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Our banner cat this month is CFA's 18th Best Cat in Premiership, GP, NW CATCHARM RED SKELTON a red mackerel tabby and white Cornish Rex neuter.
(photo by Chanan)
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CFA Central Office
Closed
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CFA Central Office will be CLOSED next Monday, February 18th, for President's Day.
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Is your club planning to license a show soon? Interested in trying an online version of the show license application?? If so, we'd love to have your help testing out a new online application form!
Please contact
CFA webmaster Kathy Durdick for instructions to access the new form.
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Membership lists are due in to Central Office by February 1, 2019 for a club to be eligible to vote in the Director-at-Large election.
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February was SUCH a busy month for CFA!! We're out of the "holiday slump" and the number of shows are increasing. Plus, from the reports, the CFA board meeting was very productive.
Happy Belated Valentines' Day to you and all of your "heart kitties."
Teresa
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The CFA Board meets in person three times a year. Our most recent meeting was earlier this month in Cleveland, Ohio. We met for a strategic planning session all day Friday that was very productive. Former board member Peg Johnson served as the Facilitator and a number of board members and committee chairs had prepared presentations to kick off discussions on a variety of topics. One of the most exciting is a project to computerize genetic color screening for our registrations. When finalized, the breeder will go online and indicate the registration number of the sire & dam. A drop-down menu will indicate the various color, coat length, and tabby pattern possibilities from those parents. The breeder will select from these genetically possible colors, etc. This will help eliminate kittens that are genetically impossible from being registered. Volunteers with genetic understanding will manually create tables showing the possible colors from the colors of the parents. We started with, and completed, the Devon Rex since that is the CFA recognized breed with the most colors, so the most complex breed to computerize. Devons come in 1,800 colors! Once the volunteers submit the table for a breed, it will be provided to the IT company that has the contract to program CFA work. CFA hired Steve Merritt to serve as the project manager for this effort. He is an Oriental breeder living in Michigan with years of IT experience. This is going to be an expensive endeavor but since registrations are our core business, the Board believes we need to move in this direction and approved the expense.
 Also at this Board meeting, the Toybob was accepted as a Miscellaneous breed. That means CFA will register Toybobs and effective with the new show season next May 1st they can be shown in the Miscellaneous Class. Toybob's are often considered one of the smallest breeds of cats. They have bobbed tails and come in a variety of colors although the color most often seen is seal point. They come in both shorthair and semi-longhair. Dr. Leslie Lyons did extensive testing. The gene for their bobbed tail is not the same gene found in American Bobtails, Japanese Bobtails, or Manx. The breed originated in Russia. They join the Lykoi and Khao Manee as CFA's newest breeds.
Congratulations to the Ragdoll which is CFA's most popular breed based on CFA's calendar year 2018 registrations. You can see a list of CFA's 2018 most popular breeds elsewhere in this Newsletter. No doubt many of you are wondering how the Ragdolls, for the first time, wound up on top. A very high percentage of CFA's registrations are from China and over half the cats registered by the Chinese are Ragdolls. Also, the number of Ragdolls registered in 2018 doubled from the number registered in 2017. What about the rest of the world? What is the most popular breed? In Japan & Asia the Exotic ranks at the top. In the International Division, excluding China, it's the Maine Coon Cat at the top. Since most of our newsletter subscribers are in North America, I know you want to know, and already suspect, which was the most registered breed.
REGIONS 1-7 MOST REGISTERED BREEDS:
2) Maine Coon Cat
3) Exotic
4) Ragdoll
5) Siamese
Overall, CFA registrations in 2018 increased 15.9% from the previous calendar year. Registrations increased in Regions 1-8 as well as in China which had a 30.7% increase in their numbers. Thanks to James Simbro and Dick Kallmeyer for the above registration data. Registrations are our core business so it is great to see these increases.
CFA is investing significantly back into the organization with major investments in our IT area as well as marketing. We continue to provide financial assistance to our shows with sponsorships for every show as well as for clubs that add a show to the calendar and we are expanding the sponsorships for in-conjunction shows which are shows held by CFA in conjunction with another cat registry (TICA, ACFA, WCF, etc.). We also provide financial assistance to shows with Agility. At the last board meeting we approved additional financial assistance to our shows in Europe in an attempt to see more CFA judges and fewer guest judges at their shows.
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Allene Tartaglia
It's Valentine's Day and the love and affection we all share with our cats is no more evident than by the joy and love the Central Office cats, Batman and Robin, share with everyone here in Ohio. As with all cats, Batman and Robin have their routines and have a daily schedule of whose area they visit and take a nap. As with all cats, they also change their routine for no apparent reason. Recently, I've had the pleasure of Batman and Robin hanging out with me during the day. I know it won't last and their routine will change again but it sure is great while it lasts!
If your club is holding a show with 8 rings or more, the show package may arrive in two boxes instead of one so be on the lookout.
Show Sponsorships are now being processed by Melissa Watson. Please send applications for sponsorship and post-show materials and direct any questions regarding the program to Melissa, [email protected].
Annual Meeting information will be posted online by next Friday, February 22, http://cfaannual.org
CFA is expanding our public presence by attending events such as large Pet Expos. We partnered with Garden State Cat Club for the Super Pet Expo held last week, February 8-10, in Edison, New Jersey. It was a great success with many spectators stopping by the CFA area. Our Director of Development, Jo Ann Miksa-Blackwell, was on site. A huge thank you to the club members who made this happen.
