Wyrdwul Cattery home of the Helki Cat Breed

A Tale of Tails

2011-08-18T14:53:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to get to talk on the phone with one Sue Sweetman the other day. She is one of the foundation breeders of the Highlander breed of cats. She gave me some sound advice concerning the process of moving up from Experimental Breed Status with TICA to the Preliminary New Breed Status. While I am not ready for such a step, anyone who has played games like Shogi, Go, or Chess know that its best to read steps ahead and know what your opponent might play before maybe they even do.

The main concern Sue had for me is that while the coat of the Helki may be unique, I have not really boasted about other features of the breed that make them unique from your local barn cat. Sue of course did this in a kind and respectful manner while also schooling me in again an appropriate way.

During our discussion I realized the Helki do have another fantastic physical trait that I don't often talk about. The Helki have long tails. My ideal male OberonRa aka Keebler's tail measures out to 13 inches long. His is the longest tail of my males and I have stressed often, he is one of the males that meet the physical conformation of the breed the best. His winter coat is nice, but not as plush as I would like, but when I look at this male I know he is what I want to see in my breed.

So then I started thinking, well what is the average length of tale on the Helki. So I measured the tales and found that most of them have a length of around 11 inches regardless of size or sex. Which actually surprised me. I thought for sure the smaller cats and the females would have porportionally smaller tales. There are only a few tales that are 10in or less and only some making it to 1ft of tail length. Then I decided to measure the tail length of my domestics and found that 9 inches was about the longest. Medium long to long tails were already in my standard so this in not a concern, but I may need to make a point in other venues to point out the gorgeously long leopard like tails.

I do possibly have a coat pattern/color that is unique to the Helki but I want to confirm this before I make any official announcements. As for it being a unique breed if the final card up my sleeve pans out, then the final package will be difficult to deny.

The Curious Fur of the Helki

2011-05-28T21:14:00.000-07:00

First and foremost its important to note that this blog is now two years old. *throws confetti* Yeah not really a huge thing but a fun tidbit. Now on to the meat and potatoes.

Its been a while since I sat down and pounded out my thoughts on my beloved breed. Its not that I have nothing to say, its that I have preteen and teen children who have had a lot of their own important milestones this year. As many of you know I love my cats, but my kids are my blood and no matter what they have to come first. Instead of cat shows, I've been going to ROTC ceremonies, and NASA day at the middle school, not to mention the Promotion Ceremonies. One of which I still need to attend mid-June. Then we can't forget that my husband loves VolksWagons. He has been spending a lot of time and money on his hobby this year, which is only fair as I did the same on the cat fancy in the past years. So needless to say my cat show experiences have been few and mostly there as a support role. Lets not even go on about the show we came to and had to leave early because of a bad yogurt. So the short of the story is I'm still here and so are the cats but we are taking a back seat to regroup.

Regrouping also means no breeding. I can not even tell you how excruciatingly painful it is to see so many wonderful kitten photos and videos from friends. I am currently doing all my vicarious breeding through these photos. While I know who I want to breed next and what outcome I expect, I also know that where we live is not conducive to breeding kittens for soooo many reasons. The first being that we are moving again in September. I don't want to have little kittens when we move. Unfortunately the living situation here was not what we expected and in order to get out of it we need to move again. *sigh* Either way no kittens and I miss having kittens.

The next order of business is the Helki SOP. When I first drafted it and had a few of my mentors review it, I was told to put it online. However I put it off and forgot. In fact, I forgot so well that I thought it was online hahaha! It was just recently that Patricia Bristow was kind enough to ask me about it and I found out that I had not put it online. I did a quick add and put it on the about page on my site: http://www.wyrdwul.com/about.html but for a quick link here on the Blog you can go here: Helki SOP it a Windows doc so if you need pdf form, just let me know. I'm thinking of reformatting the website and will then have the SOP viewable without having to download a doc or pdf.

Last but not least I wanted to talk in length about the coat of my favorite cats. Wyrdwul was chosen as my cattery name because fate has played a large role in finding the unique and subtle quality fur on these cats. The first litters that we had were unexpected accidents and I thought the lightly wavy fur on the kittens was not that big a deal, it wasn't until one was born with very obvious wavy fur that I really took notice. Even then I only contacted the cat fancy to let them know what I found and to get some grooming advice. Sadly the grooming advice I have gotten from breeders of other breeds have not helped at all and in that first cat completely ruined his coat. Even to this day people who get pet kittens from me often ask for grooming advice. Its been touch and go trying to find something that works. As most breeders know what works in the show hall is not meant for pets at home. So in other words I have had to pioneer out and figure out how to groom for show and what is best for at home. Now I am going to leave that thought for a moment.

When I've had judges and other breeders look at the fur in detail, many of them feel that the coat looks similar to Persian fur after its been striped and groomed for show, while still maintaining a unique feel of rabbit fur. Those people that have been able to look at my fur samples have also commented that the fur looks like rabbit fur as it has guard hair but not as much as your standard DSH/DLH. The Helki in reality is a medium hair cat.I've had short haired Helki and their fur is like velvet, but its not what I was breeding for and wont be breeding for it. So the short hair version is really a medium furred cat. The long hair Helki is medium long fur with lovely ruffles, britches, and plumes. The coats of either are meant to be compact, resilient, and plush.

Recently our family was blessed with the addition of a double mane Lionhead Rabbit. If you have never seen or heard of this breed I do encourage you to go to: http://lionheadrabbit.net/. Now I personally haven't had a rabbit since I was a teenager. So it was really neat to find that everyone was right on call when they said the texture of the Helki fur was like rabbit fur. You were all so right. Even down to how the fur looks. The Lionhead fur has this undulating wooly fur with guard hair. So I took the time to look up the standard of points for this breed here are some of the points I love:

*the mane is made of wool
* the wool is strong
* lively feeling with a soft silky texture.
* should be wavy
* should show crimping
* guard hairs will be present but should never create a coarse feelin
* Rollback
* soft, dense, medium length
-courtesy of http://www.cimmarononline.com/LHvisual.htm

Love it! love it! love it! the descriptions are just so similar to me that I was so pleased with my own standard and that so many of us were right on the money when describing the texture of fur as feeling like rabbit fur. Not just any rabbit fur, but one that has few guard hair that are not course. It really gave me chills. While I am not modeling the Helki to have a mane it is nice to see something comparable and feel justified in that description.

So back to grooming. I have to also now groom this rabbit. not for show but normal maintenance of the coat. So I did some digging. Rabbits have a finer fur then your everyday cat. The Helki and our resident Rabbit have fur of that same fineness. It was suggested by Lionhead breeders to use a cat flea comb or a fine rabbit fur grooming comb. So I tried it on the rabbit first. A flea comb is wonderful for him, it really worked well. I tried it on the cats whom I've been trying to use a regular metal grooming comb on but the tines were not close enough together to be of any use. The flea comb is a wonderful comb for the cats. So going forward thats what I am recommending for pet homes. Weekly brushing of the coat should keep it in shape. Use a metal flea comb or rabbit grooming comb (if you can find one).

Ok so I think thats several months worth of posts. As always I am around and active on Facebook, please feel free to message me if you'd like. :)

The Foo Ball

2011-01-21T15:41:00.000-08:00

Let me first begin by telling you a bit about Tae Meowski. Tae is currently bordering on 9 months of age. Her mother is Pixie and her daddy is Romo Meowski. Tae is a lovey dovey smoosh ball, she has several favorite toys but nothing is as important as the Foo Ball. (see picture) The Foo Ball is good for all kinds of things, but the best game it plays is fetch aka Foo. Foo can be invoked by the cat or the human. It is a game that any human is allowed to play with Tae, and most times Foo is played with several humans and Tae as she decides who is next to throw the ball, by bringing it back to the preferred player and dropping it near them.

Today was laundry day, as I gathered the laundry together I did notice the Foo Ball, but figured that the recent shampooing it had was sufficient. All the laundry was taken from my room and washed and dried. As I folded the last batch of laundry, I shook out a blanket to fold and Lo' and Behold what falls out, but the Foo Ball!

I asked my husband and he said no he hadn't put it in the laundry. I know I didn't, and the kids were already gone to school. So when all the laundry was put away, I called this silly cat, she sat at attention, I showed her the now washed and dried Foo Ball. Her little expectant eyes sparkled, so I threw her ball for her. She ran after it tail in the air, sure enough she came back with the Foo Ball in her mouth.

Topic Saver

2010-10-30T13:46:00.000-07:00

I was planning on blogging about something else today, but I have so much going on with Halloween that I have barely had the time to sit down and post. I will return to blogging on Monday and be spending time with my family and my beloved cats. Have a safe and wonderful Halloween. Blessed Be :-D

Magazine Milestone

2010-10-29T13:50:00.000-07:00

Thats Right, we are in Print Baby!

