Relacja z Międzynarodowej Wystawy Kotów w Toruniu – lipiec 2022

On the weekend of 23 and 24 July, we went to The International Cat Show in Toruń organised byt Stowarzyszenie Hodowców Kotów. It was the first show for us in a long time. Previously, our girls reached titles, that required trips abroad or – in the case of Helenka – to world-class shows. The possibility of participating in this kind of event is more difficult with females due to the pregnancy and the period of raising offspring. After that, trips were limited and most cat shows cancelled due to the pandemic. During that period of time Elmirka went on a well-deserved retirement after castration. We also  had a litter from Helen at the beginning of 2022. When the kittens grew up and received the first two series of vaccinations, we decided to go to the cat sho again.

On Saturday morning we went with Charlie, Cookie and Elmirka for a trip to Toruń. The boys competed in the Open Class of kittens at the age of 3-6 months. It was the first such experience for them. We were curious how they would deal with the new situation and how they would behave in front of the judges and what they will say. We were excited also because we consider leaving Cookie as a breeding male.

Fortunately, it turned out we were unnecessarily worried, because the boys didn’t mind the rush and commotion at the exhibition. Well, they didn’t like the fact that they had to stay in a cage, but they got used to it over time.

On the first day of the show, Cookie and Charlie were judged twice. The first time they were both evaluated by judge Wycichowski. They went to the table together in the new booth. Cookie was examined first, and while he was making friends with the judge, Charlie was still sleeping in the booth. He was then very surprised when I had to wake him up and take him out to the judge’s table. Cookie, on the other hand, couldn’t stand staying inside and had to stuck his head out of the booth to see if his brother was being looked at as closely as he was.

In the afternoon the guys were evaluated separately. Charlie went to Mary-Lise de Landtsheer, a judge from Belgium, and Cookie to Francoise Dubois from France. They were both exemplary, and Cookie even asked for cuddles with the judges.

Cookie was nominated for Best In Show. This is an overall competition among the cats present at the exact day of they show. It’s apart from the basic evaluation and diplomas needed to obtain the titles of Champion etc. Participants of Best In Show are selected by judges during normal evaluation. Then there is a comparison in individual breeds, groups, and finally cats that have won in previous competitions are facing each other. In the last “round” there are 3 or 4 cats to compare.

Elmirka has always had great show achievements and despite castration, we did not want to give up taking her to such events. Due to her age, Elma can only compete in the “veteran” class. Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to win regular titles (previously she obtained European Champion). Still, the cats take part in the standard evaluation and can be nominated for the Best in Show competition, where she can compete with other cats.

On Sunday, both guys – Cookie and Charlie, were elegant for the exhibition.

However, as you can see, you can’t fool nature. Our cats have always had a tendency to stupid faces and as you can see it is a hereditary trait. We know that both Elma and Helen could pass it to their kittens. And even a nice outfit and elegant bow ties will not change that.

Fortunately, when it came to the judging, Cookie and Charlie were quite serious about it 😉

On the second day of the show, the boys were judged only once, as only three excellent marks are needed to obtain the title. We counted that two grades on Saturday and one on Sunday would might do the work.

This time Cookie was brought to the table of judge Mary-Lise de Landtsheer from Belgium. The same one who judged Charlie the day before. Charlie, on the other hand, was assessed by judge Oskar Chrzanowski.

Elmirka was assigned to judge Krzysztof Wycichowski. Apart from the excellent mark in the veteran class, she was also nominated for the Best In Show competition.

Due to the lack of competition in her class, as the only female, Elmirka immediately went over the comparison with the male.

She obtained the title of Best Opposite Sex and a commemorative rosette, which you can see in the photo below.

At the exhibition I was accompanied by my bestfriend Agata, who is also Cookie’s new mom. For her t was the first cat show as an exhibitor, but she did a great job. She helped with entertaining the cats, keeping an eye on the queue for evaluation, and even provided information about the cats and the breed to the visitors, when I was away from the cages. I hope that this is not our last show together, as there are chances that Cookie will be attending it more than once 😉

Summing up the boys’ participation in the show – both Cookie and Charlie obtained 3 excellent marks in the kitten class – each in their color. As a result, they went to their new homes with diplomas as official Kitten Champions and taking a commemorative rosette with them