Dudley Piddlewhiskers

His name is Dudley Piddlewhiskers, but I've reserved back his registration papers in case you would like to name him.  Dudley's birthday is December 7th.  He's a Selkirk Rex breed, and the son of lines of champions on both sides of the family.  You can see Dudley's mother and father here.  Dudley is a cream curly.  "Cream" is the breed standard name for his color. "Curly" signifies that he carries (and expresses) the gene for curly fur.  See how Dudzer's whiskers curl up?  And he is a sweetheart.  He'll wake up from his nap and come over to be stroked on his cheek or arch his back to get petted.  Dudley has always lived indoors and needs to live in a home where he is kept inside.  This will help to keep your pet healthy.  He is up to date on his shots and is screened for possible diseases that might shorten his life.  By getting a healthy kitten, it helps you and your family to have the assurance that you won't become attached to a new 'family member' that could die young or carry a communicable disease.  Our 3 little kittens have been raised in our home, with social interaction with people and their parents.  Dudley is curious and friendly, agile and comical.  Dudley is sort of quiet, but occasionally calls out to see where everyone else is and what they are doing.  At about 12 weeks, he will be old enough to come to his permanent home without being too lonesome.  He would do nicely with a family with children as the only indoor pet, or with one of his brothers in the home of an older couple.  Our agreement with Gracie's breeder, is that if placed as a pet Dudley will be neutered, and he can only be bred by us.  If you are interested in making him a member of your family, we would just be delighted if you'd contact us at 918-696-3175.

Lilac Selkirk Rex

Lilac Selkirk Rex of Piddlewhiskers & Snugglesworth

While searching for the time to launch our cattery website for Piddlewhiskers & Snugglesworth, here is an updated pic of this sweet little female Selkirk Rex lilac.  We're assuming she is a female, that is.  And we are also assuming she is a lilac, for she has the soft wispy color more like her father who is a lilac British Shorthair.  Her new family can give her her real official registered name, and for now I am informally calling her Lilly Piddlewhiskers.  Her registration name will begin with Piddlewhiskers.  She is beginning to open her eyes (12/22/2010).  She is the curious one, who approaches everything to investigate, on wobbly legs.  Well, it is more like she raises up and falls forward or rolls to the side.  I think she will be walking soon.  Her nose is dark purple but her paw pads are bright pink.  If she were a brit, that would meet the lilac color category at TICA (The International Cat Association, Inc.).  She is officially a Selkirk Rex, or will be when the litter is registered.   She has her daddy's smile.  And she has thick long, long whiskers like her father, too.  Maybe her name should start with an M because she has an M on her forehead.  She carries for dilute, smoke, red, black and white, agouti.  Her ancestors are Brit and Selkirk, Persian and Exotic... and of course a famous ole black and white curly barn cat named Oskar No-Face Kowalski.

Ziggy's Looking Dreamy

Zigmund Cadbury Snugglesworth

British Shorthair Cat

I caught darling Ziggy sleeping on the sofa in wonderful lighting and took this pic to share.  He's a Chocolate Smoke British Shorthair.  Don't you love those brass-colored eyes?  He's got gently defined agouti markings.  With his coloring and Gracie's they might have a chocolate Selkirk Rex, which is rare indeed.  Ziggy was born 9/15/2009 and he's a bit over six months old.

Gracie's Easter Picture

Gracie Piddlewhiskers

Selkirk Rex

This photo ws taken by Katy Winbray Brinkley, who is Gracie's big sister and a real human.    

I am amazed at how different breeds have different characteristics.  Some cats come from an ancient history of catching their prey around the watering holes of Asia and Africa, and these cats are not shy of water.  We know a lot about Gracie Piddlewhiskers because we have her family history back twenty plus years.  And there are no Servals or Asian Leopard Cats in there.  Yet, she is a water-tolerant cat.  Today, I gave her a shower.  And she comes running if she thinks there is an opportunity to watch the bathroom sink faucet running or.. even better... to watch the toilet flush.  After she has a shower, she licks her curly fur all over.  I thought that was about the sandalwood perfumed soap I had used on her last time, so today I only held her in my arms under the water (all but her head) and didn't use anything for fear that she might ingest soap that would upset her tummy.  But she licked her fur down anyway.  Afterward, she seemed pleased to be so curly and all primped up.  She spent a lovey morning on Dennis' lap and then took over his office chair when he left to go to the school where he was holding a speech pathology clinic today.  

Our other cat is Zigmund Cadbury  Snugglesworth, a British Shorthair cat.  The wisdom is that British Shorthair breed cats are distinctively not 'luvvey' cats-- they're aloof and dictatorial.  I don't see Ziggy as dictatorial, but Shadow his predecessor certainly was the boss around here.  He'd whip his tail as if to say, "YOU don't call the shots.  I make the decisions around here."  And he'd jump up and rub his tail right across your mouth as if to say "zip it" if he didn't like something.  As for Ziggy, he's just spooky and shy and aloof.  Somehow these qualities make one feel honored when he does come around for petting or just to be in the milleu of Den's computer game or my quilting.  His eyes are stunning.  I'll post a picture update for him soon, as his previous family in OKC must be curious about how he looks now at almost seven months of age.  

Shadow, King of Cats

Last September, our darling elder gentleman cat passed away.  He was briefly ill, and it gave us the opportunity to say our final goodbyes to him.  His name was Shadow, and he was a huge British Shorthair classic blue neutered tom cat who lived the good life and dominated the rhythms of our house.

Each morning he waited somewhat patiently until Dennis donned his shoes, then he'd yeow loudly and the both of them knew it was time to go to the kitchen to fix Shadow's breakfast.  Toward those latter years, I'd taken to feeding wild cats we couldn't pet or vaccinate, but which would at least eat on the back deck (thus saving my songbirds here).  Shadow was King of Cats, and these outdoor cats were his subjects.  They would peer in the door when hungry, and Shadow watched for this.  I swear it, and witnesses have heard it... Shadow would say this when the outdoor Cats were hungry:  "Hellow?  Hellow?"  It was loud and clear.  Most unusual and remarkable and rare.