It is with my great pleasure to share this with the group. A few months back I was contacted by a Brazillian journalist Fabio Bense who wanted to do a short article on the Helki Cat Breed. I still don't know who pushed them in my direction but I thank you kindly. Ceas & Cia promptly got photos and asked me soooo many questions. After all was said and done (proofing, etc), I was told thank you and heard nothing more. I thought that possibly its such a new face on the cat breed block that maybe it wasn't something they were interested in doing. I shrugged my shoulders and went on with my life. That was until yesterday when I got the magazine in my mailbox. I am attaching the article with what I was told is the English translation, with the Magazine front as the background. This is the October Issue of Ceas & Cia which can also be view virtually & purchased on their website: http://www.caes-e-cia.com.br/

The cat in the picture is Wyrdwul Sapporo aka Purro, whose kitten photos many of you may be familiar with: http://www.flickr.com/photos/helkicats/sets/72157622856916252/

Thank you all again, for your continued support.

Aubrey Anderson

tomorrows blog: Too Young

Selective Breeding and Scoring

2010-10-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

Ok I promised I would write about this today. I have some qualms about getting into specifics or not. I understand that not everyone uses this method but this is what I use. It gives me a really good range and definitely pulls out the show, breeder, and pet quality kittens. So for a real life example Kiyame's recent litter of five, were all over the place in their different features. Some better then others. Just at a glance I knew who the best kittens were, but to remain objective and not pick favorites, I scored them based on the guidelines Roy Robinson outlined in his book "Robinson's Genetics for Cat Breeders". Just as a note I have the original not the reprint. I changed my scoring slightly to reflect what was important for the breed as outline by the Breed Standard. Going by this scoring method, let me know that I had two breeder/show kittens out of this litter and I know which kitten is better (per the scoring) then the other. The other three kittens are adorable and one is breeder quality but not show quality. The other two kittens will have to go to pet homes. They are adorable and cute, they have the Helki fur in different degrees, but they are pet quality because they do not meet the standard and score low on the grading scale.

Remaining Objective is not an easy task, my favorite kitten in the bunch was second place and my second favorite is third place. The kitten that scored the highest is not really 'my cup of tea'. She is the one I should keep to breed.

Looking at Big Picture is important also. I can not essentially keep three kittens from the same litter. Doing so limits my gene pool, which can lead to trouble. Its important to think of what each individual can bring to the table when their time as a breeder/show cat comes up. Do you want to keep or accentuate the patterns, conformation, etc that such and such kitten has? Which kitten has the better potential at helping your current breeding program?

Continued Scoring and Reviewing results as the kitten grows can also be a helpful thing to do. Don't score once, and let that be the deciding factor. Find the best milestones for your breed and score during those weeks. I score when the kittens are born, when the whole litters eyes are open, when they begin to walk and play, and when they have weaned.

Decision Time comes for me around twelve weeks of age. At this junction I take all four scores and average them out. Taking only kittens that score above 175 on my scale I think about what they can individually bring to the table. Kittens are then placed in homes appropriately.

So ends the summary of my current methods. :-D

Back to the Blog

2010-10-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

Its been literaly months since I posted about the Helki breed. There has been so much that has happened since I decided not to blog. Lets see if I can fill you all in. For those of you who don't breed cats, let me tell you its not an easy hobby. Its time consuming, life altering, you never make a dime. There is a lot of paperwork, legalities, record keeping, and animal caring that MUST happen. When you are working with an estabilished breed you can keep only a few cats because there are many more breeders out there holding on to lines that can be used in the future. When you are working with a rare or new breed keeping your gene pool swimmingly fresh is a whole other ballgame. When cat fanciers are asked how many cats they have they often reply with "too many". Its the appropriate response given the witch hunt mentality of the world at large. What is scary is when its not cat breeders but rescuers, and cat lovers all over saying this. I came to realize during the summer that the pedigree breeders, rescuers, and cat lovers need to unite and stop our government from telling us how many cats we can own. If the welfare of the cats is good then why can't a person own many cats? The welfare of the animals is what is key. It seems easy for the world to see a house of many cats and say "crazy cat lady" or the new and popular "hoarder". While hoarding is a serious mental condition it should be pretty easy to pick out true hoarders from people who own many cats. I wont get into this enlarge today, but it makes me angry to hear that a good cat breeder whose animals are well cared for is being villianized in the news and throughout their community.

Why am I so outraged? Well because not only has this happened to friends all too recently but it also happened to me. Thankfully the "authorities" came in and looked about my home and said the case was unfounded. The scary thing... all it takes is a call. One person doesn't like you or what you've said and they can anonymously call you in. I think the scariest thing is that it targeted not only my animals but my children. It was a wake up call that has made me a bit of an activist. It has also made me more cautious as to what I post and say on the interwebs about my own household. I screen my Facebook friend invites and I am cautious to the 'Nth" degree. I took down all kinds of info on my website and I stopped blogging. But that is just the beginning of this tale.

Now if that wasn't hard enough to get out here is the most difficult thing to say. My kitten mortality rate was really bad. I was at the point where I was going to stop breeding for the fear that the breed was not viable. There were no, known illnesses detected. There were many different reasons the kittens weren't making it. There seemed to be no real pathology and that was the scary part. I started to wonder if the kittens were just weak. I started to isolate litters and I was very careful about what was going on with them and began to notice that the litters would be healthy until they were allowed out of their enclosures and onto the carpet. The house was old and not as well cared for as it should have been before we moved in. We lived in this house for five years not knowing what was growing throughout the house. I got severely ill, enough I could no longer work. Everyone in the house had sinus issues. The signs were there, but we didn't know there was black mold growing rampant through the home. Thankfully we moved, and within two weeks my blood pressure was automatically down and my thyroid levels were spot on after two difficult years. That was when I decided it might be ok to try again.

Ok so here I am trying again to be cautious for the protection of my breed and family. I'd love to tell you how many Helki kittens are running around without a sign of illness, but I will just say this the kitten mortality rate is at an amazing all time low. I was guarded, and worried. Still ready to shut the whole thing down, but the mystery illness and infections that plagued my kittens in the old house are non existent now. I am not using different breed stock then I did before, the only thing that changed was where we live now. My conclusion is that the problems from before was because of black mold. While I am thankful to know why, it still hurts to think of the cats I lost in this fight. My health has improved also, the only major issue that continues to bother me is my arthritis. I still have some issues with fibro and CFS but they are much better then before. Some of which I think is because I've learned how to manage my illness better and reduce fatigue.

So there you have it. A lot of cat breeds have issues in the beginning. Bengals had issues with mates killing each other. Manx, munchkins, and Scottish Folds still have issues where they cant mate homozygous without a high kitten mortality rate. And there are many other examples, but truth be told, speaking out about these issues is not easy. In fact its down right scary. I've been lucky to have a strong network of friends, mentors, and advisers to help me through this. I am thankful for their input and help.

I'd love to give the power forward speech. I'd love to see more awareness about black mold and how it affects people and their pets. Overall, the most difficult part is moving forward. Everyday I wonder if starting a breed is the right thing to do. Recently I read a excerpt from the CFA Almanac regarding the Bombay breeding program and it really hit home. Starting a new breed is not for the faint of heart. Its not for those who want glory, its not for people who care more about awards then their cats. Its a job for those who know how to stick to a goal and proceed. Its for those who love people and cats. Its for those who can network and stay critical and positive at the same time. This is a struggle that is worthwhile and so I continue even in the face of adversity.

Now for some lovely pictures:

Pixie

Tae (daughter of Pixie) and Kiyame her auntie

tomorrow breed selection and scoring

Package sent and received

2010-07-31T12:09:00.000-07:00

Dont know if it will ever matter, but I sent the DNA and fur samples of 20 of Helki cats out to UC Davis on 07/24/10 and it was received by them on 07/26/10.

A Tribute To AmunRa

2010-05-11T05:31:00.000-07:00

It is with the heaviest of hearts that I write this. My beloved cat Ra passed away last night. Ra had been hit by a double whammy. He got an abscess from getting a whack on the head from another cat, and then we brought home some kind of cold from the vets the last time the dogs were there. The cold turned into an upper respiratory infection. Ra's abscess healed but his immune system was weak from the two infections. I was able to give him some amoxicillin and terramycin. I thought he had bolstered and was on the mend. I was wrong it was the last glimmer before he passed. Ra waited for my nightly check up on him. Enough on how he died ... let me tell you about his Life.

AmunRa was born on 11/17/2008 it was evident that he was born too early, especially when his mother held onto the other kittens for a few days before delivering them. Ra was scrawny and tiny and the oddest colored kitten I had ever seen.

As he grew his unique color and fur really began to show:

He was so neat that a friend encouraged me to show him. So off Ra went the first week of April 2009 to show off what a Helki looks like. That weekend as a kitten Ra was able to make best HHP in 2 rings. But then this is how he looked at his cat show:

Ra went to many other cat shows and he did well. He was always a spectator favorite. His sweet loving personality always won everyone over. Ra went on to stud two litters of Helki kittens. His son OberonRa (Keebler) stands with the likeness of his father in both looks and personality. Shai (Piggy) and OdinRa (Stubz) are beautiful kittens with outgoing and good natured temperaments. Ra was also a good father and would care for his kittens. Showing that true fathering is a wonderful Helki trait.

Sadly Ra was never an overly healthy cat. He could pick up a cat cold like nobody's business. It seemed that his immune system suffered from the get go and was probably part in fact to his early arrival. Despite all his troubles Ra was a great spokescat for the Helki and I am so blessed to have had him in my life. He was a major driving point for me to learn so much about cat color, & coat genetics. He helped work with me to find the best way to groom a Helki before a show.

