Ann Arborites had a host of events to choose from last Saturday. Birding enthusiasts, from beginners on up, could help take a census of birds in the county as part of the annual International Migratory Bird Count. The Ann Arbor Dog Training Club offered agility trials. The Anthony Wayne Cat Fanciers presented its Annual Allbreed Cat Show. The Spur of the Moment Club put on a riding event at the fairgrounds. Matthaei Botanical Gardens held its spring plant sale. And those are just the offerings that featured animals and plants. There were also various cultural and sporting events and, just to keep Tree Town diverse, a Midwest Pro Wrestling Alliance competition at the fairgrounds, after the equestrian event.
Pressed to make a selection from this array of possibilities, my long-suffering husband agreed to go with me to the cat show. We tootled out to Washtenaw Community College, the cat-show venue, parked the car, and made our way toward the building while a bevy of bikers participated in a motorcycle safety course close at hand. We wondered—never having been to a cat show before—whether a wall of cat smell would greet us as we entered the hall. Silly us. Those cats were so clean and pampered that they may have objected to how we smelled.
The hall bustled with excitement. This was a competition, after all. Exhibitors focused on keeping their animals both calm and gorgeous, even as they hurried to and from the judging areas as entrants’ numbers were called. The cats traveled around the hall in their owners’ arms, looking interested in the goings-on. The spectators demonstrated the same interest, only no one carried them around.
As the show had been well publicized, a lot of people attended, including quite a few of us who had never gone to a cat show before. This led to a lot of chatting among the spectators, as we tried to figure out what was happening. “There’s a learning curve,” was something I heard a number of times. Fortunately, other newbies were generous with what they’d figured out.
First off, there are so many different kinds of cats. A handout listed forty-two breeds, each with its own standards for face shape, body structure and proportions, and coat. Thus, a Norwegian Forest Cat, should have an equilateral triangle face and a short, heavily muscled neck. A Manx should have a firm, round muzzle, prominent cheeks, and well-muscled thighs. The Singapura is the smallest breed and the Maine Coon the largest non-hybrid breed. There’s even a competition category for household pets. There are no conformation standards for this category; entrants are judged on their health, grooming, and temperament.
Judges place cats, one at a time, on a judging bench on a table, with a scratching post to either side of the bench. The judges handle each cat thoroughly and engage it in a little play. All the cats I saw seemed amenable to being handled, and happy to play. One cat in particular was having such fun playing with the judge that it didn’t want to stop. When she went to return it to its cage, the cat grabbed one of the scratching posts with both front feet and didn’t let go. This got a smile from the judge—who didn’t force the issue—and a chuckle from the spectators. Soon, the cat let go, and the judge moved on to the next entrant. A competitor in another category told me that, earlier in the day, a different cat had leapt to the top of one of another judge’s scratching posts and demonstrated no interest in coming down from that considerable height.
My favorite judge was what I call a Generous Judge. You run into them working at 4-H fairs, and other fairs, too. They talk as they work. They tell any spectators what the standards are for whatever sort of animal they’re examining, and how that animal compares to those standards. In short, Generous Judges educate as they go, encouraging in spectators and competitors a better understanding of the standard, the animal, and the judging process. A Generous Judge helps you see the world differently.
My husband left pretty promptly to sit in the car and read, to the roar of the motorcycle class, but I stayed for a while to watch, chatting with many people at the various judging rings. My favorite chattee was a tall, young University of Michigan student. He’d arrived before us and happily shared what he’d figured out about the show. And that he planned to finish his day of new experiences at the fairgrounds, watching pro wrestling.
19 May 2023