by Charlene Ugent 

Hosted by the Cat Fancier's Association (CFA) and Royal Canin, a worldwide dog and cat food company, the world championship cat show took place on November 17th and 18th at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Ohio. In the 2012 show, more than 1,000 contestants competed for top marks in an array of categories. Judges assessed cats and kittens from 41 different breeds scoring them according to head size, body shape, and personality. 

After two days of competition, a male chocolate spotted Ocicat kitten named Wild Rain Let's Dance of Dotdotdot won Best in Show. Owned by Roger and Nancy Brown and David and Carol Freels, the champion feline caught judges' eyes from the beginning of the competition. Runners-up included a male black and white Persian, a female blue tabby and white Persian kitten, and a male cream spotted tabby and white exotic feline.

About the author: The head breeder at Suyaki Siamese Cattery, Charlene Ugent has bred and sold Siamese kittens and cats for more than 15 years. Ms. Ugent, who resides in Miami, Florida, maintains ties with the CFA and her cattery has earned the organization's Certificate of Excellence.

Siamese cats have certain distinctive features in common, such as their bright blue eyes and a coat pattern that contrasts a lighter-colored body with darker markings known as points, which include the tail, paws, ears, and face. The Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) identifies four separate color types in purebred Siamese:

The Seal Point variety has a shaded, fawn-colored body with seal points, which vary from dark brown to black, depending upon lighting conditions, just like the seals from which their name comes.

The Chocolate Point has a lighter ivory-colored body with points of a lighter brown, somewhat like the color of milk chocolate.

The Blue Point has a faint bluish tinge to its gray body, and its points appear gray-blue as slate.

The Lilac Point has the lightest body, nearly white, while its points are gray with a faint pinkish hue.

Other colors exist, such as the Red or Flame, the Cream Point, Tortie Point or Tortoiseshell, and Lynx Point. The CFA refers to these collectively as Colorpoint Shorthair rather than pure Siamese because of the cross-breeding necessary to achieve these colorations.

About Charlene Ugent: A breeder of Siamese cats, Charlene Ugent has worked with them since 1996. She offers Siamese cat lovers throughout the U.S. pedigreed and registered kittens through Suyaki Siamese Cattery. As the head of a CFA Cattery of Excellence, she raises her Suyaki Siamese kittens in all four color varieties in Miami, Florida.