Sorry I am just terrible right now, between sniffles and all I hope this makes sense. Here is to AmunRa, my sweet ambassador. I love you and miss you so much already.

Light Switch & the Joy of Cat Trees

2010-04-09T08:22:00.000-07:00

I recentlty bought this $40 cat tree at Walmart. You assemble it at home, it has three tiers, and reaches all the way to the ceiling. Needless to say both my budget and my cats LOVE it. When placing the tree in my home I knew I wanted it in my room. Its not a big tree and the levels can be turned to face any direction you want. I placed mine in between my bathroom sink and closet thinking what a novel place that would be. Did I mention the cats LOVE the cat tree?! Yes its a place for place, sleep, relaxation... and learning. the bathroom light switch is located right next to the middle tier, the cats have now mastered the light switch. Some use the front paw method, some use the back paw kick method. The switch is fun to turn both on and off. My cats love to challenge each other with all kinds of tasks. Who can walk the railing the farthest, who can climb the curtains to the top, who can run through the house at lightning speed. Now its who has mastered the light switch. While I am amused it can be slightly annoying to have the light turned out on you while you are doing something important for humans per say. But over all I recommend that if you ever want full entertainment, a Helki or two can be the remedy needed. Ooops there's the light again =^_^=

More Milestones

2010-03-31T21:24:00.000-07:00

Oh this blog, I really should update better. I do have some news, so I want to share it. Yesterday Heather Roberts (All Breed Judge in TICA & member of the Genetics Committee) was kind enough to stop by my home to see the Helki up close and personal. This was a lovely visit and a good step forward for the breed. Now the Helki has been able to have David Mare (CFA Director At Large) and Heather Roberts (TICA Genetics Committee Member) not only handle the cats but review the Standard of Points.

I think this is a very important step forward and helps me to make the goals I need to continue. I also feel I've gotten valuable information on how to go forward. Some of which will be changing some of the procedures in my own home. I'm notably excited but also I understand this doesn't guarantee anything. Its merely a small step worth noting.

Show Report - Vallejo CA 3/6 - 3/7

2010-03-09T08:47:00.000-08:00

Crow Canyon Cat Club knows their stuff. They get great judges and put together a good show with excellent vendors. For this two day show I took Ichi for our entry, Slick and Romo to look at and compare. Slick is the one female where I got a normal coat. Her siblings coats weren't as thick or as wavy as I like to see, but Slick is just that sleek and slick. Compared to Romo's coat its pretty easy to tell the difference. Ichi did great in the ring and got 2nd place in all but two rings. One ring he got Best and one ring he got 4th. So on average for this Show Ichi was 2nd. Not to shabby but Ichi might have been bumped down if we had as much competition as had been expected for both days. It was a blast though and it was so nice to see so many young people walking through the show hall with their parents learning about all the different cat breeds. I dont know which school or teacher promoted it, but what a great way to get young people interested.

So its official this was finally the last time for a while that the Helki will be put on a judging bench. Hopefully we can make quick progress and get enough breeders by next year to submit all the appropriate paperwork by August 1st. I can hope can't I?

I also got great news. Santoi cattery got back in touch with me and I should be able to get this lovely kitten to show in the next season. My goals this season are to assist with clerking, and show this sweet little guy at the same time exhibition the Helki. Wish me luck.

Tarot

2010-03-03T10:07:00.000-08:00

The card represents the critical factor for the issue at hand. The Empress: Feminine progress. Action. Natural energy. Development. Fruitfulness. Accomplishment. Interest in day-to-day details. Mother. Sister. Wife. Marriage. Children. Feminine influence. Material wealth. Evolution. A leader. Decisions founded upon all the facts at hand. The motivator of a successful partner or husband. Businesswoman.
___________________________________________________________________________

I'm a bit distraught over some personal dealings so I happened to think "why not ask Tarot?" After a good reading I thought why not ask about the Helki Cat Breed. I used the Cat People cards and the system choose a one card spread for me. The above is the reading. I have to say facade.com sure has me convinced. The cat on the card even looks like a stylized Helki. That could be a Romo/Tigre future kitten. lol. Well a girl can dream but maybe I dream too often. I've had a huge kick in the butt today. I hope that it all works out for the best.

Last Show of the Season

2010-03-02T23:13:00.000-08:00

The Cat show season is ending in about two months. I would love to plow through and show to the very end but I have other priorities. This last show in Vallejo is a heart wrenching yet necessary step for the Helki Breed. I plan on getting back in the show hall once the new season starts but in the meantime I need to focus on submitting the proper forms with TICA and trying to find new breeders that I can connect with and that will uphold the ideals and SOP with this breed. This is some tough work I have cut out for me and while I am excited to see progress I am also frightened of the future. What happens when I have to tactfully decline a breeder? What happens if I feel someone I trusted is going down a bad path. One thing I was definitely warned of is that at some point I have to give up the reins and allow others to proceed me. Thats a hard thing to swallow and will take some time for me to come to terms. Anyhow I can't say that it wont be a good thing. Look at how loved the Persian breed is and yet how different it looks from when it first became a known breed. I've got a lot on my mind and my heart is heavy.

Altan's Pics

2010-03-01T23:00:00.001-08:00

109
Originally uploaded by Wyrdwul - Helki Cat Breed

Altan's pics came and they are now online and ready to enjoy.

Big Day for the Big Daddy!

2010-02-28T18:47:00.000-08:00

Not that I want to give all the credit to Romo, but he is a daddy for the first time today. His mate Flying Hugs of Doom had a litter of three girls. Two blues and one black all 3 with silver highlights. I'll have to report more on patterns and such when they are a little older. I know one of the blues is a mackerel tabby. I'm going to have to wait on the other two.

As for 30 days of this blog I sure haven't done very well. But I am not giving up. I will get this down...promise.

best you thought I forgot

2010-02-24T23:36:00.000-08:00

Ok just popping in before the end of the day. Its been a long one. I have 4 kittens in the house right now and they are at the weaning stage. Everyone is learning litter boxes and food and water habits, but also have a need for supplement feedings. Just like little humans, kittens get going and doing and dont know they are worn out, hungry, or even thirsty sometimes until its too late. The kittens are fun though. Watching them learn and grow is the most wonderful thing.

Lastly I had a milestone. Mia Meow ate fish for the 2nd day in a row. Not much but its better then just dry food. :)

Opps back to Day 1 - post 2

2010-02-23T00:43:00.000-08:00

Man I cant believe I pushed this off all day I look at the time and low and behold I am already back to square one on my 30 days of Helki.

Oh well I did it only to myself. I am currently trying to figure out what to do for the next cat show. No need to send entries in until you know what you are up too. So with that in mind I hope I can be forgiven when it comes to forgetting to post. It will be the last show for me for a few months. I am hoping June or July to begin showing again but the Helki will only be under Exhibition Only. No ribbons, recognition, points, or awards. Still no guts no glory. There is so much work ahead that I can not tell you how nice Exhibition Only actually sounds.

Ok now to something more fun which is talking about this breed. The Helki has existed as its own little colony for far longer then I've been around. However I want to refine the breed in conformation. Temperment has never been an issue with these cats either from outside or ones bred indoors. There are a handful of cats outdoors that trust only the tinkle of food in a bowl and want nothing else to do with humans.

Even so I've been a staunch observer of the colony and the cats I breed and have been surprised to hear that some things they do are very different from other cat breeds and certainly not common. So I will share one trait that has surprised many to hear and see.

True Fathering - I think its pretty well known that for most male cats, kittens are not interesting and sometimes they are "dispatched" so a male cat mate again with a female. The Helki male is extremely the opposite.

What has been explained to me as "true fathering" is the male cats active role and participation in raising and protecting kittens and his tolerance of kittens within a "colony".

I didn't think much of it as all Helki males are decently tolerant with kittens. If they have an issue they back off and go do something else. I have never had a male hunt kittens down and dispatch them. It was brought up to me while at the San Diego cat show that my adult male Romo Meowski was laying with and caring for two 4 month old kittens also males. All of them whole males. The realization that this was a true trait did not come until that discussion. Yes the Helki males have even fended large pitbull dogs away from kittens. I have watch them surround and protect a group of kittens and even play with and lead kittens around. Yes whole males. Yes even in the feral colony. This is a trait that does happen with a few breeds, but not many, and certainly not all.

Another interesting thing that happens is that after new kittens are born many of the males and females want to come see and smell the new kittens. I do allow this on the first and second days of life. It allows the males to connect with the kittens scent and recognize they are part of our group and household. Its a very neat event in our household to watch cat after cat come into the nursery to see mother and kittens and walk out, much like humans do after a baby is born. A quick visit and then its time for mom and kittens to be left alone for bonding and sustenance.

Long story short, the Helki male is a uniquely intelligent cat who is very tolerant of kittens and loves to help participate in all aspects of raising kittens within the 'colony'.

Jumping Through Hoops - Day 1

2010-02-21T20:37:00.000-08:00

First thing I want to say is there are going to be some huge changes in the works for me. I have been advised on one occasion in a very polite way that even in CFA it is now time to do Exhibition Only with the Helki. Then recently some staunch advice and words of alert were said to me during a show. My mentor and I had planned on attending and putting the cats on the bench one last time in March, but after that we knew it was time for Exhibition Only. Now I am contemplating just doing Exhibition Only at this show in March. Its a difficult decision for me, however I know the advice given to me could also be the warning that I may be stepping to far into territory where I will be causing myself and my breed nothing but harm. I am not making the decision today but I do think that its time to settle in for the long winter in Exhibition Only. Its not an easy feeling but all the advice given is from those whom I trust and respect. I've never gone wrong by following the advice from these people.