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CFA attendees at the Pet Expo included:
Left front row: Michael Jacobi, Jo Ann Miksa-Blackwell, Brenda Flahault, Diane Quass-Lopez, Diane Bove Back Row left to righ: Geri Fellerman, Liz Blanc, Susan Baxter |
 Did you know...that CFA just accepted its 44th breed for registration? The Toybob was accepted for registration at the February 2019 CFA Executive Board Meeting and will start appearing at CFA shows in the Miscellaneous Class effective May 1, 2019.
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Statement from the CFA Board of Directors
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Cat clubs affiliated with CFA in China are experiencing many unfortunate and difficult challenges in producing shows, due to outside individuals attempting to and sometimes succeeding in shutting down clubs' shows. The CFA Board of Directors, China Core Committee and Legal Counsels are working diligently with the China clubs, in the clubs' efforts to produce shows without the threat or harm of being shut down by local authorities.
Cat clubs affiliated with CFA in China experiencing these challenges are requesting that changes and exceptions be granted until the conditions can be improved and permanently resolved in order for them to remain in existence and keep CFA viable in China. The Board of Directors has an obligation to do what is needed and necessary to help these China clubs in these most difficult of times in the hopes of protecting these China activities. |
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Meet the Central Office Staff
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Darlene Anderson
Geri Fellerman 
Darlene joined our Central Office crew in April of 2018 in the registration department. Prior to joining us, she had years of medical billing experience, coupled with a general love of animals.
She is now the loving "mom" to seven cats. In addition, Darlene has two dogs - making for a full house.
Darlene was very excited when CFA moved to Alliance and was thrilled to finally get a job in our beautiful facility. Spending the day with friendly co-workers and the great office cats makes for a fun day every day. Getting used to the computer system was a bit of a challenge - quite different coding for cats as opposed to coding for medical billing
Not yet a visitor to a cat show, Darlene is looking forward to visiting the next one in the area - possibly entering one or two of her household pets.
Spare time is spent with her animals, but Darlene also enjoys walks and appreciating nature.
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Monte Phillips
CFA Show Rules Chair
At its February 2-3 meeting, the CFA Board approved several changes to show rules, most of which involved Article XXX, the various breed's acceptable color classes. In addition, the rules committee was requested to work up several other rules which I'll discuss at the end. First, what was changed that will become effective with the new show season that begins May 1, 2019.
Show Rule 12.05 was revised to impose a fine on clubs that do not submit judges' questionnaires or evaluation forms within 30 days of the completion of the show. Specifically, evaluations/questionnaires that are submitted 31-60 days late are subject to an additional $ 100.00 fine, those submitted greater than 60 days late are subject to an additional $ 500.00 fine. In addition, those clubs who haven't submitted the documents within 30 days will be considered "not in good standing", which means they can not put on any additional shows, send delegates to the annual, or vote in any pending CFA election.
read the complete article...
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Melanie Morgan
JPC Chair
Hello all, here are the Judging Program Committee advancements from the February 2nd CFA Board meeting:
Advancements:
Gavin Cao to Approval Pending Shorthair - 1st Specialty
Nicholas Pun to Approved Allbreed
Toshi Tsuchiya to Approved Allbreed
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The Bottom Line
May 1 - December 31, 2018
Kathy Calhoun
CFA Treasurer
Registrations: Remain stable and is delivering incremental income to the bottom line. There is detailed reporting in the Treasurer's report posted on the CFA website.
- Publications: From a net profit perspective the Yearbook is delivering a slight profit of $4,342 while the Almanac is delivering a minor loss of $502.
- Central Office: Expenses have increased which is driven by moderate salary increases and filling open positions. CFA is now offering employees an IRA which is a critical benefit for attracting and making CFA a competitive employer in Alliance, Ohio.
- Computer Expense: The computer upgrade and data migration remain on track.
- Corporate Expense: Trending over budget largely due to incremental legal counsel.
- Events
- CFA Annual & Awards Banquet - Atlanta: The event was a significant success well attended and enjoyed. That being said, the event cost CFA $132,229. The CFA Board has created a subcommittee to work through opportunities to manage costs while not compromising the integrity of the event.
- CFA International Cat Show - Cleveland: The International was a huge success. The gate was tremendous! Social media was a significant part of bringing in spectators. Special attractions gave the spectators tons of things to do while watching the fabulous cats that participated. Judges were fabulous and exhibitors were great ambassadors of CFA. The event delivered a profit of $17,323! CFA will be back in October 2019 - Don't miss it! Even more fun being planned!!
Bottom Line:
For all who attended the CFA Annual in Atlanta, you may remember this is the year of investing profits gained in prior years back into CFA. As a result, a loss is being budgeted this year, however, the news through December is good!
Net income for May 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018 is positive $17,135. This is $172,185 better than budget!
A detailed report will be available on the CFA website but as always feel free to reach out to me with your questions at any time at
[email protected].
Thank you for supporting CFA...Kathy
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Carla Bizzell
CFA Breeds and Standards Chair
Starting with the May 2019-April 2020 Breed Council Term, membership cards will no longer be mailed to members. After submitting new applications or renewals, there will be an area on the CFA website where members can find their name and the list of breed council(s) to which they belong. In addition, there will be a check box available (when renewing online or via form) to request full sets of Show Rules and Show standards (one set per person) in lieu of the current check box that indicates that the member does NOT want the materials mailed. Copies of the Show Rules/Show Standards are available electronically on the CFA website.
