The Australian Cat Federation (ACF) is an Australian organisation created in 1972. Its goal is to better the breeding of cats, to recognise new breeds, and to keep standards and rules regarding competitions.

History

The association was created in 1972 under the name ''Australian National Cat Federation.'' The first ANCF

cat show A cat show is a judged event where the owners of cats compete to win titles in various cat registering organizations by entering their cats to be judged after a breed standard. Both pedigreed and companion (or moggy) cats are admissible, althoug ...

was organised in 1973 in Adelaide. The ANCF created its bimonthly

publication To publish is to make content available to the general public.Berne Conve ...

''National Cat'' in the same year, though its first issue would not appear until 1977. The association took its current name ''Australian Cat Federation'' in 1975. In 1982, the association recognised the

Somali cat The Somali cat is genetically similar to the Abyssinian. Due to inheriting 2 copies of the recessive gene for long hair, they have a characteristic luscious coat, unlike their cousin, the Abyssinian cat. History In the 1940s, a British breed ...

, as well as the lilac and chocolate colours of the

Persian cat The Persian cat (), also known as the Persian longhair, is a long-haired breed of cat characterized by a round face and short muzzle. The first documented ancestors of Persian cats were imported into Italy from Persia around 1620. Widely rec ...

. In 1984, the AFC adopted the standards set by the

Fédération Internationale Féline The Fédération Internationale Féline (FIFé) (in English "International Feline Federation") is a federation of cat registries. There are currently forty-two member organizations in forty countries. Membership spans Europe, South America, a ...

(FIFé). The

Balinese cat The Balinese is a long-haired breed of domestic cat with Siamese-style point coloration and sapphire-blue eyes. The Balinese is also known as the purebred long-haired Siamese, since it originated as a natural mutation of that breed and hence is ...

was recognised in 1985. In 1986, the ACF began to distance itself from the FIFé, and would not return until 1988. 1986 also saw an important modification in the

Exotic Shorthair The Exotic Shorthair is a breed of cat developed as a short-haired version of the Persian. The Exotic is similar to the Persian in many ways, including temperament and conformation, a flat nose and face with the exceptions of the short dense coa ...

standard. In 1991, the ACF recognised the

Ragdoll The Ragdoll is a breed of cat with a distinct colorpoint coat and blue eyes. Its morphology is large and weighty, and it has a semi-long and silky soft coat. American breeder Ann Baker developed Ragdolls in the 1960s. They are best known for the ...

. The 1993 cat show saw the introduction of the Australian method of judging, in which the judges move to the cats' boxes, rather than the other way around (known as Australian open-style judging). The

Turkish Van The Turkish Van (pronounced Von) is a naturally occurring breed of domestic cat that originated in the Lake Van area of modern-day Turkey, part of Armenian Highlands. The Van is classified as a semi-long hair, but it has two lengths of hair, de ...

and the Australian Mist (under the name ''spotted mist'') were recognised in the same year. The Cymric was recognised in 1995. The

Japanese Bobtail The Japanese Bobtail is a breed of domestic cat with an unusual bobtail more closely resembling the tail of a rabbit than that of other cats. The variety is native to Japan, though it is now found throughout the world. The breed has been know ...

, the long-haired

Scottish Fold The Scottish Fold is a breed of domestic cat with a natural dominant gene mutation that affects cartilage throughout the body, causing the ears to "fold", bending forward and down towards the front of the head, which gives the cat what is of ...

, the Singapura, the Tonkinese and the

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

were recognised in 1997, and the

Sphynx The Sphynx cat (pronounced , ) also known as the Canadian Sphynx, is a breed of cat known for its lack of fur. Hairlessness in cats is a naturally occurring genetic mutation, and the Sphynx was developed through selective breeding of these ani ...

, the

Burmilla The Burmilla is a breed of domestic cat that originated in the United Kingdom in 1981. It is a cross between the Chinchilla Persian and Burmese cats. Standards were produced in 1984, and the breed gained championship status in the United K ...

and the

Ocicat The Ocicat is an all-domestic breed of cat which resembles a wild cat but has no recent wild DNA in its gene pool. The breed is unusual in that it is spotted like a wild cat but has the temperament of a domestic animal This page gives a list of ...

in 1999. In 2001, the ACF hosted the annual

meeting A meeting is when two or more people come together to discuss one or more topics, often in a formal or business setting, but meetings also occur in a variety of other environments. Meetings can be used as form of group decision making. Defini ...

of the

World Cat Congress The World Cat Congress (WCC) is an international confederation of the biggest international federations and national associations in the cat fancy. Purpose The purpose of the WCC is to promote better understanding and co-operation among the worl ...

(WCC) and registered the first

Selkirk Rex The Selkirk Rex is a breed of cat with highly curled hair. Background The Selkirk Rex is distinct from all other Rex breeds. Unlike the Devon Rex and Cornish Rex, the hair is of normal length and not partly missing. There are longhair and short ...

cats. Since the creation of the association, many

argument An argument is a statement or group of statements called premises intended to determine the degree of truth or acceptability of another statement called conclusion. Arguments can be studied from three main perspectives: the logical, the dialecti ...

s have been made for the creation of a common breeding registry with the other Australian feline association, ''Coordinating Cat Council of Australia'' (CCCA).

References

External links

Australian Cat FederationDog & Cat AccessoriesPet Supplies For Cats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Cat Federation Cat registries Cats in Australia Animal welfare organisations based in Australia 1972 establishments in Australia Organizations established in 1972

History

See also

References

External links