Another thing I'd like to try is 30 days of Helki Blog! I neglect this portion of life so well. I really dont like putting my heart on my sleeve in front of everyone and their dog to read. I like to believe that all people have good intentions but I know from experience that it is not the case. Again I have to think about the breed and not myself. I need breeders and I need people interested in this breed. So in order to do that I need to talk about them and my methods more. Hopefully my honesty can help others understand that my intentions are not bad, even if those people do not agree with me or if they dont like my breed. Here is the skinny, I will attempt to post about the Helki everyday for 30 days. If I skip a day the 30 days starts over. The post may be very simple and sent from my cell phone, or could be long and involved. It will be at my whim and hopefully fun and informative. :)

Show Report - King City CA 02/20/2010

2010-02-21T20:20:00.000-08:00

King City was a lot of fun. I am going to attempt to make this short and sweet though this cattery brought two kittens and Najo cattery brought one kitten. Thats a total of 3 Helki kittens being show under HHP class. Alton is a red ticked tabby. He scored the best with two Bests. Ichiban scored one Best. Sappuro's best placement for six rings was one 3rd place ribbon. Over all a fun day in a very low key show hall with fun judges. Alton and Ichi held most of their scores between Best and Third throughout the day. We were able to get some stunning photos of Alton done and are hoping to post those soon.

Experimental Breed Status with TICA

2010-02-04T14:21:00.000-08:00

Its a small step but one that helps validate this new breed just the slightest. We now are able to register our cats, kittens, and litters with TICA as the Helki is under Experimental Breed Status. Now to gain breed awareness and find people who are interested enough to venture out into new territory and breed some Helki. As with everything I've experienced with these cats I think it will all fall right into place when the right people and time come around. Its good news and I wanted to share.

Show Report - San Diego CA/CFA

2010-02-02T14:59:00.000-08:00

The Food & Water Bowl XVII!!! San Diego Cat Fanciers knows how to do it right. This was a fabulous show and they really pulled in the whole crowd. I don't think I've been to a more celebrated cat show. 2 days, 10 rings being 5 rings each day was just awesome. Fanciers from around the globe showed up! We took Ichiban and Sappuro to show and compete and Romo came as a companion for the kittens. Of course we could not forget Nancy Jo and Danny. Danny and Ichi were entered in the agility ring of which they both did really well. Danny is a Oriental Shorthair with an appetite for fun. Both cats love the agility ring. Its a great place for the cats to run around and get rid of pent up energy. Ichi did really well. At only 4 months old he got a score of 49 sec which by the end of the show put him in 5th place, but for a while Ichi's score was the one to beat. We are proud of our little guy he can draw a crowd like a popstar! Sappuro is a more laid back kind of guy. He love attention and enjoyed being in the Judges Ring. This time around we had 28 total cats in the HHP class. This gives a lot of room for play for the judges. Our little 4 month old guys were up against Seasoned Regional Winners, so we were thrilled to see Ichi get 5th place in Gary Veach's ring and Sappuro placed 6th in the same ring. Gary said he was won over by their excellent temperament. Most judges see a small fry like mine and figure they will see these cats have long carriers in the cat fancy so they figure the kittens are more there for practice. It was nice that Gary felt they were of superb enough quality to final our cats and we were very happy he thought to include our kittens. Another touching moment was that Larry Adkinson made or brought these wonderful Merit ribbons. Our cats should get merit ribbons in every ring if they qualify for finals by being in good form and health. While we did get merits in all rings with both boys the ones that will stick in our minds are the ribbons that we got to take home. All the judges were wonderful it was a nice treat.

Last but not least we had some wonderful interest brewing in the show hall for the Helki and again the spectators were very excited to see and touch our cats. I will definitely go next year.

Show Report - Stockton CA/CFA

2010-02-02T14:29:00.000-08:00

This was a wonderful show put on by Poppy State Cat Club. I was excited to attend as I missed this clubs last show here in Sacramento. I can not tell you how nice it is to be able to drive to a cat show and then back home all in the same day. Had it been a two day cat show then yes I would have been in heaven sleeping in my own bed in stead of a hotel room. But that's neither here nor there is it? I took my young daughter Arie and met up with my friend Jacky Andersen. Jacky shows and loves Sphynx cats. The seating was a little messed up so Jacky and I sat separately from each other but we each had complimentary groom space or elbow room as I like to think of it lol. Arie and I took a very special kitty Wyrdwul Ichiban of Najo. Ichi as we call him was breed in our cattery but has aims to be a Helki stud for the Najo cattery someday. He will be the first breeder cat used in another cattery and so we have high hopes for him. This show was his first show and we expected there to at least be one other cat to compete with. Unfortunately that cat was absent. Which means he received Best(1st) HHP ribbons in every ring but his points are not counted. Sad but true, however it gave Ichi a taste for the show life of which he does seem to take to like a fish to water.

Some Pics of my Girlie

2009-12-22T01:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Nancy Jo here are some great pics of my daughter Arie as she showed Romo Meowski as a Novice in Junior Showmanship. I am so very proud of her.

Show Report - Vallejo CA/CFA

2009-12-21T16:13:00.000-08:00

Wow where do I even start? The begining is probably a great place ;)
Saturday was a great day for a cat show. My daughter Arie and I got up at 5 am and left at 5:30 am. We traveled up to Yountville and got my friend and mentor Nancy Jo and then traveled down to Vallejo. We got there pretty early and spent most of the time trying to figure out the parking situation. We got the cage decorated and comfy for Romo Meowski, who was in a great mood. he was purring and making biscuits and loving Nancy's attention. I thought it was going to be a great day...

Romo went to the first ring and was placed right next to another cat who was not so happy to be at the cat show. It set Romo off. The remainder of the day he hissed at judges, other cats, toys, etc. Personally I was really astounded at his attitude. I mean Romo doesn't even hiss at home. Heck I didn't know he even knew how to hiss! I was a bit embarrassed at first but he wasn't striking out at anyone just letting his feelings be known. So Romo was not happy about the cat show. lol.

Four cats were in the catalog, one didn't show. After halfway through the show our competition again went down by one cat. At the end of the show it was only cranky Romo Meowski left to compete against himself. While Romo didn't score high he was still turning heads and again was a spectator and crowd favorite.

Ranking in the ring is somewhat meaningless IMO Romo is a purebred cat and therefore more likely to score low because it will seem to the judges as if I am trying to pass off an established pedigree/purebred cat for a hodgepodge anybodys guess HHP. Which technically I guess I am. The Helki Breed is a new experimental breed there are no other classes I can show them in and I want to get these cats into the hands of the judges. So we got 3rd place 3 times, 2nd place 2 times, and Best HHP in the last ring because Romo was the only HHP left in the show hall. Arie was able to get 1st place as Novice Junior Showmanship using Romo. It was the only time I saw him not hiss at everyone the whole day lol. As if he knew he didn't want to ruin this for Arie. hahaha. Even the Judge Kim Everette-Hirsch commented that Romo behaved better for Arie then he did for her. Arie does have pretty good handling skills.

We had some excellent comments from the judges. Romo was said to have good conformation, a unique texture to his fur, lovely eye shape, solid body, among other very nice things. When I would explain what Romo was the judges all seemed happy to have the puzzle pieces fitting together and were very pleased with him. At the end of the show many of the Judges were gathered in a group and watched Romo get his only Best HHP award for the day and they all applauded loudly for him. It was very touching and gave me hope and joy for my breed.

Silver Bells Cat Show Vallejo

2009-12-14T23:13:00.000-08:00

Our very own Romo Meowski is scheduled to be shown as HHP (Household Pet) and for Junior Showmanship at the Silver Bells Cat Show in Vallejo on December 19th.

This will be Romo Meowski's last show appearance until he has been a daddy at least a few times and has a suitable replacement. Romo is one of our finest cats and is a Must See & Feel!!

Please come join us at the Solano County Fairgrounds,McCormack Hall,900 Fairgrounds Drive.
This is a CFA licensed show.

Its Official!

2009-12-14T23:05:00.001-08:00

Today I recieved my Cattery Name Registration Certificate in the mail. Wyrdwul is now a cattery name that is registered with the Cat Fanciers Association.

A Sneaking Suspicion...

2009-12-03T10:09:00.000-08:00

Do you remember the story about Stormy the kitten we found under the house during the storm? I've been wondering who her mom is. I know its not the feral we call Wyfe. When I offered the mewling kitten to her Wyfe looked at me like I had to be crazy. She was uninterested in the opposite way from how she reacts to her own kittens. Anyway to make a long story short today after feeding Chuck and Wyfe I sat off to the side to see what they do after they eat. The two went under the house and out runs this long hair creamy gray colored cat. I know this cat! Its one of Chucks family members. Its either his mom or a brother that looks similar to Chucks Mom. My suspicion is that Stormy is possibly a half sister to Chuck. Both Chucks brother and Mom have not yet been able to be caught and spay/neuter. I can't say that its a for sure but its a possibility.