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The Cat Fanciers' Association, Inc. Breeds In Order by Popularity
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For the period January 1 - December 31, 2018 (Based on Registration Totals)
| RANK |
BREED |
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RANK |
BREED |
| 1 |
Ragdoll |
24 |
RagaMuffin |
| 2 |
Exotic |
25 |
American Curl |
| 3 |
British Shorthair |
26 |
Japanese Bobtail |
| 4 |
Persian |
27 |
Manx |
| 5 |
Maine Coon Cat |
|
28 |
Egyptian Mau |
| 6 |
American Shorthair |
29 |
Somali |
| 7 |
Devon Rex |
30 |
Balinese |
| 8 |
Sphynx |
31 |
Singapura |
| 9 |
Scottish Fold |
32 |
Colorpoint Shorthair |
| 10 |
Abyssinian |
|
33 |
Lykoi |
| 11 |
Oriental |
34 |
Chartreux |
| 12 |
Household Pets |
35 |
Turkish Angora |
| 13 |
Siamese |
36 |
European Burmese |
| 14 |
Norwegian Forest Cat |
37 |
Bombay |
| 15 |
Cornish Rex |
|
38 |
Khao Manee |
| 16 |
Bengal |
39 |
Burmilla |
| 17 |
Russian Blue |
40 |
Korat |
| 18 |
Siberian |
41 |
American Bobtail |
| 19 |
Burmese |
42 |
Havana Brown |
| 20 |
Birman |
|
43 |
LaPerm |
| 21 |
Tonkinese |
44 |
Turkish Van |
| 22 |
Ocicat |
45 |
American Wirehair |
| 23 |
Selkirk Rex |
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Show Marketing Support
Desiree Bobby, Director of Marketing
"
Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."
Helen Keller
In today's #adoptdontshop world, we need to seize every opportunity to build relationships, generate goodwill, and earn trust from the cat loving community. CFA Cat Shows offer a unique opportunity for people to interact with our fascinating breeds of cats and to get a firsthand sense of the cat fancy through our perspective. Through thoughtful marketing efforts, we can generate more gate and promote our cause.
CFA Cat Show Marketing involves show advertising of course but it also involves the selling of event tickets and creating at-show spectator experiences. Your club can cater to your spectators by utilizing "Square" for credit cards and offering online ticket sales. Cat Shows must be easy to discover, easy to obtain tickets to and memorable enough to make an impact. When done well, our shows can have the power to create lasting and powerful impressions and bring in more profit.
In order to support clubs in the marketing of shows, the CFA Marketing Committee has created a Facebook group to provide show marketing support. If you would like to collaborate on best practices, please join us:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/CFAShowMarketing
Please note: in order to be accepted into the group, specific questions pertaining to your club/show will need to be answered.
_______________________________
CFA Marketing Committee
Kathy Black, Marketing Chairperson
Desiree Bobby, Director of Marketing
Mike Altschul, Marketing Committee Member
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CFA Shines at NJ Super Pet Expo
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Brenda Flahault - President, Garden State Cat Club of NJ, Inc.
Jo Ann Miksa-Blackwell - CFA Director of Development
 CFA and the Garden State Cat Club of NJ joined pigs, a horse, rabbits, reptiles, skunks, parrots and dogs at this year's Super Pet Expo February 8-10 at the NJ Convention &Exposition Center at Raritan Center in Edison, NJ., located in the New York City Metro area.
With less than two months to pull this off, The Cat Fanciers' Association., Garden State Cat Club of NJ, and the Super Pet Expo staff collaborated, Super Pet Expo advertising extensively, and the GSCC utilizing social media to announce CFA/GSCC presence at the event. Three TV stations filmed segments at the show.
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(above and below) The Pet Me cat area was popular! |
Approximately 12,000 visitors attended in addition totwo-hundred exhibitors. This was the perfect stage for CFA to showcase pedigreed cats in a Pet Me booth and a Feline Agility arena, and the crowd was thrilled to have CAT presence at an event that previously featured mostly dogs. For the first time there was a "Cat Alley" which included about ten cat vendors who displayed our Garden State show postcards, and we reciprocated with their brochures. We were the "anchor" that drew these vendors.
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Team Agility
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Young folks enjoying the Pet Me cats!
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All weekend, Jill Archibald and Niki Feniak's Agility ring was buzzing with eager participants who received certificates and ribbons for their participation. Garden State CC and friends provided ten different breeds for the audience to pet and cuddle.
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First time in Agility!
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CFA graciously sent new Director of Development Jo Ann Miksa-Blackwell, who with club members, enthusiastically encouraged he gate to pet cats and participate in Feline Agility. We intentionally targeted families giving them CFA coloring books and literature from our information table along with Garden State Expo/Show discount postcard coupons to encourage them to attend our event in the same show hall in July. Kids and cats are magic together, and the fancy will profit from events like this that will grow the Fancy among current and future generations!
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Pet Expo an Opportunity for CFA
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Jo Ann Miksa-Blackwell, CFA Director of Development
My first Pet Expo experience was on February 10
th
at the Super Pet Expo in Edison, New Jersey. What a huge success it was! Special thanks to Brenda Flahault, Garden State Cat Club Members, and Jill "Agility" Archibald, who all came forward so quickly to help make this happen.
It was not until late 2018 that this opportunity became available to CFA. We quickly realized that having a local club in the area made all the difference in the world and their support made this successful event possible. In addition, Desiree Bobby, Director of Marketing, was participating off location by posting social media to the world and her posts were generated onto interactive screens at the Expo. Thanks, Desiree
!
I witnessed amazing teamwork and a dedication to the mission of CFA. True friendships made this event extra fun, and the booth attracted cat lovers in an interactive atmosphere that educated and engaged attendees. Pet Me Cats seemed happy with all the gentle petting they received during the Expo, and Garden State members passed out cards promoting their upcoming show. I witnessed firsthand many young people and parents enthusiastically participating throughout the booth.
