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- From: Linnea Danielsen <Linanci@afn.org>
- Subject: rec.pets.cats: Scottish Fold Breed-FAQ
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-
-
- Scottish Fold Breed FAQ
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- AUTHOR
-
- Linnea Danielsen - Linanci Cattery, Linanci@afn.org
- Copyright (c) 1995 by Linnea Danielsen. All Rights Reserved.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Topics
-
- * History
- * Description
- * Temperament
- * Special Medical Concerns
- * Is This Breed For Me?
- * Frequently Asked Questions
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- History
-
- Susie, the first Scottish Fold cat, was discovered in 1961 in the
- Tayside Region of Scotland, at a farm near Coupar Angus. She was a
- white barn cat with ears that folded downward and forward on her head.
- Her face resembled an "owl" or an "otter's face". A shepherd by the
- name of William Ross first noticed Susie's unique ears at a neighbor's
- barn. Since William and his wife Mary were Cat Fanciers they were
- fascinated with Susie. A year later Susie and a local tom had a litter
- of two folded ear kittens and the Ross's acquired the female and named
- her Snooks. Snooks' son was bred to a British Shorthair and so began
- the breed known today as the Scottish Fold. At this time the breed was
- registered with the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy in Great
- Britain.
-
- In the mid 1960s, Pat Turner, a cat breeder and geneticist, became
- involved in the development of the Fold. Over the next 3 years she
- oversaw the breedings which produced 76 kittens - 42 with folded ears
- and 34 with straight ears. She and Peter Dyte, another British
- geneticist, agreed that the gene mutation responsible for folded ears
- is a simple dominant. This means that if a kitten inherits a gene from
- one parent for straight ears and one from a parent with the gene for
- folded ears, it will be a fold. They also learned that the original
- cats carried the longhair gene.
-
- Susie, the original fold, was a loose fold which means the tips of her
- ears bent forward about halfway up the ear. This is now called a
- single fold. Today's folds have ear folds ranging from the loose
- single fold to the very tight triple fold which is seen in the show
- quality cats.
-
- A faction in the British Cat Fancy felt that the Scottish Fold would
- be prone to ear infections and deafness. They campaigned to prevent
- their acceptance for registry in Great Britain. Folds are still not
- accepted for registry in registries of Great Britian and Europe.
-
- Mrs. Ross arranged for some of her folds to be shipped to Neil Todd,
- Ph.D., a geneticist in Newtonville, MA in the early 1970's. The first
- American born litter arrived Nov. 30, 1971. After his study ended,
- some folded kittens were given to first one CFA affiliated breeder who
- gave some to another, etc., until the shorthair Scottish Folds were
- accepted by ACA for registration in 1973, ACFA and CFA in 1974. TICA
- was the first registry to recognized the longhairs for championship
- competition in the 1987-88 show season and CFA followed in 1993-94.
-
- Although the Ross' had to give up their efforts in their own country
- to develop and raise these adorable cats, they will always be regarded
- in America as the founders of the breed.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Description
-
- After two decades of outcrossing to the American and British
- Shorthairs, the Scottish Fold has developed a look all its own. It is
- a medium sized cat, 9 to 13 pounds in the male and 6 to 9 pounds in
- the female. A Fold should have a well rounded, padded look to the
- entire body with a round headed appearance from all angles, domed at
- the top with a very short neck. The eyes should be large, round,
- broadly spaced and giving a sweet expression. A Fold can have straight
- medium-sized ears to small tightly folded ears with wide range in the
- degree of the fold. The ear tips will be rounded on the tip. A Fold
- will have well-rounded whisker pads with whiskers which often curve
- forward. The jaw is firm and well rounded. The nose is gently curved,
- short and wide due to the wide set of the eyes. Sometimes the curve of
- the mouth around their prominent whisker pads gives the appearance of
- a "smiling" cat. As you can see from the description, the Scottish
- Fold's head should look round in all ways.
-
- The Scottish Fold can be found in both the shorthair and longhaired
- version. The longhaired Scottish Fold has a semi-long coat of variable
- length which should sport a nice ruff on the males, leg britches and a
- huge fluffy tail.