FWD:

2009-11-26T10:26:00.001-08:00

Haru the golden one taken by Arie G

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I just couldn't believe it!

2009-11-25T03:22:00.000-08:00

I go to messybeast.com for anything cat related. Sarah Hartwell is someone I respect and admire not just as a person who loves cats but because she has taken the time to record and keep important cat related info cataloged and available to the public.

Here I was at way too early in the morning trying to do some cat related research and found myself checking out Sarah's site and lo' & behold there is a neat blurb about the Helki.

http://www.messybeast.com/curly-cats-rex.htm "The Helki (2009) developed from feral cats by Aubrey Anderson has a "semi-rex" coat that has a mix of wavy and straight guard hairs that can look unkempt. Helki, means "touch" in Miwok Indian (Northern California) and reflects the silky, fleecy texture of the coat. Early breedings to domestic cats show 50% semi-rexed kittens indicating a dominant gene mutation. Non-rexed kittens can display a mohawk (upright ridge of fur) along the spine when happy. As well as the texture, the fur has a high degree of rufousing, making some colours hard to distinguish. The colour can change during the cat's life; a cream kitten may turn blue and end up reddish-brown while a blue may turn black. The wavy, brittle whiskers are moulted in the first year and replaced by long drooping whiskers and there is a Laperm-like moult of wavy fur as the kittens grow. The breed was mainly developed from feral/semi-feral cats around South Sacramento (Northern California) and the mutation appears to have originated there with LaPerm-type cats also present among local feral colonies, however the Helki is smaller than the LaPerm. The local feline population includes descendants of various Asian cats that arrived with immigrants several decades previously."

I feel honored and I think its awesome to see it unexpectedly. ^_^

Of course there is the neat blurb written by my mentor Anthony N on his RareCatBreeds site "The Helki is an experimental cat breed still in its early developmental stages. It is based on cats with an unusual coat mutation found in Northern California. The name Helki is taken from the Miwok Native American tribe’s language and means ‘touch’. It was chosen to reflect the breed’s most significant feature: its unusual coat texture which can be likened to the feeling of a silky fleece blanket. The feature is caused by a dominant gene and is a semi-rex type coat with some light waving or crimping."

Very cool stuff indeed.

2009-11-20T04:58:00.001-08:00

Here is a nice updated image of Romo Meowski. Romo has the perfect type for the Helki breed. He will be 7 months old on the 25th.

it is 37 degrees out

2009-11-17T06:10:00.001-08:00

it is 37 degrees out & 69 degrees inside humidity is at 89% all the cats in the house are displaying their Helki coats.

2009-11-15T03:31:00.001-08:00

Yuki(cream) & Koji(cameo)

Odie's Litter Announcement and Dooms Kitten Extravaganza

2009-11-05T09:01:00.000-08:00

On 11/02/09 Odie gave birth to Four kittens sired by AmunRa. Here is there info:

Ahmose (born of the moon) - so far all white possibly pointed Male with Helki waves

Shai (Egyptian God with pigs body God of Fate and Destiny) - Tortie Female with Helki waves and a short corkscrew tail.

Stubz (Another mom in the nursery stole him and bit off his tail :( ) - Blue Male with Helki waves

Clowd - White Female with Helki waves, Clowd was also stolen and her foot and tail were bitten and chewed, she lived less then 24 hours but was a lovely little angel.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The End Times Litter is now officially 10 weeks old and three of them will be needing nice forever homes. Inquiries are welcome, feel free to email me at blueinle@gmail.com if you are interested in a Helki kitten.

Stormy

2009-10-16T13:27:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday October 13th there was a huge storm here in Northern California. Chuck had been kept indoors for the past few days because a neighbor had threatened to allow her dogs to eat him if he ventured into their backyard again. Chuck had been a bit stir crazy but he really got worried on the day of the storm. He wanted outside so badly, but we lost a tree early in the morning and I couldn't bare to let him out. Later on that rainy windy day I went to pick up my friends daughter from High School. I left my youngest son and my friends son home while I went out. The door didn't latch properly as I left and soon after I had left the wind blew the door open. Chuck dashed outside with a league of other cats and they all proceeded to get under the house. While I was gone the boys got under the house through an access door in the home to gather up the cats. Low and behold Chuck led them to a little frightened lonely kitten. As they were figuring out what to do, I got home and heard about this feral furball. With a bit of team work the four of us were able to get the little one inside and Chuck marched right in after, as if that all he had been concerned about.

Stormy as she is called now is a fluffy long hair kitten about 7 weeks old. Where her momma is I don't have the slightest clue, but we have nursing moms here so she is adjusting really well.

I went out a bit later after the storm had subsided and found that the area where the cats went to find Stormy, was flooding. The cats got the humans motivated just in time to get the kitten out safe and sound.

Mia's "Gaia's Rainbow" Litter

2009-09-27T20:47:00.000-07:00

On 09/26/09 Our final fall litter was born female Mia gave birth to six lovely kittens sired by Feazy McCheezy. Here is there info:

Altan (Алтан) -Red Male with Helki waves
Haru - Red Male with Helki waves
Antares - Red Male with Helki waves
Misu - Blue Male with Helki waves
Grizel - Blue female with Helki waves
Ayako - Black female with Helki waves

Romo Astounds the Postman

2009-09-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

I know its terrible but I have to brag when I get the chance to. Today the postman came to the door and Romo ran outside. He is a cat person and proceeded to help me collect my kitten from the front yard. The postman couldn't stop petting him and kept saying "oh he is sooo soft. I can't believe how soft he is. Wow!" LOL it was funny to watch but it was also nice to see that I'm not the only one that can feel the difference in this coat. ^_^

EverCats.com

2009-09-24T10:03:00.000-07:00

Yay Romo got runner up on the EverCats Daily cat for today!!
http://shrinkify.com/18lm

Website Update

2009-09-23T14:44:00.000-07:00

Ok I have a new layout for wyrdwul.com, its been a bit of work and it looks that there are a few tables out of alignment but over all it was ready to put on the web. :)

Older Website Stuff I wanted to Keep

2009-09-23T12:59:00.000-07:00

Foundation Cats

The map below shows the places where the cats were obtained.

1. Shadow

Sex: Female | D.O.B. 2005 | Size: Medium | Coat Color: Black Smoke | Eye
Color: Yellow | Coat Texture: Long Silky |

Shadow Princess - Shadow was found when she was about 8 -10 weeks old in the
engine of a car down the street in 2005. We tended her burnt paws and
shampooed the oily kitten to find she was Black Smoke. Shadow turned out to
be a very intelligent cat, her favorite kitten game was to play fetch. She
also was great at learning and playing little tricks. Its one of the things
she has passed down to her offspring. We never fixed her as all the other
males in the house were neutered, and wasn't a problem until years later.

2. Chuck

Sex: Male | D.O.B. 6/2006 | Size: Large | Coat Color:
Blue | Eye Color: Yellow | Coat Texture: Short Thick Wooly |

Chuck - In 2006 a little blue kitten from the porch down the street was
smuggled into my home by my lovely sons. It didn't take long for me to love
the little guy but I was totally put off when my little Tom all the sudden
had sick eyes. When confronted my sons quickly confessed there was a 2nd
kitten who we know now as Chuck. Tom unfortunately snuck out one night and
was killed by a neighborhood dog. Chuck on the other hand stuck around to
woo the ladies and sire kittens with both Shadow and Mia. After his first
two litters were born Chuck also snuck out after we took him for shots at
the SPCA so that we could neuter him. Chuck disappeared for 6 months when he
returned he was neutered, frightened, and disoriented. Its taken some time
but he is now coming back inside for short periods of time

3.
Mia

Sex: Female | D.O.B. 4/23/07 | Size: Small | Coat
Color: Tortie Tabby | Eye Color: Yellow | Coat Texture: Short Coarse |

Mia - I got Mia when she was about 4 months old in 2007, from a co-worker.
Mia was loved and cared for but never socialized to humans. I got a very
cute sketchy cat that didn't even want pets. She was so small and could hide
in the most strange placed. Like in my closet clothes. Yes clothes hanging
in the closet! Mia also introduced me to what called silent heat. She would
go into heat and only the boys would know. A month later I had one round
little girl.

Dominant or Recessive? - Jazz was the only kitten born to Odie(Dam) and Shady(Sire). Shady was the only male cat in the house at the time that was whole, so it made it easy to know who the parents were. With only one kitten in the litter there was no way to determine if the gene was recessive or dominant. Shady had sired a previous litter with Mia and in retrospect several of the kittens born had traits that made the fur different then normal cats I just didn't see the dramatic waves in the fur and known that both Shady and Odie were half siblings, it was then thought that it must be a recessive gene. At that point I wanted to get a breeding pair with the same coat so I bred to Shady to Nermal (Odie's sister and littermate). From that mating two kittens were born with wavy fur. the male Osiris had beautiful tufts of wavy thick wool, his whiskers were short and brittle. The female Isis, had short wooly fur and wavy whiskers. Unfortunately the both passed due to milk fever. Mia the ever sneaky queen got out of the nursery and successfully mated with one of three males in my house. Could be Shady, Garfield, or Pookie. All of which are son's of Chuck. She produced a litter of four. Now armed with looking at not only the fur but the whiskers I could see the Rex trait in all four. Three had the trait in their fur one in her whiskers. Two of the kittens were also nursing off of Nermal and died of milk fever shortly after Osiris and Isis. It was a terrible blow to the heart and mind. It may seem like a short time that these kittens entered my life but I love them still and promise to continue telling their story in hopes I never forget the things I learned and the loves I lost too soon. I put all that love in the last two kittens, AmunRa and Hostlov. Amun Ra had a new version of the wavy fur. It would curl up and backwards. Hostlov has thick soft fur and wavy whiskers but no waves or curls in her coat.

