A BRIEF HISTORY OF DEVON REX CATS

Some ten years after the discovery of a Cornish Rex kitten, another curly coated kitten was found in Devon. This kitten was named Kirlee, the very first Devon Rex. The founding father of all today's Devon's. Kirlee was mated to Cornish Rex queen but surprisingly all the kittens were flat coated. Kirlee’s curls was caused by a different gene, more tests confirmed this. The two rex-coated varieties were developed separately and are quite distinct breeds. Like the Cornish Rex, the Devon Rex was out crossed to other breeds in order to improve the gene pool and develop the breed. Out crossing is still practised today in a bid to improve the breed.

CHARACTER OF THE DEVON REX

The Devon Rex is a loving, playful, intelligent and constantly craves human attention. They will wagg their tail because they are happy, their appetite knows 'no' bounds. They will eat everything and anything. The word no does not exist in their vocabulary, and they are a very much in your face character, not for people who want a cat to sit and look pretty when friends call round.

You can groom the Devon Rex with just hand stroking and occasional combing. Due to the Devons sometimes having very little coat and liking a warm place to sleep, it may be necessary that they will need a bath or a wipe over. Their large ears need regular cleaning.


Devon Rex come in a whole range of colours and patterns including self-coloured, smokes, tonkinese, tabbies, tortes, bi-colours, tri-colours and pointed. The pointed cats are sometimes called Si-Rex (Siamese coat pattern) which is white/cream bodies, coloured markings on head, feet and tail, with blue eyes. Whatever the coat pattern or colour the Devon Rex must conform to the same strict show standards. The Devon Rex coat may be sparse and downy on the under parts, this must not be misinterpreted as bareness. Kittens will sometimes lose their coat by six weeks of age and may take up to two years to grow back. Thats if it ever does and may always be scantily coated.

Breed Standard

Features	Points
HEAD EARS EYES Body, Leg & Neck TAIL COAT TOTAL	20 10 5 20 5 40 100

Breed Standard Diagram:

The Devon Rex has a characteristic pixie look. Its short muzzle, large eyes, nose break, muscular prominent cheekbones, and huge, low-set ears create a unique appearance. A cat of medium frame, the Devon is well covered with soft, wavy fur or curly; the fur is of a soft texture. The Devon is alert and active and shows a lively interest in its surroundings.

	HEAD: Short, broad wedge with high cheek bones. Strong muzzle with a firm chin and a well defined whisker break. Short nose with definite stop. Forehead curving back to a flat skull.
	EYES: large and wide set, oval in shape, and sloping towards outer edges of ears. Any eye colour is acceptable, as no points are assigned to eye colour.
	EARS: strikingly large and set very low, very wide at the base, so that the outside base of ear extends beyond the line of the wedge. Tapering to rounded tops and well covered with fine fur. With or without earmuffs and/or ear-tip tufts.
	BODY: hard and muscular, slender, and of medium length. Broad in chest and medium fine in boning, with medium fine but sturdy legs. Carried high on the legs with the hind legs somewhat longer than the front.
	LEGS and PAWS: legs long and slim. Paws small and oval.
	TAIL: long, fine, and tapering, well covered with short fur. NECK: medium long and slender.
	COAT: Density: the cat is well covered with fur, with the greatest density occurring on the back, sides, tail, legs, face, and ears. Slightly less density is permitted on the top of head, neck, chest, and abdomen. The existence of down on the under parts of the body should not be misinterpreted as bareness. Sparse hair on the temples (forehead in front of the ears) is not a fault. Texture: the coat is soft, fine, full-bodied, and rexed (i.e., appearing to be without guard hairs). Length: the coat is short on the back, sides, upper legs, and tail. It is very short on the head, ears, neck, paws, chest, and abdomen. Kittens may have very short fur all over; even if not long enough to wave, it must cover the kitten evenly, so that no bare patches are evident. Waviness: a rippled wave effect should be apparent when the coat is smoothed with one's hand. The wave is most evident where the coat is the longest, on the body and tail.