-
- Scottish Folds can be found in almost every color and combination of
- colors and white except for the pointed colors. This means that
- generally you will not be able to find a Scottish Fold who has the
- coloring of a Siamese or Himalayan. (The exception is Folds bred by
- members of the Cat Fanciers Federation, which allows the pointed
- pattern. All other registries consider pointed Folds to be AOV (Any
- Other Variety), and will not accept them for competition.) The brown
- tabby & white Scottish Fold is probably the most well known color but
- they can be found in everyone's favorite colors.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Temperament
-
- The Scottish Fold is a sweet natured cat who is usually quiet voiced
- and loves to help supervise whatever you happen to be doing. Their
- activity level is in the medium range. They love to play but usually
- expect you to be involved in the fun and games. While not every Fold
- will be a lap fungus, they will usually be found close to you.
- Scottish Folds love to sleep flat on their backs and can often be
- found sitting up looking very much like an otter.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Special Medical Concerns
-
- In general the Scottish Fold is a healthy, hardy cat with a lifespan
- of approximately 15 yrs. Early in the development of this breed a
- degenerative joint disease was discovered to be linked with breeding
- folded-eared cats to folded-eared cats. Because of this, ethical
- breeders will only breed straight-eared cats to folded- eared cats.
- Scottish Folds who are the products of folded-ear to straight-ear
- breedings seldom if ever develop joint disease.
-
- Affected Folds will usually show signs of the disease between the ages
- of 4 to 6 months. This disease, in its worst case, will cause the
- joints of the cat's tail, ankles and knees to fuse and stiffen. A
- Scottish Fold with a very short thickened tail is probably affected to
- some extent. While this health problem is disabling, it is not life
- threatening. Though it cannot be cured, it can be very successfully
- treated.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Is This Breed For Me?
-
- If you like a cat that is very active and for the most part aloof,
- then no, the Scottish Fold is not for you. If you want a cat who wants
- to know what you are doing and why you aren't paying attention to him,
- then yes, you'd probably do well with a Scottish Fold. Scottish Folds
- want to be with you and will not do well if left alone for long
- periods of time. If you work long hours, you might want to consider
- getting your Scottish Fold a playmate from your local Humane Society
- or Shelter. Another option is in buying a pair of Folds - one
- folded-eared and one straight-eared. Two Folds will keep each other
- from getting lonely and will be twice the love and devotion when you
- are home.
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Frequently Asked Questions
-
- _How do I find Scottish Fold breeders?_
-
- Scottish Folds are accepted in all the cat registry associations in
- the United States. Most of their central offices can give you names of
- breeders registered with them. Another option is to attend a cat show
- near you and talk to the breeders that are there. Get to know them and
- get on their waiting lists. Yes, a Waiting List!!! Because of the
- folded ear to straight ear breedings not all the kittens born have
- folded ears and for this reason most Fold breeders have waiting lists
- for their folded-eared kittens. Don't feel like you are getting the
- run around if you aren't able to find your special kitten for 6 or
- more months. (And if you want a specific color, sex, or coat length,
- you may have to wait even longer.)
-
- _Where else can I find information on the breed?_
-
- Another place to find information about Scottish Folds and breeders is
- to contact the International Scottish Fold Association. This is a CFA
- (Cat Fanciers Association) affiliated breed club. If you send a #10
- SASE to ISFA, 12500 Skyline Dr., Burnsville, MN, 55337-2920, they will
- send you information on the breed itself and a list of member
- breeders. The Association is not only for breeders but is open to
- anyone with an interest in Scottish Folds and membership gets you a
- well written quarterly newsletter.
-
- You can also purchase the paperback book titled _Scottish Fold Cats: A
- Complete Owner's Manual_, written by Phil Maggitti. Any bookstore can
- order it for you. Most of the information is accurate though some of
- the genetics data is a little dated. It also has some wonderful color
- photos.
-
- _Is there more information on Scottish Folds on the Web?_
-
- You can find the names of breeders of Scottish Folds and most other
- breeds as well, on the Breeders Referral List that is attached to the
- Fanciers homepage at:
-
- http://www.fanciers.com/breedlist/
-
- _Who is Linanci Cattery?_
-
- You can learn all about us and see some of our Scottish Folds at:
- http://www.geocities.com/heartland/6601/
-
- _________________________________________________________________
-
- Scottish Fold FAQ
- Linnea Danielsen, Linanci@afn.org
- Last updated 08/29/96
-