Oh those Helki Waves

2009-09-22T10:11:00.001-07:00

Oh those Helki Waves
Originally uploaded by Wyrdwul - Helki Cat Breed

come see more photos of the Helki on Flickr

Sapporo

2009-09-21T22:39:00.001-07:00

Sapporo
Originally uploaded by Wyrdwul - Helki Cat Breed

Nothing better then kitten pictures ^_^

A Quick Comparision

2009-09-13T15:58:00.000-07:00

Pictured Coutsey of the CFA WebSite:
Brown Tabby American Shorthair Male
Best of Breed GC, BW, NW STEDAM AMERICAN BRAVADO Photo: © Larry Johnson

When I attend various cat shows I am often asked if my cats are American Shorthair because they carry the classic tabby pattern and it is my favorite pattern to show. Here is a nice comparison by photo. As it is plainly visible the Helki's conformation and type are widely different then the American Shorthair. The Helki is a Small to Medium sized cat of slender build. While the American Shorthair is a Medium to Large sized cat with a robust powerful build and muscles to match. The ASH also has a head that is slightly wider then it is long giving the gentle curved rise of the nose bridge the illusion at times of a break. The Helki has a medium slightly rounded wedge shaped head and the nose should be medium length with a slight rise from the bridge of the nose to the forehead. Hope that helps define the cat a bit more.

Beer International Litter

2009-09-11T21:41:00.000-07:00

On 09/11/09 Our female Hostlov gave birth to five lovely kittens sired by Feazy McCheezy. Here is there info:

Kinnekulle -Blue Self Male with Helki waves
Helsinge - Blue Self Male with Helki waves
Ichiban - Blue Self Male with Helki waves
Sapporo - Blue Self Male with Helki waves
Killians Irish Red - Red Tabby Male with Helki waves

Roxy's Starlite Angel

2009-09-10T13:48:00.000-07:00

Oh I have fun news... I was able to pick up a kitten today that has long hair and a van pattern with tabby markings in the van pattern. Roxanne her previous owner was most gracious and was a delight to meet. I have been calling her Angel because thats just what she is... a little piece of heaven. She's definitely a Turkish Van look a like. She is a tiny thing and I wont be able to show her for a few more months. If all works fine she may even add to the Helki genepool. For now she is my snnugglebug, which is just purrfect =^_^=

Here is to Roxy's Starlite Angel and her bright future! ^_^

Updates

2009-09-09T12:03:00.000-07:00

Oh if only you knew how hard I've been working :)

So after the cat show I really have felt motivated to get some work done on the blog and web site. I added a Flickr account and have been trying to link all my networking sites. If you have an account and I haven't added you on send me an email.

In the mean time I have a Dam who is ready to have kittens and has been wanting me to spend all my time with her. Plus there are other new kittens to check on and attended to (who are all doing great btw).

So the blog looks updated for what it needs, once I get the new site layout up I'll use those colors on the blog as well.

Developing News

2009-09-05T03:46:00.000-07:00

Today I went and visited a neighbor across the street from me as she and her husband enjoy cats and cat for around 13+ cats from the feral colony that lives on our block. She has lived in our neighborhood for 33 years or so and has seen many a "throw away" cat come and go.
I was surprised and delighted to see many of Chucks family members including his mother in their backyard. Also it was fun to hear that Chucks name over there is Mr. B
cuz he is mister big in regard to size lol. They also confirmed that Chuck did disappear for 6 to 7 months. I was able to let them know he was neutered and that I believe he moonlights at another house behind me. This couple should win an award for what they have done for this cat colony. In their backyard they have it customized for their feral colony with a sandbox litter box, a cat tree, and cat beds. They have spayed and neutered all but a few that have recently cropped up and make sure the cats get veterinary care when needed.
While I stood amazed and delighted in their home, I was in for even more of a shocker. My neighbor produced several photos with cats that had very obvious Rex coats. I also go a lesson in genealogy and record keeping for these cats! I was quiet impressed. So now I have more of an idea of what the Rex cats look like that have helped to create the Helki breed and I am excited to get the information recorded in my Breeders Assistant program.

End Times Litter

2009-09-05T03:38:00.000-07:00

On 09/03/09 Our female Flying Hugs of Doom gave birth to four lovely kittens sired by Feazy McCheezy. So here is there info:

Dooms Dae: Female Blue Spotted Tabby with Helki waves
Dooms Apocalypse: Female Black Tortie with Helki waves
DoomAgeddon: Female Black Self normal coat
Dooms Hexen: Male Black Self with Helki waves

CFA Show Hayward 09/06/2009

2009-09-01T17:10:00.000-07:00

I will be taking two beautiful boys to this show. Please come and visit us.

Roseville Show

2009-07-26T17:53:00.000-07:00

Regrettably I will be unable to take Tigre to the show in Roseville. Its terrible but I wont even be able to attend. I have a family engagement that wont wait for cat shows. Your family shouldn’t have to ask you whats more important the cats or them. Obviously I love my cats, but my kids have to come first. Also my health has been a concern and I am taking new meds but they wont be completely effective until mid August. I need them to be working in order to make it through a cat show without problems. Either way its frustrating for me and been a difficult decision. While I know health and kids come first there is that selfish person screaming in my head that it would be fine to just ditch out and go to the cat show. There will always be other cat shows to attend. My kids will only be this age once. I go to do what a mommas got to do.

Food

2009-06-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

I'm such a stickler when it comes to cat food and like many people fed my small group of cats an inexpensive cat food which they would gobble up and I would have nothing left to feed them but my dinner until I got paid :(

With this breed project I've had to grow my number of cats and read about feeding a high quality food to the cats early on. I got them Iams kitten food and Iams original. I was pissed about the price until I found that they were eating less often and the Iams lasted and the cats weren't really begging for food all the time.

With so many bred mothers and a huge mass of kittens on the way I began making kitten glop which we call Cat Pudding and feeding that regularly. Even my old man cat Glenn loves the pudding and the mothers milk is strong and kittens get fed regularly.

At the cat shows many food companies advertise and bring samples. EVO was one of them. It a high protein food for the cats with a lot more meat in it. The cats loved the sample they got but I again went back to the Iams. Recently AmunRa was shown in Reno NV and while he did well he probably could have beaten all of the competition if he had more muscle mass. I asked my mentor and she probed about deworming. Ra was wormed for roundworm and tapeworm and I haven't seen a problem since then. She said then its what you are feeding them, he needs more protein to build muscle. Right then I knew she was right. She had told me and told me I needed a better quality food and now I really know why.

While I wont be showing Ra for a while, I do want him to have strong musculature. Many of my males don't mature until they are about a year and half old. I think he will be peak then but until then its time for some protien shakes! j/k buit he will be getting a higher protien meal now. I will also be feeding the EVO to my other prospective show cats.

This is good because now I can be a bit more stingy on the cat food and hopefully get some of my fatties down in weight and build up my thinner cats. We will still feed raw a few times a week and any meat leftovers from dinner will also be fed to the cats.

I have to say I gave out the cat food earlier and each cat has their bowl. Even the kittens wanted some EVO. Since I put their individual portions out not one of them has come begging for my lunch and the house is almost eerily quiet. The mothers are feeding the kittens and I haven't given them pudding yet. Its a very neat thing to experience and I wanted to share in detail. ^_^

Wyrds Feral Kittens

2009-06-26T13:21:00.000-07:00

I wanted to blog a big about the ferals in my neighborhood.

Firstly I did want to report that a friend of mine that lives about 25 minutes from me recently found a flame point kitten with wavy whiskers and she stated like my cats have. I didn't know what to think so I went over and sure enough her kitten has the whiskers but her fur was not pronounced as rexed she had a thinner coat then most of my cats. I was forlorn and not sure what to think. The only logic I have is that we know this gene is a dominant gene, most likely an incomplete dominant. If kittens with the trait are being re-homed within the city it makes sense that the gene could travel so far away. Then again I have heard that some cats will travel pretty far to establish new territory.
As I have introduced these traits to those around me and people have visited my cats it doesn't surprise me that some features are being noticed however most of the traits that make these cats unique are not very easily noticed and fly quietly under the radar. Either way I know that the traits seem to be strong in the feral, semi feral, and free roaming cat population of the greater Sacramento area. Even if my work on a viable breed fails, these genes do not seem to be the kind that will just go by the way side.

