Cats Classification

In the middle of the XIX Century, the masters began to have more interest for their pets. Gregor Mendel published its discoveries about inheritance in 1866, but the scientific community didn’t take it seriously until the 1900 and even lasted much more in getting to the general public.

The feline experts of the XIX Century manifested a great passion for the classification; according to the scientific spirit of the time it was the same passion that took Charles Darwin to the Galapagos Islands, where he formulated the theory of the evolution. Cat owners of the second halve of the Century no monger accepted that cats where only cats: they wanted to know what type of cat it was, due that it was evident that there were several types.

At the same epoch the interest in owning an exotic cat increased, this was a symbol of status, a tendency that increased with the news that the queen Victoria had acquired two blue Persians that had amazed the Royal House.

The Struggle for Excellency
Another very different factor also contributed. In the XIX Century the competence exercised a great impulse in the life of many people. At the agricultural fairs they would give prizes to the excellency of the farm animals, wheat, fruits, shepherd dogs, drafting horses and even the new born of the farmers and cattle owners. It is logic then to begin to celebrate cat contests.

Since 1860, farmers and cattle owners of New England started to present in the local contests Maine Coon cats, that at that time where basically farm cats. For example, at the town of Skowhegan, county of Somerset, state of Maine, U.S.A. it was awarded during yearly fair, the prize of the “Maine State Championship Coon Cat”.

Object of Study
IN 1881, the British biologist sir George Mivart published the first treaty that studied the domestic cat with seriousness and profoundly Mivart was a respected scientist, although somewhat troublesome, that accepted in general lines he theory of evolution of Darwin (which had favor him with the excommunication from the catholic church, although he had same objections on the most subtle points.

The cat reached several editions and had a great influence with the first feline experts of both sides of the Atlantic, partly because he legitimated the scientific side over that of his inclination for cats.

In 1892 another book about cats was published, less academic than the former and that during many years was considered as the bible of the feline world: our cats, by Harrison Weir, organizer of the First National Feline Exhibition in Great Britain in 1871, and first president of the National Cat Club. The complete title of the book will give you an idea of its thoroughness: all about our cats: its varieties, habits and care for exhibition: excellence criterions and beauty, with descriptions and photographs.

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