Lily Strauss (right and below) was one of the young people attending the Expo. When Lily arrived at the CFA booth, she was greeted by Garden State CC President, Brenda Flahault. With gentle caring kindness,
Brenda showed Lily around the area and introduced her to Agility Masters Jill Archibald and Niki Feniak. As Lily entered the Agility Ring, her talents sprang to life, a big smile lit up her face, and she instinctively tuned in to Niki Feniak's coaching on how to navigate the agility course. Lily and Jill's Agility cat connected immediately, and all the spectators were awestruck as this 8-year old quickly took control of the Agility Ring.
Lily's father, Robert Strauss, watched with amusement and said, "Lily loves her cat, Jasmine; they always snuggle and play." Maybe that's what prepared Lily to quickly become a talented first-time agility expert.
(click here to see Lily in action.)
Perhaps Lily Strauss will become the youngest Agility Master to join CFA's team of trainers!
Plans are underway for the Pittsburgh Pet Expo. Great Lakes Regional Director, John Colilla, is in the process of exploring best options. In addition, CFA is planning on doing five or six expos per year. We are looking for great locations where cat shows are held, clubs are located, and members are willing to take on leadership roles. These types of collaborations support CFA and promote upcoming shows in each region. If your region has an Expo that you would like CFA to explore, please reach out to me and let me know of your interest. Thank you!
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Teresa Keiger
Editor
The February issue of Cat Talk should be arriving at subscribers' mailboxes any day now! It's our annual breeding issue, where we take a look at the special issues that breeders face. In this year's issue, we discuss how to get started in breeding, advice for breeders, establishing a good working relationship with your vet, coping with problem pedigrees, and looking at false pregnances. PLUS the beginning of the series that we've been working on for some time: the effects of nature vs. nurture on a kitten.
There's more information about using Facebook to increase your show's attendance, "What You Don't Know About Ragdolls," the first CFA show in Egypt, and dealing with feline periodontal disease.
Remember that you can subscribe to either the print or the online version of Cat Talk. It's available online through the Kindle Newsstand or through Magzter. Complete ordering information is here.
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WINN FELINE FOUNDATION
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A list of our donors contributing $100 or more in January is available here
2019 has been off to a very busy start. Winn Feline Foundation had a presence and participated in the following events in January.
- Gulf Cost Feline Show
- VMX Veterinary Conference
- San Diego Cat Show
- Houston Cat Show
- TNCC- TICA International Cat Show
Having a presence and participating in events such as these, allows us to build awareness of who we are and what we do, thus providing even more potential for support in our efforts and making significant progress within feline health research. This is our mission and every cat, every day benefits from Winn funded research.
Winn Feline Foundation is once again partnering with the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) announcing two scholarships for third- or fourth-year veterinary students enrolled in accredited veterinary colleges or schools in the United States or Canada. The $2,500 awards are based upon academic achievement, financial need, leadership, and dedication to and excellence in the study of feline medicine, health, and welfare.
The Boards of Directors of both the AAFP and Winn are thrilled to offer these scholarships to support future veterinarians and continue to advance feline medicine. These two leading feline-dedicated organizations are offering one $2,500 scholarship for a veterinary student with an interest in feline practice and the second $2,500 scholarship for a veterinary student with an interest in clinical scientific research.
Winn's Chronic Kidney Disease Campaign reached its goal of $50,000. We are so very grateful for all of the support that was received during 2018 and appreciate everything you do for all cats across the world.
Planned Giving by George Eigenhauser
Income tax reforms going into effect in 2018 may have changed the amount of income taxes due on your return. The new, higher standard deductions and lower tax rates could increase refunds for many taxpayers. But reduced withholdings from paychecks, the elimination of personal exemptions, and limitations on certain itemized deductions could result in a higher tax bill this year for others. If you receive a much larger refund when you file your 2018 return that's both good news and bad news. A large refund means, in essence, that you have made an interest free loan of your money to the government. The IRS has a tax tool to help you determine the proper withholding amounts for your paycheck: https://www.irs.gov/paycheck-checkup. However, as you file your 2018 taxes you should review your withholding amounts. Proper withholding can increase the size of your paycheck and let you enjoy your money sooner
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By Kelly Crouch, CFA Legislative Information Liaison
The 2019 State Legislatures are Getting Started
With the beginning of the year comes the start of state legislative sessions and legislators scrabbling to meet filing deadlines. Often bills expected to be controversial are filed at the last minute to minimize time opponents have to respond, so we can expect more bills to be added to the tracking list. Although it is still early in most state sessions, it is possible to start seeing some common themes in animal related legislation. Some common threads we may track but do not always report on, include animal abuse registries, increasing penalties for animal cruelty, penalizing people who misrepresent their pets as service animals, and prohibition against pet leasing or installment sales used as predatory leasing financing schemes. Some of these laws will occasionally include fancier practices. More frequently the type of legislation that impacts fanciers include such things as breeder licensing or bans, mandatory spay/neuter, overreaching restrictions on sales, and mandatory microchipping.
The CFA Legislative Group has created a short list of legislation of interest to fanciers (click here to see this month's list) While it is only February, one bill on the short list has already died. This may happen in states with short legislative sessions. Other state legislatures proceed at a more leisurely pace in comparison. Fanciers may be dealing with those bills for a long time.
Over 15 bills from 10 states stretching from the east coast to the west coast start off this year's short list. Connecticut, Hawaii, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Washington all have bills prohibiting the sale of cats, dogs and sometimes rabbits or regulate the source of such animals. Other bills are outlined below.
Arizona H.B. 2329 would expand the liability of pet dealers under state consumer protection laws.
Mississippi S.B. 2101 would have created a licensing requirement to operate as a pet dealer, kennel, stable, or shelter but it died in committee.
