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American Curl
Temperament:
*Quietly Affable
*Playful
*Loving
*Adventurous
"Cats with true style, Curls quickly win admirers."
Look past the ears, and the American Curl is a cat with an open expression and
a winning, kittenish purrsonality. In fact, as many Curl lovers would agree,
this still limited breed is truly "earmarked" for attention!
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| Head: Rounded |
| Eyes: Round;
all colors |
| Ears: Stiff
to the touch; curled up and back, exposing hairy tufts |
| Body: Intermediate;
sturdy |
| Coat: Short
or long |
| Tail: Medium
length |
| Patterns: All
colors and patterns |
Breed History: The
American Curl is a rags-to-riches story, in keeping with the true American
Tradition. In 1981, two small visitors appeared at the door of Joe and Grace
Ruga of Lakewood, California- stray kittens with unusual ears that curled
backwards. One kitten stayed with the Rugas, who named her Shulamith, meaning
"black and comely". Shulamith mated and produced a litter of four,
two of which inherited the curled back ears. One of the curly-eared kittens
was given to Grace's sister. That cat went on to have more curly eared
kittens. It appeared that the ears were not a fluke, as they had first
believed.
When Nancy Kiester bought two kittens of the second litter, she noticed the
similarity to the Scottish Fold- although the Fold's ears lay down forward,
and the Curl's lay back. In 1983 Nancy and the Rugas entered their unusual
cats in the noncompetitive section of a cat show.
Only 6 years after Shulamith showed up, her descendents were in competition-
and the American Curl took its place among the other breeds. The
distinctive curling ears develop 2 to 10 days after birth, then curl and
uncurl for about 4 months, at which time they set permanently.
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