The origin of the Devon Rex, the standard of appearance, character, description of the cat's health and care, breeding features and kittens. Price when buying a kitten. Devon Rex is an exotic cat bred in England. One glance, even casually thrown at a Devonian Rexik, is usually enough to forever fall in love with this unearthly creature with huge almond-shaped eyes, frowning wrinkled forehead and ears similar to the wings of a swallowtail butterfly. To some, this animal resembles a fabulous English pixie elf, to others - an alien with a UFO. In any case, once stepping over the threshold of your home, this gentle and kind alien elf will forever and irrevocably settle in your heart.
Origin of the Devon Rex breed
The history of the "alien" breed of elf cats takes its quite ordinary beginning in the already distant 1960. It was then in the area of abandoned mines in the English county of Devonshire that a strange pair was discovered - a charming curly cat and its graceful companion with short and unusually wavy hair.
The "alien" cat turned out to be very agile and could not be caught (probably now he has already returned to his Alpha Centauri), but he managed to come to an agreement with his pregnant companion.
After some time, among the most common newborn kittens of this cat, the owner discovered the only exact copy of the runaway cat - a black kitten with curly wavy hair. He was named so - Kirly (Curly), which in English means - "curly". It is from this unusual kitten Kirly that all current Devon Rexes trace their ancestry. The name of the breed comes from the name of the county - Devonshire.
External standard of Devon Rex cats
This cat breed has an absolutely unique appearance. It is impossible to confuse the little girl, even in silhouette, with someone else. The special waviness and curliness of the animal's fur, which occurred as a result of some so far unexplained natural mutation, has no analogues in any of the known cat breeds and gives the Devon Rex breed its special unique charm.
The small head of the cat resembles a horizontally laid oval with well-developed cheekbones and a sharp transition from the cheekbones to the mustache area. In profile, the head resembles a kind of wedge with a distinct nose and a small wrinkled forehead rounded into the skull. The muzzle of the representative of the Devon Rex is short, distinct with well-defined whisker pads. The neck is thin, medium in length.
The ears of the Devon Rex are phenomenal - covered with fine hair, large, low set, very wide at their base and rounded at the ends. They seem to be a natural continuation of the silhouette of the cat's face. Perhaps the presence of brushes on the tips of the auricles. The amazing Devon Rexik ears are shaped like a cross between the wings of a butterfly and the ears of a fabulous elf.
The eyes are large, wide-set, oval or almond-shaped, with some subtle alien expression. Eye color can be very different, but always rich and harmonious with the main color. The exceptions are Color Points - the eyes are always blue and Minks are always aqua.
The constitution of the Devon Rex cat is strong, gracefully muscular, with a well-developed chest. The line of the back is raised towards the pelvis due to the longer hind legs. Devons are small breed cats. The weight of the largest adult representative of this breed reaches a weight of no more than 4 kg, and that of a female - 3 kg.
The paws of the animal are medium in length (the hind legs are longer), muscular and slender with neat oval pads of the feet. The tail of the Devon Rex is medium in fullness, rather long, covered with hair.
The cat is completely covered with wavy-curly short hair, with a predominance of density on the sides, back, legs, head and tail. The lowest density of wool is on the belly, the crown of the head and in the axillary-inguinal zones. In these places, the wool is a delicate fluff. The structure of the Devon Rex wool is soft and silky, but rather stubborn and elastic, which does not allow changing the direction of waviness when stroking or combing.
There are no strict restrictions on color by the Devon Rex standards. In fact, all genetically possible are allowed, as well as their various combinations. The main scoring deficiencies (leading to disqualification) in championships are:
- long and narrow head;
- thick, long or straight animal hair;
- hair in bald patches and bald patches;
- set on high or small ears;
- narrow-set eyes or squint;
- the tail is short, improperly set (kinked) and either too bald, or vice versa - too woolly.
Devon Rex personality
Such an unusual and alien in appearance, the breed is distinguished by a magnificent disposition, friendliness and almost dog loyalty to its owners.
Devon Rex are active, fearless and very playful fidget cats, which, nevertheless, have a calm character and are able to very quickly adapt to the style and routine of the owner's life. If the owner of the animal is an active person with a dynamic temperament, then his Devon Rex cat will also imitate his energetic lifestyle. If the owner is calmer in character or just an older person, then the agile pet will find a way to match its owner, switching to a calmer demeanor and not annoying the owner over trifles. Although, it will obsessively accompany, like a ponytail. Devon Rex are very intelligent animals, able to quickly find the right style of communication with each specific person.
And if all cats can be attributed to one of the most independent animals on Earth (a cat always walks by itself), then representatives of the Devon Rex breed can be recorded as the most independent among cats. These wavy elves know their worth well and never do anything "out of hand." You just need to be able to negotiate with them.
In addition to humans, this cat gets along well with other pets, although here it prefers to choose representatives of its feline clan as friends. Either they have their own games, or their interests. However, some observant owners believe that these cats behave more like dogs than cats. But perhaps this is nothing more than the individual characteristics of specific animals. Devon Rex get along well and love to play with children. And, in general, they are very playful and do not tolerate the absence of a campaign. They love toys and various pranks. They successfully open a variety of doors and easily penetrate the most seemingly inaccessible places. They especially like to climb into places where it is possible to get something tasty (Devon Rex are famous food lovers). Due to the ability to always get to what you want, despite the complexity of door locks, Devon Rex are often compared to nimble monkeys.
