The American Curl

Champion Medieval's Angela Curl of Tennant" White

The American Curl traces their ancestry down to a single black LH female known as Shulamith.

Shulamith was abandoned on the doorstep of Joe & Grace Ruga in 1981 in Lakewood CA. They noticed her ears were different but at first thought the unique ears that curved backwards were caused by scar tissue from the cat being previously abused. When Shulamith had her first litter, when the babies were four days old two of the four kittens’ ears rolled up backwards. This confirmed that the trait was genetic.

Various geneticists were consulted when this new trait was found, to verify the best breeding program to retain the genetics in the healthiest manner. Among those were Dr Roy Robinson from Great Britain, and Dr Solveig Pfluger from the USA. The early breeders followed their advice to continue to use a broad base of unrelated domestic cats. To date there are no known genetic malformations found to be connected with the gene that causes the ears to Curl backwards. Thanks to the domestic influence, American Curls have been developed with both, longhair and shorthair variations.

Curls were first displayed in show-halls in 1983 at a CFA show. All the judges that handled Shulamith, described her as "an Angora type cat" structurally and coat type. When the early breeders wrote the standard they tried to convey this ideal. Over the years with the scarcity of ‘good’ type Curls, many variations of that original look of the breed have come in. Recently, serious breeders have been attempting to bring uniformity back towards the look Shulamith was the prototype for.

The ideal ‘show ear’ should be rather large, curling backwards in a smooth arc. Some breeders use a round coin, set in the curve of the ear to verify the correct curvature and size of the curl. Any ear that does not correspond to the shape of the coin is considered ‘imperfect’.

Medieval's Magician Merlin and Medieval's Curlizabeth

In size the Curls are generally between 5 – 10 lbs. Females tend to be considerably smaller than males.

They are considered ‘semi-foreign’ physically, as neither the extreme head and boning type of the Siamese, nor the other extreme of the Persian or even the British Shorthair are desired. The slender elegance of the Turkish Angora is more the ideal look.

The American Curl is also known for their excellent temperament. They are often recommended for children, and have proven to be superb companions to their human families. American Curl cats originating in the domestic cat population, allow all colors possible. That includes, color-points, all tabby patterns, bi-colors, silvers and goldens, all solids including chocolate and lilac.

American Curls are recognized in many associations, both in longhair, and in shorthair, which is even more rare. American Curls are most commonly seen in CFA (Cat Fanciers Association) and TICA (The International Cat Association).

Medieval's Blazer