well
with other breeds and make wonderful family pets.
They occur in both longhaired and shorthaired varieties and very many
different colours and pattern.

THE SELKIRK REX IN THE UK

February 8th 2002 was a very exciting day! The first foundation Selkirk Rex
imports arrived in the UK, accompanied by their breeder, Christiana Aichner of
the Courtleycats prefix. The first breeders in the UK were Linda Davison
(TORESKA); Angela Mann (KRESANT) and Lisa Peterson (TRUEBLU). Then,
in 2003 Dee Marsland-Round (CATBALU) imported Dahozo Cody of Catbalu
from the USA. There was a seminar to present the breed to the Cat Fancy, curly
kittens were born and Selkirks appeared at shows on exhibition. The Selkirk
Rex had started its long haul towards recognition! Kittens imported below.

Selkirks were recognised by GCCF in June 2004 and could be shown in
Assessment Classes at Preliminary Level. By 2006 we had more than the 15
cats with at least 4 Merits each, plus evidence of success in competition with
other breeds in side classes, as well as at least 20 GCCF breeders working with
Selkirks and more than 50 examples registered in order to gain promotion to
the Intermediate level!
Our application was accepted; our Selkirks had achieved all the necessary
criteria and were promoted to Provisional status from 1st June 2007. During
2007/2008 show season the breeders and club worked hard to gain the
required 20 qualifying cats with 4 Intermediate Certificates to enable us to
apply for Championship status in 2009. This was achieved by August 2008 and
the GCCF Executive Committee granted Championship status in their October
meeting to start from 1st June 2009.
Meanwhile Selkirks have also enjoyed wonderful success showing with TICA
with several gaining multiple titles and Regional / International placings - Our
curly cats can really captivate those judges!

THE SELKIRK REX CAT CLUB

In January 2006, the Selkirk Rex Cat Club was formed. The club aims to
promote, develop and safeguard the interests of the Selkirk Rex breed. Already
the club has worked with the Joint Rex Breed Advisory Committee to set up the
Selkirk Rex BAC and was responsible for collating the evidence and material for
the Application for the Promotion of the breed to Championship Status. The club
will be affiliated to the GCCF from January 2009 and looks forward to the time
when it is able to send representatives to the BAC meetings and delegates to the
Council meetings. Who knows, one day the club may hold its own show just for
Selkirks!
To keep up to date with Selkirk Rex news, views and progress, visit the club
website: http://www.selkirkrexcatclub.co.uk.

The Selkirk Rex Cat Club
welcomes new members, to join please clikc on the link below for the application
form and send through to our Membership Secretary.