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[Tim Drayton]

There is going to be a cat show in Limassol soon. I have two very ordinary cats and out of curiosity phoned the organisers of the show to ask if it was only for pedigree cats. I was surprised to learn that they will have a section for "domestic" cats, i.e. just ordinary moggies. I personally think it would be fun for to attend, but I wonder how the cats themselves would feel about it.
They are both about one and a quarter years old, and most probably are of feral origin. One of them is called Lucky and I found him when he was only two weeks old. I brought him up from the bottle using a miraculous milk-substitute product called Lactol. I use the word miraculous wisely because he probably owes his life to this stuff. I called him Lucky because he was the third kitten that I had brought in from the street since coming to Cyprus and the first two died within a few days - apparently feral mothers sense when a kitten is unlikely to survive and abandon it to leave more milk for the rest of the litter, so that many abandoned street kittens share this fate. In the hope that the third time would be lucky, I gave him this name. And fifteen months later he has grown into a huge, strapping monster. He is a very confident cat who likes strangers and I like to think he could cope with attending a show.
The second fellow is called Micky and I adopted him at the age of six weeks from June, who posts on this forum. He was also found in the street. Micky is very shy and hides whenever strangers enter the house. It probably would not be fair to take him to a show.
As I said, I find the idea of taking Lucky to the show appealing, but I wonder how he would react to the experience. After all, cats are very territorial and like to be on their own turf. Would he really like to be somewhere strange for a whole day surrounded by unknown cats and people? Would he find it a traumatic experience? I would love to hear what people who understand cats well - and I still consider myself to be anovice in this area - have to say about this. Thanks.

[GorillaGal]

i am a cat person, Tim, and i most definately would leave Micky home.
Now, about Lucky: do you keep him an indoor only cat now, or does he go outside as well?
Is Lucky up on all his shots? Keep in mind, there will be alot of other cats there, and there could be an opportunity to spread some not-too-good germas around.
GG

[Tim Drayton]

i am a cat person, Tim, and i most definately would leave Micky home.
Now, about Lucky: do you keep him an indoor only cat now, or does he go outside as well?
Is Lucky up on all his shots? Keep in mind, there will be alot of other cats there, and there could be an opportunity to spread some not-too-good germas around.
GG

That is an interesting question about Lucky. I live in a third-floor appartment so in theory both of them should be indoor cats and like it. Micky, given his temperament, has no inclination whatsoever to go outside. In fact, if you even carry him close to the front door he will start wriggling frenetically to get down. However, Lucky is a different character altogether. Every time the front door opens he runs out and dashes down the stairs. He is a great explorer and adventurer. When he was still quite young he once managed to escape without being noticed and was outside for about thirty hours before making his own way home. He was very traumatised when he came back and had a very deep bite on his chin (there is a large feral colony on the waste ground opposite our block). For a few days he lost his inclination to run out of the door, but this soon passed. I decided that the only thing to do would be take him out for walks. If anybody told me that one day I would be taking the cat for a walk, I would tell them that they were mad. But this is what I do now for about half an hour or so a day. I tried getting a dog collar and lead first and taking him out on this. You can imagine the strange glances that this would invite from passers-by in Cyprus! However, I did not think this was a good solution because he really wanted to crawl through bushes and things, and in fact he could wriggle of the collar when he felt like it so the whole thing was just make believe. So, instead of this I just carry him out, plonk him down on the waste ground and follow him. Since he never goes very far or fast this hasn't proved to be a problem. A couple of times I have lost him totally for five or ten minutes but he eventually reappears. He seems to have a very sound instinct that makes him afraid of cars and this keeps him off the roads and makes him move in the opposite direction if a car approaches. He is also a very skilled tree climber and has become very adept at getting down as well. He has now realised that the birds do not sit there waiting for him to get up to them, so he is less interested in tree climbing than before.
It is interesting to watch him intercat with the feral cat population outside. He usually approaches them, they spend some time looking at one another and making noises, then one of them runs off. A few months ago he quite often got scared and ran back to me for protection. Now, though, he is larger and much more healthy than any of the street cats, and more often than not he chases them off. I am glad that he has got to know his local area because if he runs off on his own again at least he will know his way round. I would also have a good idea where to look for him because I know where he tends to go.
So, in short, I think Lucky is quite an adventurous fellow and he likes interacting with other cats and people, but even so I would not want to do anything which would cause him distress. By the way, yes both of my "boys" have their shots regularly.
Thanks for your interest.

[tessintrnc]

I have been to a few cat shows in the UK and I think that one of the most important things is a comfy cat box!! Somewhere where your cat feels safe. At cat shows they stay in the box till the last moment (In the Uk anyway) so its important that your cat is ok at being in one. If the cat gets very distressed at being cooped up for any length of time then it may not "show" well when the judges come round!! Cats usually like boxes - to get them used to it, get one now and leave it with an open door so they can go in and out as they please - put a favourite blanket and toy inside so they know it's "theirs". Good luck!!
Tess

[michalis5354]

Unless you bring the cat to the show you can not tell whether the cat will like the place or not. Most cats do not behave in a similar manner so their behaviour is different. But from what you have described above I can say that Lucky will be able to visit this show and I wish him the best of luck.

[GorillaGal]

i would have to agree with michalis5354.... Lucky would probably be pretty ok with going to the cat show. i would, however, get him a harness and get him used to wearing that when he is outside. you can't have him escaping on you and reaking all kinds of havok at the cat show.

[michalis5354]

.....But make sure there is no dog around !

[Tim Drayton]

Thanks for all your feedback. I am going to e-mail the show organisers and get some more information. I see that exhibitors are supposed to show up at 8 am and the show ends at 4 pm. I don't think I want to take my cat if he will be shut into a small box for six hours. I will make my mind up when I have more information about what happens.

[GorillaGal]

another thing i would suggest is to get a pheramone spray. ask your vet or pet care professional about it. it will help calm the nerves of a cat that is in unfamiliar territory, or just any different environement. i use Feelaway.

[tessintrnc]

GG am I right in thinking that the cats stay in the cages till shown? Do they stay in the boxes in the US?
Tess