These cats are not particularly fond of feline arias and boring annoying begging. Even on the eve of the mating season, they are not inclined to chant. Their usual communication resembles a light soft chirping. Or in general it looks like opening the mouth without uttering anything perceptible to the human ear.
Devons are big fans of good and filling food, which is not surprising given their energetic lifestyle. And also these funny cats love to sit in the arms of the owner and take a nap for an hour or two, acne. And if you have several of these curly pets, then get ready to place them all on your lap at once. None of them will be left out of this pleasure.
Devon Rex cat health
Representatives of this breed are classified by veterinarians as cat breeds that do not have special health problems (especially with proper care and maintenance), but have a number of stable hereditary pathologies. Which, however, does not mean their obligatory manifestation in your pet.
The most dangerous predisposition available is the so-called obstruction of the airways, which can lead to early death of the animal. Currently, breeders and creators of the breed are seriously dealing with this problem.
Also, among adult cats of the Devon Rex breed, cases of hereditary myopathy (neuromuscular disease) have been recorded, which can lead to muscular dystrophy. Fortunately, such cases are not so common.
Often manifests itself, at the most inopportune moment, a hereditary tendency to dislocation of the knee joints.
In adulthood, there may be problems with joints (especially hip dysplasia) and the cardiovascular system (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which is not so rare in a feline environment).
And one more question that cannot be ignored. True, it does not concern the health of the animal itself, but directly the health of the owner and members of his family. There is an opinion that Devon Rex cats are "hypoallergenic". For this reason, they are even often advised to start for people suffering from asthma or allergic to cat hair. Unfortunately, this is not so. Devonian cats, just like their other woolen cousins, are capable of provoking asthma attacks and causing allergies. It just happens much less often, due to the small number and features of the structure of their wool.
Elf cat care
If the wool of the Devon Rex does not need any special combing by its properties, it is quite enough to pass through the wool with a special brush once a week, then the situation is different with bathing. Due to the fact that the secretions of the sebaceous glands of the cat are not absorbed by the hair, as in all long-haired animals, the Devon needs to be bathed much more often than an ordinary domestic cat. Otherwise, this eared creature becomes too sticky and dirty, losing all its charm and charm. How often a cat should be bathed is up to each owner individually. It all depends on the degree of contamination of the pet.
It is also often necessary to pay attention to the famous Devon Rexic ears, regularly (at least once a week), gently cleaning them from dirt and ear discharge with cotton swabs and sticks.
Now about nutrition: there is no special super diet for these cats. A high-quality, balanced super-premium food from a good manufacturer with his recommendations, according to the norms for energetic cats, is usually quite enough.
These cats are famous lovers of everything tasty and will never refuse an extra piece of delicacy. Therefore, do not overdo it in the manifestations of your love!
On the other hand, if the Devon Rex feels hungry, then he solves his problems himself (the cat is very independent). And in these moments, a hungry Devonian is easy to spot in the pantry checking the quality and quantity of your own supplies, with all the resulting disturbances and food losses. Remember, these cats don't tend to wander around the house aimlessly. They always know perfectly well why and where they are going.
Devon Rex kittens
Devon Rexes become sexually mature by age three. But before moving on to the peculiarities of the kitten birth of this breed, it is necessary to mention one feature of the physiology of these beautiful eared cats.
All cats, like humans, have a division of blood into groups. These are blood groups: A, B and AB. The most common feline group is A, which is inherent in almost all cats of the east - Burmese, Siamese, Oriental and others. Group B is less common. Blood group AB is extremely rare.
So, a feature of the selection of Devon Rexes is the presence of the problem of compatibility of blood groups and increased sensitivity to antibodies of each of the groups when crossing, as well as when carrying and feeding offspring. Any incompatibility of the combinations threatens the death of the kittens. The breeders of the breed have enough problems in this regard.
But if all questions regarding crossing were solved correctly by the breeder and veterinarians, then the mother cat gives birth to 3 to 4 kittens quite easily and without relapses (the weight of a kitten is usually about 100 grams). And here another problem often arises. If the blood groups of the kittens and the mother do not match, then the incompatible (kitten-killing) antibodies of the mother begin to flow along with her milk during feeding. Therefore, just in case, kittens are taken away from the cat for several days and fed with special milk mixtures. Usually two or three days of such a quarantine is enough. In the future, there is the usual feeding and upbringing of the growing generation of elf cats by the mother cat.
The difficulties of breeding and the problems of feeding young Devon Rex do not allow everyone to breed this breed. Breeding and further selection of the breed is now entirely in the hands of professional breeders and experienced breeders.
Price when buying a Devon Rex kitten
Interest in the breed of English cats of an alien species is constantly growing. The only limiting factor is the problematic nature of the selection of these animals, which does not allow establishing a full-fledged mass breeding, due to the lack of the necessary specialists.
Therefore, in Russia, the main nurseries of Devon Rex are concentrated in the capitals - Moscow and St. Petersburg and several large cities - in Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Vladivostok, Saratov and Samara. And this geography is slowly but steadily expanding.
The price of a Devon Rex kitten in Russia, depending not only on its sex, color and pedigree, but also on the region where the cattery is located, varies from 10 to 30 thousand rubles.
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