Now as I've discussed on the site, my mentors and I feel that this trait comes from Chuck and his progeny and other relatives. I can not say if it came from his mother as she is clearly very wild and will not approach humans at all. I have only ever been able to see her at a large distance of 15 feet or more. I don't know who Chucks father is, at all. We do see relatives of Chuck and his family who were an established colony even before I moved to this area. We have lived in this home for 4+ years and have often tried to take care of and watch over the ferals on our block. We have seen many come and go. While this is a very ideal neighborhood for cats it is still dangerous and cats face so many perils from dogs to cars to illness. Thankfully though most people here are cat loving people and most dogs are well managed or cat friendly.
Within the past year, Chuck (who is a semi feral cat that was neutered & a founding cat for my program) returned after a 6+ months of hiatus and he returned with a female we called Wife. Wife came with one gray tortie kitten that had vivid blue eyes at the age of 6 months. That kitten disappeared as many do. Wife and Chuck stayed close. With regular food Wife found a will and a way. She was a medium sized cat when we met her so never thought much of her size but were delighted when she started bringing four small kittens to eat the dry food I'd but out for her. She and the kittens moved from under a house across the street to under our house. They were small enough to begin socializing so we would pick them up as much as feral kittens would allow. There were two unpatterned tabbys, one blue, and one black with gray ruff around the neck. Just a few days ago while feeding the kittens I was able to pick one of the unpatterned tabbys up and she had this abcess on her tummy. I knew she had to come in. I got the abcess clean and its healing very quickly with regular care. She is adjusting to life in a human home extremely well. A day or so after I started caring for her I was feeding the cats at night and we were ambused by a roaming dog. The older cats were able to get up and out of the way but the kittens weren't sure of the real danger and didn't run and hide quickly enough for my comfort. I shooed the dog away and the owner came and got the dog but we have since seen this out of control dog all over the neighborhood threatening children, dogs, and cats. Sadly that same night a siamese patterned cat from down the street was found dead in the morning. It wasn't mangled but obviously shaken to death. The next night I began working to capture the other feral kittens. I picked up the black one and he clearly was not going without a vicious loud fight. I had to put him down and I will regret that decision for a long time. We found him dead under our tree that next morning. Again no tearing or mangling but I believe shaken to death by the roaming dog. It was no longer a choice I just couldn't let the other girls go in that same way. We caught them and put them in an isolated room away from the rest of the household and clowder and have since started working slowly on socializing as they are not as sure and confident as the first kitten. Chuck comes and checks on the kittens, their mother Wife wont come in but will check on them through the window screen.

So thats a lovely story in and of itself but I also wanted to report that here I complained of having so many male kittens that showed the Helki features strongly but only a handful of females and all cat breeders know you need more girls then boys. All three surviving kittens are girls, have wavy whiskers and thick wavy undercoats! The blue girl has the best coat overall but is quite a priss who only loves me lol. So again the Wyrd has come and taken control to drive fate. While I dont really know much about these kittens backgrounds or how inbred they are, they so far seem pretty healthy and have had baths and dewormer from me starting about a month ago when I caught them all last time. Now for a good routine check up and we should be set.

An all cat update

2009-06-16T09:04:00.000-07:00

This was posted as a blog on mycatspace.com I edited this version with the cats that are currently in my home and removed info about cats that were placed in forever homes, etc...

Glenn Lee: It seems he has taken on full retirement. I wasn’t sure until I noticed that Tanuki was now the cat that waited until everyone had finished before eating and Glenn takes advantage of eating before anyone can steal his food. He is creaky, and tired but since he has retired I’ve seen a new light in his eyes. He is enjoying the twilight of his life.

Tanuki: Is a fantastic leader and great mother. Her milk is coveted by all the kittens. She is patient giving and takes extra time with all of the kittens. But her love is her own baby Bender who I’ll talk more of later. Most of Tanuki’s day is filled with kittens but she still has a fun romp around the house and is active and social with the other older cats. The house is very quiet and stable with Tanuki in charge.

Shadow: Has been going through a phase where she prefers to be on her own. She spends most of her time sitting in a window sill watching the birds. She has had a few problems with Yuki bothering her and chasing her but he has learned grandma can hold her own.

Shady: Must feel usurped by his daughter taking over. He wont come back in the house. When we bring him in it’s a tooth and nail fight and he sprays the house up and down if he gets the chance. He spends all his time in the yard out front with Chuck, Wife and Wifes four kittens.

Mia: had four kittens a few weeks after Tanuki had Bender. Three of which you can tell are silver/smoke and long hair. Since silver and longhair are dominant genes that means they are Nickademus’ kittens >.<

Nermal: Also had a litter before Mia had hers. She has 3 sweet kittens. Nermal is now Tanuki’s right hand momma cat. The two are side by side all over the house. This is a good alliance and helps Nermal feel important.

Odie: had five kittens two of which we have kept. They are about 14 weeks old as I write this. Odie did her best. She did let the burden of her kittens lay heavily on the other three mothers when her kittens were about 9 weeks old. She has rebounded and is now doting on her two kittens that stayed here.

Garfield: Spends a lot of time with his son Bender and the other kittens. Most of it snoozing though… When Garfield is up I have to watch him as he loves to open the screen to my bedroom window of which lets out any other curious cat that notices the roof access was “unlocked”. It’s a bit frustrating as I don’t use an air conditioner and like open windows. Now I have to shut the windows in my room and suffer hot nights.

Yuki: While Arie has refused to put her large Yuki on a diet he hasn’t gotten rounder. He has a nice defined muscle mass and is a force to be reconed with. He has been the kitten playtime cat. Running all over the house like a freight train full of semi trucks! He has finally figured out that he likes girls and we have sequestered him to the “gentleman’s room” Which changed his habits into breaking and entering. Garfield taught him the get out of jail free trick with the window and we have had to get Yuki off the roof several times before I finally said enough and closed the window. Now Yuki spends his time snoozing in his own blanket filled laundry basket.

Pigeon: Still not much into her princess bed. She loves the DVR though. It is warm and whirs and is a great nap spot. When she gets up there she ignores everything else. As if there is a force field there, keeping her from interacting with humans.

Jazz: Is still a love bug. I took him as an exhibition to a cat show and he was an instant hit. People kept asking about his fur and so many people stated that they love black cats best. He had a lot of attention on the two day adventure and came home rockin’ it like a rockstar. Which happens to be his new nickname. Jazz knows when Ra and I are leaving to the cat shows and sometimes looks a bit put off that he isn’t going. I’ll have to take him to the next one for sure ;)

Sable: Is still fat, I’ve given up on the whole grow into it thing. She is a master at getting into everything and for a while she was one of Garfields roof crew. Other then that its normal Sable the Doom cat trouble =^_^=

Hostlov: (7 months old) Pesty has not found her forever home yet. I still think she would make a great cat for someone but if no one wants her, then I’ll keep her for the Helki program. She has great fur, but not really great type and not really a good temperament. She doesn’t like to be held or petted she only likes to play. She is the first one of Mia’s kittens that is like this. Seems like she retains some of the feral temperament. Over all though Pesty is loved and gets petted and picked up like it or not.

AmunRa: (7 months old) Ra has been my show cat. He has a good type, great fur, had wavy whiskers, had excellent color and pattern. He also has excellent temperament. Its funny that he and Pesty were littermates. He is older then her by two days and is smaller. She hates pets and he will hunt you down for love and affection. Ra is a Superstar at the cats shows he looks good and behaves well for the judges. He needs to be more playful though and also we need to get him a bit more muscled. Because of his age and my plan to use him as breed stock he wont be able to attend any more shows until he is a proven daddy and I am not planning that until next year. So while he earned 550 points at his one show this year he wont be earning anymore points until his own kittens are 14 weeks old and that again wont happen for a while.

Kittens….

Haze: was born of Odie & Shady. He is a blue lynx point with blue eyes and a sweet personality. Like most Siamese colored cats he sticks close to his human (Me). He does like being picked up and petted though. Loves have to come on his terms. I wanted to show him but I have quickly figured that he is not suited for such a life as long as he doesn’t like to be picked up and handled. He’s a sweetie though and I love him.

Le Tigre: Is Hazy’s littermate and planned mate of AmunRa when they are old enough. Tigre is a brown spotted tabby girl who displays the Helki traits the best I’ve seen on any female of this breed so far. She has a very outgoing, playful personality and we have switched focus to training her for the show ring. For an almost four month old cat she has nicely defined muscles and she should stun the judges and the audience alike ^_^ Just to tell you how outgoing she is. From the first days she was born she would hear my husband’s voice and try to crawl to him. She loves my husband to death and checks on him often.

Bender: Bender was born of Tannuki & Garfield. He was her only surviving kitten. Tanuki gave birth to four total kittens. The other 3 being girls sadly they didn’t make it past their first day of life. Tanuki had a long strained labor which I am sure contributed to the early death of her 3 beautiful girls. Bender though came out with a twisted bent tail and was feisty and hungry. He has never given in, even when his momma was sad about his sister. She loves him and he loves her and they bring each other the joy needed from such a loss. Bender is stripped ticked tabby. He also has a marking on the ruff of his neck that looks like a classic tabby pattern but he is stripped and ticked. His ticking is so pronounced that I thought he was an unpatterned tabby for a while. The Helki coat has a way of opening up to throw off color and show off the undercoat which helps see his very thin stripes. His ticking is a nice rufused red making him even more unique. His bent tail is not seen as a fault. It is actually twisted like a Japanese Bobtail and he can move it about just fine. Bender is a fun kitten to have and also a contender for the show ring.