New Hampshire has 3 bills that could impact cat fanciers. Senate Bill 161 would amend the current definition of pet vendor to include anyone who transfers 20 or more live animals customarily used as household pets in a 12 month period. House Bill 688 would define and track all Hobby Breeders which are defined as anyone who transfers 30 or fewer animals for a fee in a 12 month period. House Bill 371 would add cattery and cats to the existing definition of commercial breeder.
New York A.B. 351 would reduce the pet dealer exclusion threshold from 25 animals to 15 animals per year.
Rhode Island S.B. 160 would require every breeder, purchaser, or other person or entity coming into possession of an unchipped dog or cat to have the animal microchipped within 30 days.
The legislative process continues so please check back frequently for updates in your area. Let us know if you need help fighting detrimental legislation.
Recent CFA Legislative Group Blog Post:
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Current Topics in Legislation: Consumer Protection Pet Leases and Finance Legislation must Preserve Fancier Breeding Practices, January 14, 2019.
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Karen Lane
CFA Ambassador Cats co-chair
Putting two committees together as one is a difficult job in any organization. But the good part of this re-organization is the opportunity to look at what we have been doing and where we are headed. Sometimes it is easy to keep the "status-quo" because it works.
As we all are now focused forward; sometimes what is old, is new again. All of our future Ambassador Cat Sturdi equipment is going back to the orange paw print material. The new equipment will also have the CFA logo on the front panels. We loved this look in the past, and now we get to love it again. Rich from Sturdi has discovered some of our old fabric and we have earmarked it all for our future use. We are excited about this happening and the addition of the logo puts CFA, front and center in the eyes of our spectators.
We are also changing many of the Pet Me Cats into Ambassador Cats. Our new website will list all of our Ambassador Cats and our Ambassadors so clubs can contact them directly for their shows. Two more Ambassador Cats will be added this coming month. Next month we will have all of their names and their photos, both the new A-Cats and our continuing A-Cats. It is a challenging time, but we are moving ahead with many new faces and cats.
I have been remiss in congratulating Nancy Bueno and Danny for receiving a CFA Star Award this past year. Nancy and Danny
(right) are some of our oldest Ambassador Cat members and they are regularly seen in our western states. Nancy and Danny are the third Ambassador Cat to receive this coveted award. The other two Ambassador Cats who have received a CFA Star award are Shirley Peet and Hope
(below), and Kathy Pritchard and her Fashionistas
(below, right).
Part of our re-organization has fallen a little short, we are not getting our Ambassadors registered into the new program. Jim Flanik is our program secretary, and he is our contact and records person. This will be the third month that we are asking our Ambassadors for their information. Please, please
contact Jim Flanik at
[email protected] so we can be up-to-date in this part of our program.
I want to thank Candilee Jackson, Joel Chaney and Jim Flanik for their effort and I want to thank CFA for giving us the opportunity to do great things for our association.
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| Our friends at Motel 6 would like CFA to continue to receive the 10% discount at participating locations by using the new updated reservation code of OAPHHT. There is a dedicated reservation site for CFA at https://www.motel6.com/en/cp/cat-fanciers-association.html or you may call 800-466-8356. |
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Discounts Available to You!
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by Sharon Roy, Regional Director
It was wintry and cold in Burlington, VT the weekend of January 12-13, but warm and wonderful inside the Double Tree by Hilton where almost two thousand people visited the annual cat show. (All those under the age of six were not counted.) Though the city is home to four colleges, in addition to this younger set that changes each year, we have built up a sound base of regulars who return, sometimes even looking for that "favorite" cat they had met the year before.
In addition to the usual time spent watching the judging, visiting the vendors, and spending time with the Pet Me Cats, Vermont has the beauty of a presentation amphitheater that seats about 70 and has stadium seating. Built for presentations, there isn't really a need for a mic in this room. Located across from the actual show hall, it is the perfect setting for our Breed Showcase. This has always been a favorite for spectators. 
This year we had twenty breeds represented with eight breeds having both a kitten and a cat in the program. Much of the success can be attributed to Judge Sharon Roy's ability to make it interesting and informative without being too academic. She also brought the exhibitors into the conversation to let the audience have a good idea of what that particular breed is like in a home environment. The program was casual and relaxed and enjoyed by all, especially the cats.
Left: standing room only during the breed presentations.
Right: Sharon Roy guides one of the cats down the "catwalk"
What the audiences seemed to like best were the circular tables in front of the first row, now truly called the catwalk. Those cats that were the most relaxed enjoyed taking a stroll the length of this while being petted and fussed over by those lucky enough to have front row seats. (Yes, there were spray bottles of disinfectant and paper towels along the catwalk to keep all safe and clean.) With standing room only at the four presentations, two each day, this was certainly a success.
 We also had some exhibitors with Pet Me Cat signs on their cages who allowed spectators to enjoy the cats close up. These are the good remembrances that spectators will take home with them when they leave.
We plan to do it again next year. Fill in the date for January 11-12, 2020. Hope to see you!
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Terri Zittel, Regional Secretary
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Even Garfield was up for some little-seen winter sports!
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The
state of Washington and much of Oregon is buried under 6 inches or more of snow. This happens infrequently but puts all of us indoors and catching up on cleaning and paperwork.
Scheduled for February 16 & 17, 2019 is the Call of the Wild Cat Fanciers show in Santa Rosa, CA. Show flier and information can be found at cfanorthwest.org on the show calendar.
March has a full line-up of shows: Tails and No Tails Cat Club on March 2 & 3, 2019 in San Jose, CA.
March 9 & 10, 2019 is the McKenzie River Cat Fanciers show in Portland, OR. This show is in honor of Betty Denny's 100
th
Birthday. Betty is a longtime resident of Portland, OR and now lives in Indiana. Betty judged for ACFA and later for CFA for many, many years. She is coming out for the show with her grand-daughters. She has also created a small queen-size quilt for us to raffle off at the show. We are honoring Betty with cake, flowers and cards. If you wish to send a card, but won't be attending the show, please send it in care of Terri Zittel, 32004 26
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Ave SW, Federal Way, WA 98023.
