These incredible creatures have an unusual, even fantastic appearance, but they have a kind heart full of love for their master. The article will talk about Devon Rex. Description of the breed, owner reviews, care features will be presented below.
Breed history
Devon Rex is a relatively new cat breed, bred in the UK in the 60s of the twentieth century. If you believe the official history, unusual animals similar to fabulous creatures were found near an abandoned tin mine in the English county of Devonshire - hence the name of the breed. One of them, male, as if escaped, and the second turned out to be a cat, which soon brought offspring.
One of her kittens, which has unusual wavy hair, became the first officially registered representative of the new breed. He received the nickname Kirlee (Kirly). All the Devon Rexes existing today are its direct descendants, since closely related mating was used to consolidate the characteristics of the breed.
It took years to recognize the new breed. So, the American Organization of Cat Lovers (CFA) did this only in 1979. In our country, these animals are still not very many.
Features of the addition of breed representatives
These animals look very unusual. Felinologists joke that the appearance of cats was directly influenced by gnomes, elves and trolls. Whatever it was, but the Devon Rex cat breed, a photo of which can be seen in the article, really has a fabulous, “alien” appearance.
The most pronounced distinguishing feature of the Devon Rex is disproportionately large ears. Wide and low set, they crown a rather large head, in comparison with the size of the body. The ears at the base are quite wide.
Their eyes are large, almond-shaped, set wide. Short antennae strongly curled.
The general composition of Devon Rex cats is also peculiar. They have a massive chest, a muscular, dense body, but a relatively graceful, proportional neck, high legs with small oval pads and a long tail. Thanks to this combination of representatives of the Devon Rex breed (photos, description confirm this), it is almost impossible to confuse with other cats.
Wool
What is the difference between the breed of Devon Rex cats? The description of the breed indicates that, according to its standard, animals must have curly hair. However, these are not the curls that are characteristic of another English breed, Cornish Rex, also relatively young. In Devon Rex, curls are denser and larger. This is due to the fact that Cornish Rex does not have core hairs - curls, reminiscent of astrakhan hair, curl a more delicate undercoat from them. In the Devonian Rex, the spine, wool and undercoat are preserved, and they all lie in curls. Thus, these two breeds are not related, despite the outward similarity of their coat. Different genes are responsible for its waviness. It is more noticeable in those places where the hair is longer (trunk and tail). The hair on the head, neck and ears is very short, but some Devon Rex have tassels at the ends of the ears.
Color
Photos of Devon Rex cats demonstrate the diversity of their colors. It is acceptable for anyone, there are many of them: tortie, beige, golden, silver, white, chocolate, blue, cream ... However, plain Devon Rex cats (photo below) are not the most common representatives of the breed. A common phenomenon is the so-called ticking, when there are stripes with dark and light pigmentation on the hairs of the animal. This is how the work of the agouti gene (agouti) manifests itself, as a result of which pigment synthesis stops as the animal's hair grows, and then resumes. As a result, the hair is darker colored at the tip and at the base, and in the middle there will be a strip with a lighter pigment, yellow or orange. In most cases, such hairs form a peculiar pattern - tabby. There are several types of tabby: 1. Tiger (striped). 2. Classic (large spots). 3. Ticked (evenly distributed ticked hairs, as if "freckled"). 4. Spotted tabby (colors like a leopard or jaguar).
This is not a complete description of the possible color options, but only brief information.
Weight
Description of the breed and reviews of the Devon Rex indicate that the animals of this breed are not large. So, the average weight of cats is from 3600 to 4500 g, cats - from 2300 to 3200 g. Moreover, they are quite muscular and strong.
Cat character
It can be described as follows. These animals are affectionate enough with people, but can be intolerant towards their brothers. They, like any other representatives of the fauna world, can be friends with their relatives, be at enmity or treat them tolerantly, calmly.
These cats, as a rule, have a good memory, easily remember their names, are playful, and lend themselves well to training. If you want to teach your pet a few tricks, your venture will succeed. He will even be able to bring items at your command!
It should also be noted such a feature of the nature of the breed of Devon Rex cats, as sociability. Animals everywhere follow their master and seize a convenient moment to climb onto his lap as soon as he sits down. They are very attached to the owner, and if you do not have time for daily communication and playing with a pet, it is better not to get such an animal. It does not tolerate detachment.
The available descriptions of the breed and character of the Devon Rex indicate that animals love to "conquer the peaks" when traveling through cabinets and shelves. They can choose a place under the ceiling, regardless of its size, even a small corner in which they can hardly fit. They love to climb on the shoulders of the owner.
Pregnancy and childbirth. Kittens
Animals reach sexual maturity at 7-8 months. As the description of the breed and reviews of the Devon Rex indicate, cats usually bring no more than 3-4 kittens. Pregnancy in representatives of the breed lasts 65-66 days. Childbirth, as a rule, is light, pass without complications.
Kids get a characteristic look by the month. Wool is formed longer, up to a year, and sometimes more. Baby curls straighten up starting from 2 months, while adult hair begins to grow from 6-7 months, and it’s difficult to judge by what kittens it will be later between these age periods. Usually, individuals who had a beautiful thick coat at birth will look accordingly in adulthood.