Ditto, Squishee, & Slick: This trio was born of Nermal and Nickademus. They were a surprise litter and not planned. Boy were they a surprise. Squishee is the only male and has long hair like his father. He is blue colored and loves to play, but shy of humans. We work with him daily but I feel like he will be a lot like Pesty when older, which is a shame as he is the first longhair Helki. The waves in his fur pronounced and beautiful. His silvery blue shows off the waves nicely. Ditto was named such as she looks like the perfect copy of her mother. She is a Dilute tortie and just a sweet doll. Slick is a little black smoke girl. Her smoke isn’t as good as her daddys but what she doesn’t have in color she makes up for in personality. She is a hunter. Player, getter, and all around troublemaker. But she loves a good human snuggle. She also has some gorgeous green eyes. There has been a forever home waiting for her for a long time and I am so sad to give her over for those green green eyes and great personality. So hopefully they change their mind and get a dog.

Romo Meowski, Braith, Cho-chan, Koji: These four were born of Mia and Nickademus and again was a huge surprise. This surprise was also very nice. I think anyone who has silvers and works with smoke shaded and shell cats know that every litter is a delight to see. The silver gene does amazing things and until you see it in person… At the show hall people literally gasp when they see a cat with silver. Its like an open clear white that glimmers… All of these kittens got the dominant silver gene and its breath taking on them. Romo and Braith are Silveer classic tabbys. Romo has a better pattern but Braith has a nice long fur with open waves. Cho is a smoke Tortie with long wavy fur. Koji is a red smoke. The smoke make him look like he has no pattern. I still have no idea what pattern he has but the silver smoke makes him appear like a light red with no pattern. Koji also has that great longhair full wavy fur. When my mentor Anthony Nichols told me I needed some longhair cats in my breeding program I was forelorn. I don’t really like longhair cats, but mine! Oh yeah I love what surprises I got. These kittens are still young at all of 7 weeks old but they are all my loves.

Chuck- Loves being the outside cat. He is protective of the other cats out there. I watch a kitten almost get eaten by a dog, but Chuck ran over there and kicked the dogs butt, and saved the kitten!

Its been buggin' me

2009-06-15T17:27:00.000-07:00

So the gallery has been bothering me. I don't really like how I have it set right now. Its nice to see the kittens from each mom grouped but over all I would like to have a gallery for each separate cat. I can have a new kittens gallery and such and such as needed. But over all it would be nice to have a gallery that features each cat that is staying in the home not just a jumble of new kittens and litters.

In other words I should have a good update about the gallery soon... wish me luck.

Being patient

2009-06-11T12:05:00.000-07:00

I ordered my edition of Robinson's Genetics for Cat Breeders. I'm pretty excited to get it. I know its a great reference and resource. Several months ago I had wanted to order the book and found a used one online for about $50 and thought that was a good deal. Finances didn't go as planned and I had to wait. Boy am I glad I did! I got the book for $3.75 and then paid about the same in shipping. The book is an old used library book. But its the original not the newer edition with all this editing from other geneticists. So for that I am extremely happy. Now I am waiting for the books arrival and that might be about 2 weeks. Le Sigh...

As for other stuff, I am mulling over attending a TICA show in Las Vegas. Several people I talk to online are attending and it sounds like a blast, but again I am not to sure about finances. So its a waiting game. The unpleasant kind where you aren't sure where the future is going.

As for cats. Everyone seems to be in good health and my youngest kittens are starting the weaning stage. Litterbox training has been hellish though. With other groups its been an easy transition and I always figure it take a few weeks for kittens to really get the whole litter box idea down, but I do have some stragglers that would prefer the paper to the box. There is still much time for these kittens to develop their skills again I have to be patient.

I was finally able to get some time to recreate all the records I had on my cats that were lost when the computer got a virus. Thank goodness for hard copies and also that I had put some of it online. I am still missing a huge bunch of pictures. Granted they aren't exactly the best pictures in the world but they were mine :(

R.I.P. pictures you are missed....

CFA Show Reno 06/06/09

2009-06-07T20:36:00.000-07:00

AmunRa (1st pic) was entered as HHP for this show. He is only 6th months old and already turning the judges heads. He won 2nd place in 4 rings and 4th place in 2 rings. He was up against some heavy competition from the 5th best cat in our Region(NorthWest). Mikelah (2nd pic) who is 7 years old and a feral rescue. She is an excellent example of a DSH mackerel tabby. And notably so she won 1st place in all rings as I recall.

As for Ra this will be his last show for about a year. I want to pass on his genes before I neuter him and by the time the next show comes around he will be too old for the competition without having been fixed. Also I need to work on his muscle tone. So I figure a nice year to mature in muscle tone and coat texture and then watch out HHP cats ;P

Our next cat that we are showing will be Kipper(Tigre 3rd pic) she is a Brown Spotted Tabby. She has these amazing waves in her whiskers and her coat really shows the difference between the Helki and the DSH. She has better muscle tone then Ra. Look for her at the Region 2 show in Roseville August 8th!

P.S. All my show schedules and plans are tentative. There are a few shows in Region 2 & 5 that I may or may not be attending with the above mentioned cats.... I'll update the blog as needed.

Cat Show

2009-05-31T23:43:00.000-07:00

No word from the Reno cat club if they are not having HHP so I got AmunRa ready to show. I tried something new in the line up. I brushed him out and clipped chin hairs and the lynx tips on his ears. Then took an oatmeal bath and just rubbed that deep into the undercoat and brushed him out again. Then rinsed him off and shampoo'ed him with Garnier moisturizing shampoo. Let him sit five minutes. Then did a white vingar rinse. Last but not least we put some texturizer on him and let him sit for five minutes and then rinsed. It a quick towel off and then I let him air dry. Later I'll add some rehydrater and see how that looks. So far his coat looks fluffy and soft but I haven't touched him yet. I'm hoping this is the great and final grooming test. These cats have such different fur that I am having to find my way through grooming for show. I tried all the different rex cat grooming tips and truely have to use a bit from each but I've also had to take tips from the OSH and Persian people. So again we will see. Here is to hoping the competition falls flat compared to Ra's amazing type, and pattern!

Web Site Updated

2009-05-22T15:33:00.000-07:00

To get in tune with the new blog I updated the website. I still have to organize and upload more images to the gallery but overall the site and blog are updated! ^_^

Next Step - SOP

2009-05-22T05:11:00.000-07:00

So the next step is determining a Standard of Points. I want to at least have a template that can be tweeked if needed. Because this breed has come from ferals and domestics I have a wide range of body types. For the most part the Helki is a small cat some individuals being close to the size of the Singapura with a stockier build. So far I've had a wide range in patterns just from the small group of cats that I've bred. So far no Chocolates/Lilacs/Cinnamon/Fawn but possibly do have Burmese brown... Some kittens are born with light colors that later develop into dark rich colors that are difficult to identify. Anyway thats what I have for now. I'll post more under this label at a later time ^_~

Whats in a Name

2009-05-22T04:51:00.000-07:00

Its been a battle trying to figure out if I should try and develop a new breed of cat or not. Its a hard decision that I don't take lightly and I question daily. In breed development and experimentation there are kittens I keep and kittens & cats that need good forever homes. One of my trusted mentors advised me its time to think of a good breed name.

We sat down and had a instant message brain storm but while some of the names we came up with were nice nothing really had that feeling. You know that "Thats the One!" feeling.

After that I would sit for hours thinking about cat breed names. Many breeds like to honor the area that the breed came from. None of the things in my area really sounded like a viable breed name. So then I got to thinking about the native people of Northern California. This cat breed was established from cats that came from San Joaquin County as well as Sacramento County the tribe that stuck out in my mind was the Miwok tribe. I then researched Miwok language and came across the name Helki meaning "touch". I thought Helki sounded very Scandinavian so I did more research and came across the German translation of the word Helki meaning "The Sun". The Sun is a major link in cat mythology around the globe and I felt like all the connections were being met. A connection to the land by using a Miwok word, the connection to the finder(Me) by a Germanic word being connected, and the word Helki itself translating into to very relevant words that describe this breed.

Why Touch? - This is a rare rex mutation as a dominant mutation and also because the gaurd hairs on the cat are mostly straight but there are not as many gaurd hairs on the Helki as you will find on the standard domestic cat. When you run your fingers through this fur you have a soft silky top coat and a plush luxurious undercoat. When the cats are viewed by the public many can not stop petting the cats as the texture is inviting and comforting. You really have to touch a Helki to appreciate them.

Getting Started - Current Updates

2009-05-22T04:42:00.000-07:00

Hello all. I am currently working on getting this blog together. I plan on putting my thoughts feeling and milestones on this blog. My last blog was all hand coded and got pretty time consuming so I am looking forward to the ease of Blogger.

Ok so as for updates I wasn't able to take AmunRa to the CFA show in Fresno. As many of you know because this breed is so new I can only show my cats under the Household Pet(HHP) status. I was the only one to apply for HHP at the show, to help save time I withdrew Ra and my daughter Arie and I got the chance to steward. Basically its cleaning cages in between cats. It was fun, but as I've been ill I got so worn out that I had to stop several times on the way home and just slept.

As for other shows Arie and I would like to make it to the Reno NV show, but we are still trying to decide if we want to show a cat or go just for fun.

The Past

2009-05-22T04:27:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to my manual blog and older post - Wyrdwul Blog