March 16 & 17, 2019 is the annual IdaCats show in Boise, Idaho. Fliers and information may be found at cfanorthwest.org/show calendar.
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Lillian earned her GPD title in Marilee Griswold's ring
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Region 2 is proud to announce that GP NW Silencedryad Lillian of Big Ben achieved the title of Grand Premier of Distinction at the Seattle Cat Club show on February 2, 2019. Lillian is a blue patched spotted tabby Selkirk Rex shorthair bred by Sara Sau Wah Ng and beautifully shown by Eric and Andrea Cavanaugh.
I would also like to recognize Cammie and Cassie Pedersen. The mother/daughter team is responsible for getting stewards for our Upper Northwest shows. If there is an agility ring, Cammie is the ring master. These are no easy tasks and I want to thank them for the 100% efforts that they put into these endeavors.
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| by Leesa Altschul
On February 2nd & 3rd, we had the Wichita Cat Fancy cat show in Wichita, KS. They had perfect weather too - warm temperatures and no snow! Brian Pearson, Allene Keating, Joyce Kempf and some GSR people helped put on the fun and successful show.
It was obvious that the Facebook advertising brought in the crowds of young and old spectators. Wichita Cat Fancy counted over 2,100 excited cat-loving spectators over the weekend.
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Wichita Costume Contest Winner
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They also had a costume contest, which was a huge hit with the crowds. Swarms of people flocked to the judging ring to watch the contest and they had a good time.
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Rebecca Emilie Koester |
One of our NewBee's was Rebecca Emilie Koester who was showing her Norwegian Forest Cat kitten. Her kitten had fun playing with the judges' toys and going up the scratching posts too.
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| Toni Huff |
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Toni Huff's Japanese Bobtail, GC, GP, RW Gulfcats Big In Japan, accomplished his Grand of Distinction requirements at the show!
Congratulations to a well-run and successful show! I'm sure we are all looking forward to it next year!
Here is a link
to the video of the show.
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| Dr. Warren Jouburt |
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It is with much sadness that I report Dr. Warren Joubert, 63, lost his battle with cancer February 5th.
Warren is very well known to our region as a strong supporter of our cat shows. Even when very ill and unable to walk, he attended the Houston Cat Club show. He sent a Cornish Rex to the Birmingham show recently and was thrilled to hear that it made some finals.
He also had one of his Persian kittens agented at the Wichita show.
Warren loved his cats, loved to show his cats. He was a highly respected and loved Veterinarian to many in the Louisiana and Texas area.
Warren bred Persians under the cattery Catcharm, but after Marge Collier died he took her Cornish Rex. Warren and his playful Cornish were shown side by side with his Persians at our shows. He achieved a National Win with GP, NW Catcharm Red Skelton last show season.
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Warren Joubert & Red |
During his career he served with several groups. He was a member of the American Veterinarian Medical Association, the Central Louisiana Veterinarian Medical Association (served as secretary), the Cat Fanciers Association, and the CENLA Cat Fanciers Association. He was named as Louisiana Veterinarian of the Year in 2014. Warren dedicated his time to the care of animals, but when he had a chance, he enjoyed catfishing. He will be dearly missed by all who knew him.
Warren and his family were very grateful for the GoFundMe created to help with the placement of his cats, and his medical bills. If you wish to donate
here is the link.
The family request memorials be made to Boudreaux's Animal Rescue Krewe (BARK) at PO Box 404, Tioga, LA 71417; or to an animal charity of your choice.
Upcoming Region 3 Shows
- February 23-24: Wildcatters Cat Club & Magnolia State Cat Club. Orange, TX
- March 16-17: Ozark Cat Fanciers. Mesquite, TX.
- March 30: Greater Baton Rouge Cat Club. Gonzales, LA.
- April 06: Oklahoma City Cat Club, Inc. Norman, OK.
- April 13-14: Foot of the Rockies Cat Club. Loveland, CO.
- April 20: North Texas Cat Club. Mesquite, TX.
- April 21: Fort Worth Cat Club. Mesquite, TX.
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by John Colilla, Regional Director
Be sure to mark your calendar with our upcoming shows:
- Mar 02-03 -- Genesee Cat Fanciers Club - Rochester NY, 7AB 3SP HHP
- Mar 16-17 -- American Tabby And Tortie (Additional sponsor: Fyfe And Drum Himalayan Club) Pittsburgh PA, 6AB 2SP
- Apr 06-07 - Mid-Ohio Cat Fanciers - Mansfield OH, 7AB 3SP 10HHP
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by Howard Webster, Regional Director
The past few weeks have been quite busy! We had the San Diego Cat Fancier's Food & Water Bowl XXVII, which is the largest show in the western United States and XXVII on January 26 & 27 this year was no exception!
For the 8,000 spectators who visited the show this year, there was plenty for them to enjoy! In addition to the 280 plus cats on exhibit, the Meow Mall had over 40 spectacular vendors, and non-stop competition in the 8 judging rings!
 The Education Ring featured beautiful pedigreed breeds, Household Pets, and shelter/rescue cats.
CFA judges, experienced exhibitors, and experts presented talks on the history of our earliest breeds, introduced several rare breeds, breed personality traits, how cats think, ways to train cats, and how to show in Household Pet competition and Agility. This is a great way to introduce spectators to the idea of showing cats.
