Cornish Rex History

                                                                         Cornish Rex History

Periodically curly cats appeared in the various countries, however not everywhere selectors gave proper attention and not everywhere to it were glad so, for example in Romania destroyed all curly cats - assuming that they are sick. About twenty years ago frequency of occurrence of curly cats has considerably increased. 
The Devon Rex looks similar in appearance to the Cornish Rex, but has guard hairs and sheds. The Devon Rex mutation is different from the Cornish Rex mutation in that the Devon has shortened guard hairs, while the Cornish Rex lacks guard hairs altogether. Crosses between Devon and Cornish Rexes are not permitted in pedigrees and matings between them will not produce a cat with short wavy fur. Another hair-deficient breed is the Sphynx cat, which has no hair but may have a very light coat of fuzz.
Using the word "Rex" to imply curly or otherwise unusual fur originates from an occasion when King Albert I of Belgium (1875-1934) entered some curly-haired rabbits in a rabbit show. They did not meet the breed standard, but the show's officials did not wish to risk offending the king by rejecting them. Instead, they accepted them but wrote "Rex" (Latin for "king") beside their names.
The first curly cat has been found in Bodmine Moor in a province of Cornwаll. He has been born in a dung with four usual kittens and has received a name of Kallibunker had an extremely unusual, fine and curly coat; he was the first Cornish Rex. The owner by Mrs. Nina Ennismore then bred Kallibunker back to his mother(tortoiseshell cat named Serena) . This breeding produced three kittens. One was a straight coated female the other two curly coated males. Sadly, one male died at 7 months of age, the second male named Poldhu (along with Kallibunker) went on to sire further litters. Due to the gene pool being very small in the 1950s-1960s the Cornish Rex was an endangered breed. They were out crossed to domestics as well as Siamese, Russian Blues, American Shorthairs, British Shorthairs and Havana Browns to create great genetic diversity and a strong, healthy foundation for the breed. In 1956, Life magazine published an article on the Cornish Rex that generated a lot of attention worldwide. The following year Frances Blancheri of California imported Lamorna Cove. She was pregnant by her father Poldhu at the time. She went on to have a litter of 4 kittens...the start of the Cornish Breed in North America.

 Date of birth of this dung - 1950 is considered on July, 21st breed date of birth Cornish Rex. The discovery of the Cornish Rex mutant gene in farm cats from Cornwаll, England in the early 1950's was undoubtedly the most exciting event in the cat world this century.  
However only 17 years later in GCCF the breed based on a Cornish mutation - Cornish Rex has been confirmed. Cornish Rex it is an elegant and flexible cat, with a long well-muscled body, large, eyes and large ears, Cornish Rex long-legged with long, thin and very mobile tail. Wool Cornelian Rex is a silky wave, skintight to a body.
Cornish Rex cats come in a wide variety of coat colours and patterns, outlined in the standard: solids, including white, black, chocolate, orange and the dilutes blue, lilac and cream; all forms of tabby including classic, mackerel and ticked tabbies, bicolor "tuxedo" coat in many colours, tortoiseshell, "smoke" colours and the elegant colour-point pattern standard in the Siamese breed.
In addition to the coat, this breed has a distinct head and body type. Large ears are set high on a comparatively small, egg-shaped head with high cheekbones, hollow cheeks, and a high-bridged Roman nose and strong chin. The body has been compared to a Whippet dog’s because of its arched back, barrel chest, small waist and very long, fine legs. In spite of their dainty appearance, these small to medium sized cats are extremely hard-bodied and muscular, using their well developed hips and long legs for fast starts and stops, quick turns and high jumps.
Because of their extremely short, fine textured coat, many people have the impression that the Cornish Rex does not shed and is hypoallergenic. This is not strictly true. All animals are constantly renewing their coats as old hairs are replaced by new ones. While Cornish Rex hairs are not easy to find lying on the furniture, they are there and owners will find them in the dryer filter and clinging to some fabrics. Certainly, by comparison to some other cats, the shedding is minimal. Even so, most allergic people are bothered by the dander (dead skin cells) and the saliva, both of which are present in Cornish Rex cats. Policies concerning allergy sales vary from breeder to breeder and potential buyers should realize each breeder does what he or she feels is in the cats’ best interest.