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History:
The first Devon Rex
cat was a stray tom living wild in a disused tin mine near Buckfastleigh
in Devonshire England. It was hoped to breed from him, but despite
many attempts to catch him, he always eluded capture. However, in
1960 he mated with a stray female which had been befriended by Miss Beryl
Cox. The stray female gave birth in a field not far from her house.
Only one of the kittens, a male had the same curly coat as the wild tom.
Miss Cox kept this kitten and named him Kirlee, pictured above.
Since Devonshire is
very close to Cornwall, the site of the first Rex, it was believed that
Kirlee would produce Rex kittens when bred to Cornish Rex queens.
After several matings with the descendants of Kallibunker, only straight
haired kittens where born. Despite repeated attempts not a single
curly haired Rex kitten was born. The decision was made to develop
both natural mutations as two separate breeds, the Cornish Rex and the
Devon Rex. Kirlee was then bred back to his daughters and before
long the Devon Rex was established.
Kirlee lived a long
and productive life until 1970 when he died from injuries sustained from
a road accident.
Appearance:
The two most striking
features of the Devon Rex are the curly coat and their pixie faces.
The Devon Rex head is a modified wedge-shape with prominent whisker pads,
broad cheeks and a strong chin. The eyes are large, wide apart and
oval. The ears are large, low set and wide at the base. In
profile the nose should show a stop, break with the forehead curving back
to a flat skull between the ears. The whiskers and eyebrows are curly,
often they are very short or missing since they are brittle and are easily
broken. The Devon Rex body is hard and muscular, but still slender,
with long slim legs, the front legs are bowed and shorter, and the chest
is broad with an elegant slender neck.
Personality:
Terms that have been
used to describe the Devon Rex include, friendly, mischievous, playful,
affectionate, intelligent, active, enterprising, inquisitive and extrovert.
Devon’s can be extremely naughty with their devilish sense of mischief.
They have dog like personalities and will follow their owner from room
to room, but preferably perched on their shoulder. They will play fetch
and also wag their tail when they are happy or pleased. Devon’s are
not normally loud cats, but they like to communicate with chirps, chortles
and thrills and lots of purrs.
Colour
forms:
All combinations of
colours and patterns are acceptable in the Devon Rex breed.
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