The 7 rescue groups attending the show had several of their cats entered in Household Pet competition, making up part of the 47 entries from across the nation in this class. They have also reported that 27 cats and kittens were adopted from the show and an additional 20 in the days that followed. This is awesome!
If you have never attended this show you should certainly add it to your to-do list! This show is one of a kind and a great deal of fun!
This past weekend, we had another California show in Palm Springs, Salute to Americans presented by Victor Valley, Friends & Family, and Americans West Cat Clubs. This well attended show featured a spectacular pot-luck lunch, with six fabulous judges, and lots of fun and camaraderie! As the name implies, there was a GREAT showing of American Shorthairs, American Bobtails, and American Curls. Everybody enjoyed themselves immensely!
We have the Malibu show in Glendale, CA the 23rd of February, a 6 ring one day show.
There is the SWR Fundraiser show on March 9th, in Phoenix, AZ. We are planning workshops and talks for spectators to learn more about taking care of the pet and possibly showing their own cat in our HHP class. Also for you who are flying in we have the Hampton Inn, Phoenix Airport. They do have a shuttle to and from the airport.
Then we have the Los Colores show in Palm Springs, again a one day 6 ring show.
What a great time to get out of all that snow and nasty weather the rest of the country is having and enjoy the weather of Region 5! With temperatures in the 60s and 70s, what else could you ask for? Hope to see you soon!
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by Mary Auth, Regional Director
It's a month of love and hugs, kings and queens and more at Midwest Region shows. At the end of January, Saintly City hosted their annual show amidst Winter Carnival. The show attracts a large gate and is active part of the Carnival. In fact, the King of the Carnival comes by on Sunday and crowns the King and Queen of the household pets. (see photos below).
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Soft robes and crowns embellished with gold trim are handmade for the best Household Pet male and female.
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The Winter Carnival King announces the names of the King and Queen.
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Always around the time of Valentine's Day, the Hawkeye State Cat Club hosts their show in Altoona, Iowa. A video outlining the show
is on their Facebook site.
Stay tuned for photos of the Lincoln State Cat Club's 11 ring show on February 23-24 in St. Charles, Illinois. The Illini Cat Club hosts their show on March 2-3 in Urbana, Illinois with fun surprises in their raffle. Mo-Kan follows with their show on March 9 in Lenexa, Kansas.
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by Kenny Currle, Regional Director
Plans are coming together for the regional awards show and banquet!
The events will be held in Timonium, MD June 22-23 at the Maryland State Fairgrounds. This show will be an in-conjunction show with Capital Cat, a local TICA club. What this means is that both shows will run concurrently in the same show hall, with each show on different sides of the building. This allows the clubs to share the show hall rental expenses, gives each association a glimpse of what the other is like, and provides our spectators with an even greater show experience. Dave Peet will be show manager. Yes, this is the weekend before the CFA Annual but we moved to this date as the event is in the northern part of the region and we wanted to give exhibitors in Regions 1 and 4 the opportunity to participate in the show. We have also heard that some of our more southern-located exhibitors are making Timonium a waypoint on their way north to the Annual, which is a great idea!
The show hotel and banquet venue is the Red Lion, also in Timonium and two blocks from the show hall. This hotel normally does not allow pets. However they are making an exception for us. The room rate is $89/night + incidentals with a $50 REFUNDABLE pet deposit if the room is left clean and undamaged.
Recent Shows
Birmingham Feline Fanciers
Cindy Steadham, Co-Show Manager
 The Birmingham Feline Fanciers held their 47th Annual CFA Show on January 26-27, 2019. Our show was dedicated to Adrienne Bussey, our club member who passed away late last year. She was a dedicated club member who was devoted to her beloved Siamese breed and contributed tremendously to the BFF club. We will miss her tremendously.
This year's much anticipated event saw over 1,000 spectators who came to see our beautiful cats, to listen to the judges describe each breed of cat and to shop with many vendors. There were also two rescues who successfully adopted out several cats. The BFF club members send their thanks to all exhibitors, judges, clerks, and spectators for making the show what it was. 
Congratulations to Best Cat in Show, Wyndchymes And The Beat Goes On, Red Patterned & White Japanese Bobtail - Shorthair. Congratulations to Best HHP in Show, Little Speckled Kitty Cat Iris, Black Tortie & White.(shown right)
Star City/Central Carolina Cat Fanciers
Teresa Keiger
Charlotte Shelburne - photos
 Star City Cat Fanciers, with Central Carolina Cat Fanciers, held its annual winter show in Roanoke, VA January 24-25. The Holiday Inn had recently completed a year-long renovation of the facility and everyone loved the updates. Hotel shows are always popular with exhibitors and this year marked the show's 20th anniversary! Show manager Charlotte Shelburne celebrated the show's ongoing success mid-afternoon Saturday with cake for everyone! There were lots of great cats, smiling faces, and lots of new grands by the end of the show. Regional Director Kenny Currle held a brief regional meeting on Saturday afternoon.
While exhibitors enthusiastically supported the show, it was the spectator turnout that was our biggest surprise. Many spectators come back year after year, but this year hundreds of new spectators came to the show as well! The investment in heavy Facebook advertising and Wendy Carson's and Mike Altschul's expertise paid off in spades. (and beautiful weather in January did not hurt either!) Many exhibitors sat in the judging rings for hours, enthralled by the cats, and eager to know more about our breeds.
Pawprints in the Sand and Chamberlin on the Bay
Beth Deal, Co-manager
 The Pawprints in the Sand and Chamberlin on the Bay Cat Clubs held their annual show on Saturday, February 2, 2019. For the first time we ventured into serious advertising through Facebook. We normally have a very good gate, this year it was beyond phenomenal. For most of the day exhibitors really had to work to get their cats to rings, both trying to get through the crowds and answering questions about their cats as they walked. Because of the awkward set up of the show hall we would really like to thank all of the exhibitors for their patience.