Disease
In general, Devon Rexes (breed description, owner reviews confirm this) are in good health, but there are some nuances. So, for Devon Rex kittens, incompatibility in the blood type with the mother can be deadly. In this case, the danger is not the period of pregnancy, but the feeding of kittens by a cat. In animals, maternal antibodies, unlike humans, do not cross the placental barrier, but are found in abundance in colostrum in abundance. When a cat is fed colostrum to kittens that are incompatible with her by blood, the most susceptible can die. Some develop jaundice and urine becomes dark in color, while some individuals cope with this condition quite easily, only losing at the age of 1-2 weeks the tip of the tail, which falls off by itself. There may not be any visible consequences of the conflict at all. The different susceptibility of kittens to antibodies contained in maternal colostrum still has no explanation.
Compatibility analysis, which is common, for example, in the USA, is quite an expensive pleasure, therefore, in order not to do it, many breeders simply practice the artificial feeding of kittens in the first two days. After this time, the concentration of dangerous antibodies will decrease, and the mother will be able to feed her babies herself.
Among the hereditary diseases is progressive myopathy. It is manifested by muscle weakness, cramps and cramping. It often begins with the cervical muscles and gradually spreads further. Its cause lies in a hereditary metabolic disorder in muscle tissue.
Today it is rare, because for manifestation it is necessary that both parents are carriers of the corresponding genes. Breeders have learned to track individuals with a genetic predisposition to myopathy, and do not allow them to mate.
Another dangerous disease is hypertrophic cardiopathy, which is also inherited. Devon Rexes take 7th place in the list of breeds susceptible to this disease. It causes heart failure and can cause sudden death of the animal. It appears at any age, so you need to keep the situation under control, especially if your pet has ancestors with cardiopathy in the family. Regular visits to the veterinarian, ultrasound of the heart and blood tests in this case are required.
The Devon Rex cat breed (photo can be seen above), like many others, is prone to hip dysplasia. Lameness, pain during movement, up to the inability to move, are its main symptoms. In addition, the structural features of the musculoskeletal system of the Devon Rex have led to their predisposition to knee dislocation, which occurs in some lines. It usually appears in kittens older than four months and worsens with age. Due to the pain experienced, the animal begins to limp, avoids stepping on a sore limb. The gait takes on a jumping character. More often, females suffer from a hereditary dislocation of the patella.
Representatives of this breed often have insufficiently thick hair, therefore, they are prone to colds. The owners should remember this and not arrange drafts in the room, especially in winter.
Care
It is necessary to carefully care for the unusual Devon Rex hair. The description of the breed and its care often contains information on the obligatory regular washing of animals using shampoo. However, such advice can hardly be considered reasonable. The Devon's coat is rather short and sparse, and their skin gives off a sufficient amount of natural grease. Therefore, in order to keep it in a neat form, regular regular light stroking the pet with your hand is enough. Many use a rubber brush for this purpose. Washing is justified only when the coat is very greasy and dirty and the animal looks untidy.
Daily care consists in wiping the eyes and ears, bare, hairless areas (if any), paws and subsequent stroking (scratching). All hygiene procedures are best done after breakfast.
And what should representatives of the breed eat - Devon Rex cats? How to feed them - prepared feeds or cooked food yourself? According to experienced breeders, kittens and adult animals, like humans, have their own eating habits. This must be taken into account when preparing the diet. Feed should be bought only holistic class (Farmina N&D, Acana, Grandorf etc.), in extreme cases - super premium class (Royal Canin).
When choosing a feeding scheme using ready-made feeds, it is necessary to proceed from the daily norm indicated on the package for a certain age. In holistic fodder, it is usually less. With dry food can be combined cat canned food (3 times a week). Animals using dry food should always have fresh water in the bowl.
With natural feeding, most of the diet should be lean beef, previously frozen, and then scalded with boiling water. In addition, pets can be given boiled chicken or turkey breast, chicken hearts and navels (not the liver!). Once a week, saltwater fish are allowed. Dairy products can not be combined with meat, you need to give them at different times.
If you decide to use both dry and natural food, then the time between feedings should be at least 3 hours, or better, a day. The feedback from experienced breeders suggests that it makes sense to arrange separate “natural” days without mixing different types of feed. This will help to avoid digestive problems.
Kittens are usually fed three times a day, adult animals - twice. For castrated pets, you should buy special food.
Interesting Facts
This breed is very voracious, so you need to monitor the amount of feed consumed, otherwise the pet may develop obesity.
Devon Rex is very thermophilic.
Meeting the owner or playing with him, animals can wag their tail, like dogs.
In many sources, Devon Rex is called a hypoallergenic breed, but this is not so. But they still cause a person’s allergy much less often, since they practically do not fade, and, therefore, do not spread around not only the hair, but also the skin secretions contained on it - many respond to them. In addition, these secretions, for some reason unknown to the breeders, are themselves less allergenic than other breeds. Therefore, at least 50% of people with cat allergies can get Devon Rex without fear.
Cats and cats of this breed, despite the fact that they are not recommended to bathe often, easily get used to the water and calmly take bath procedures.
The average life expectancy of representatives of this breed is 15-17 years.