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Meow... it is my day, dear!

ABU DHABI — It is normally friends and families who enjoy ‘shisha’ and Turkish coffee at the Local Café on Abu Dhabi’s Breakwater, but yesterday was different! The furry customers were ‘meowing’ and looking their best. As many as 25 cats turned up to participate in the first-ever cat show in the capital.

The National Cat Show Abu Dhabi – 2007 was organised by the Merchant E Media (MEM), in association with the Middle East Cat Society and the World Cat Federation (WCF).

WFC President Anneliese Hackmann was one of the judges at the show. “We have standard procedures for judging a cat, which include the description of the head, eyes, ears, fur, tail and the whole body,” explained Hackmann.

There are 20 classes in which cats can compete, starting from household pets and ending with the most prestigious title, the world champion.

“It is extremely difficult to win a world champion contest, but such a title would really make a difference in the cat’s pedigree,” Hackmann said.

Most of the cats who fought for the ‘Best in Show’ title were Persian. Puka was only 10 months old and had stunning black, brown and yellow colour. Cristina Norikovait, her owner, bought her last December and this was her first appearance in a cat show.

“The judge was really impressed with Puka and gave her good points, but she pointed out that the cat doesn’t have enough white colour,” said Cristina.

Amelia and Paul Shepherd-Smith also brought their two young Persian cats for the first time to a show. Augustus and Jemima were in a very good mood, specially Augustus who was in a playful mood. “He is not really that interested in beauty shows,” said Amelia, adding that Augustus usually likes to get dirty by digging out the plants in the garden.

Petra Muller, director of MEM, revealed that, together with WCF, her organisation is trying to record the Arab cat as a separate breed, under the name of Arabian Mau. She has found unique characteristics in the local cats and brought them to the attention of WCF.

“While we are here we are trying to make proper documentation about the Arabian Mau, in order to prove its uniqueness,” added Hackmann.

According to her, the Gulf cats have longer legs, bigger ears, short and more raised hair, which makes them more adaptable to heat.

• UAE