We had to have a last minute judging change when Gary Powell had to back out due to health reasons. We were so lucky that Teresa Keiger was available and willing to make the drive up from Greensboro. All of the judges did an exemplary job of both attentively judging and educating the visitors. We had many visitors that just picked a ring and stayed for the day remarking that they learned so much from their particular judge. Now we will take all of the feedback from exhibitors, judges, and guests and try to make the 2020 Pawprints in the Sand/Chamberlin on the Bay Cat Show better for everyone.
Upcoming shows in the region:
- March 9-10: Atlanta Phoenix Cat Society - Cumming, GA
- March 9-10: Crab and Mallet Cat Club - Timonium, MD
- March 16-17: Coastal Paws Cat Club - Raleigh, NC
- March 23-24: Tennessee Valley Cat Fanciers - Knoxville, TN
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Kayoko Koizumi, Regional Director
No report this month |
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by Michael Schleissner, Regional Director
The end of January and beginning of February 2019 has been a very busy time for CFA board members as they prepared their individual topics for the meeting in Cleveland. I want to invite you to come to the CFA homepage to read the minutes, so that you have an impression what we are talking about in open sessions.
Another subject is our regional show reports. I kindly want to ask you to submit to me reports from your successful shows the clubs have done. During the time of the former regional director I had the responsibility to organize this. I would love to go on, but I need your help, as it's not possible to write something without having information.
We are a multiple-language region, which sometime make it very difficult to communicate. The first step should be to translate CFA Show rules and CFA standards in our European languages. We want to do this as professionally as possible, but we have to keep an eye also on the costs. We already have a translator for Russian; we look for French, Spanish, and Italian. So,if you know somebody who is willing to do, please let me know. The translation job will be paid.
Agreement With the French Organization LOOF
I'm proud to announce that this last weekend the CFA board of directors approved the agreement with the French LOOF organization. This agreement regulates the successful working together on in-conjunction shows ( CFA & LOOF ) in France. This agreement is the result of a longtime negotiation between the two organizations. I want to thank the CFA board of directors and the LOOF board of directors for approving this document. More information as soon as available on our regional homepage.
CFA Incentive Program for Europe
I try to make a long story short. Since my first board meeting in June 2018 I started to work on how can we make a CFA show look more like a CFA show. The first step to my point of view is to get back CFA judges on our European shows. Almost all other organizations work with their own judges. CFA Europe has a special show rule 3.13, in this show rule is exactly described how many guest judges can be used, depending on how many rings are approved. My intention is for CFA to sponsormoney for replacing guest judges with American/Asian CFA judges.
This program starts with the new show season 2019 / 2020. In total we are talking about a budget of around 25,000 USD. Clubs must apply for this money 90 days before the show date. Sponsorship can be done till the budget is used in total. Clubs have to apply for this sponsorship with the regional director and CFA Central Office.
More detail and forms soon on the regional homepage and detailed information already on the official region 9 FB page.
Final question; is anybody interested to form a Region 9 Europe "Exotic Shorthair Breed Club" to give the European Exotic breeders one voice? Would be curious to know this.
From the Perspective of an Exhibitor
submitted by Alice Rossol
Region 9 is moving forward! There will be new clubs and more shows in new and old countries! We are glad to announce that in beautiful Bulgaria a new club got established "again," as there has been one before. The initiators are organizing a great show event in Bulgaria's capital Sofia. Bulgaria's Cat Fanciers is the new club from that country that was just recently accepted into the CFA Region 9 family. The country is located in southeastern Europe. CFA was present there a few years ago, and some nice shows were provided by the club that existed in the country in the past. The new club is created now to provide CFA shows and to advertise CFA generally in the Balkans. President Eva Sharlopova, Vice President Stefan Gerginov, and Secretary Martin Popov build a powerful and ambitious team.
"We do believe we will be able to cover CFA standards and we are very thankful to the board for their trust in us and our new club. Our creed is: labour, perseverance and positivism!"
That's the spirit in Region 9, from north to south! In the northern part of Europe Cat Fanciers of Finland have been improving the CFA family too - with steadily growing shows and numbers of exhibitors. They even manged to grand the very first Household Pet in Region 9. Congratulations! Now Secretary Pauli Huhtaniemi came up with the gorgeous idea to get the new cages sponsored. In their last show in January the club already proudly presented them, nicer - stainless steel, and bigger and more comfortable. The Club offered the "probably one the weirdest sponsoring opportunities ever." Weird but it worked. Within 7 days all 50 cages were sponsored. For 30€/37US each sponsor will receive a plate into cage stating "Cage sponsored by person / cattery." This plate will be in cage as long as cages are used, at least 10 years. So for sure a great idea which will find hopefully more and more followers. |
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by Dick Kallemyer
Scenes from the Black Cat Club show in Hong Kong on January 19, 2019. The show had a very large attendance at the Hong Kong Convention Center.
right:
The "100 cat" scroll was displayed in Hong Kong once again
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The United Feline Odyssey (UFO) club had their show in Kowloon, Hong Kong on January 13. Here are the judges and club members.
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The Java Feline Society held their show January 12, 2019 in Tangerang, Indonesia (near Jakarta). They awarded special prizes at the end of the show to all the Bests.
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Have a question or a comment about the CFA Newsletter?
Teresa Keiger
CFA Newsletter Editor
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Our thanks to Phebe Low and the members of the Hong Kong Black Cat Club for taking such good care of the scroll while in their custody and for arranging the magnificent display at the pet expo. It was a joy to see people huddled around the display case, and taking photos of the full-size full-color print hanging on the wall.
