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 The
Cornish Rex is distinguished from all other breeds by its
extremely soft, wavy coat and racy type. The Cornish Rex coat
comes in many colors and patterns, including solids, parti-colors,
bicolors, smokes, shadeds and tabbies. While the Cornish Rex is
long and slender, all contours of its body are gently curved. By
nature, the Cornish Rex is intelligent, alert and friendly.
Native Country
Great Britain
Breed Description
Build: slim and muscular with naturally
arched back
Face: curly whiskers
Eyes: almond-shaped
Head: slim with a Roman nose
Tail: long, thin and curly
Legs: long
Coat: short, plush and rippled. Looks
like it has been crimped
History
A
curly-coated, playful, sociable acrobat The first Cornish Rex was
a male named Kallibunker born to Serena, a tricolor housecat, in
1950 on the Ennismore farm near Bodmin in Cornwall, England (hence
the name Cornish Rex). His curly coat resembled that of Rex
rabbits discovered on a French farm in 1919. In order to preserve
this recessive mutation, the breeding program combined inbreeding
with outcrosses to Siamese, British Shorthairs, and Burmese. In
1967, the Cornish
 Rex
was officially recognized in England. In 1960, Professor E. Letard
brought a Rex couple from Germany to France. Only the green-eyed
male, Marco, survived the trip. He was mated with a Burmese queen.
The kittens were black and straight-coated, proving that the gene
responsible for the Rex coat was indeed
recessive. Letard
inbred the mixed-breed offspring and in 1962, finally obtained a
male Rex - Lisko, a descendant from the French Rex line. In the
United States, a breeding program began in 1957. Crosses with
Siamese and Orientals resulted in a lighter, oval-headed cat,
while the English Cornish Rex was heavier and had a more
triangular, rather than long, head. This breed is highly prized in
the United States and Europe.
Behavior
This
playful, lively, rather eccentric acrobat is always in motion. The
good-natured Cornish Rex enjoys other cats and dogs, and dislikes
solitude. This affectionate, gentle cat makes a loving companion,
albeit with a rather strident voice. Females cycle frequently and
are quite prolific. Their appetite is phenomenal, and kittens
develop rapidly. Weekly brushing will help maintain the wavy coat.
This breed hardly sheds.
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