All-American Cat Is A Breed Apart -- Renton Javanese Cat Places Second In National Contest

The Javanese is not a mainstream cat breed, and that's what attracted Jan Isaak of Renton to it 4 1/2 years ago.

Isaak, a purchasing agent for a Kent bearing company, bred Balinese and Siamese before adding Javanese to her cattery. Already her blue Lynx-point Javanese, Jaibois' Shelby, only 1 year, 9 months old and recently retired, has swept to national honor.

Shelby is the association's No. 2 Javanese for the 1991-92 season. Her award will be presented at the Cat Fanciers' Association national awards banquet here Saturday, June 27. She finished her grand championship at 11 months of age, becoming CFA's only 18th grand-champion Javanese.

"I switched to the Javanese because of its rarity, exotic Lynx-point color and long, fluffy tail," explains Isaak. Like the Balinese, it is a Siamese with long hair, but differs from the former because its standard permits a larger array of coat colors.

In piling up points and leading the CFA standings most of the season, Shelby was campaigned primarily in the West, plus was entered in the big Purina/CFA Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas, last November, where she finished third in breed.

"It's costly and very time consuming to be on the road as much as we were," Isaak says. It was not until late in the season that a New Yorker's Javanese overtook Shelby in the final standings.

"She went as far as I could take her. Being a female, she comes in season and as she ages, she loses her coat," Isaak says."That makes heavy campaigning even more stressful. Now she's a house pet and offers an excellent foundation for my Javanese breeding program."

The Javanese, while relatively unknown, is an affectionate breed, says Isaak, and often becomes a one-person cat after several months in a household. "For some reason, it tends to gravitate to women more than men," she adds.

To Isaak, this wash-and-wear, long-haired cat is low maintenance. "You simply bathe it, towel it down, flip up its bushy tail and you're done."

While the name sounds exotic, this creature is an All-American breed, first located in New York 20 years ago. It advanced to championship status in CFA in 1987.

Basically, the Javanese retains the characteristics of its Siamese forebears, yet offers the wider palette of the available colors in the colorpoint shorthair standard, but in long hair. The only difference between the color-point shorthair and Javanese is the latter's silk chiffon coat.

According to a CFA breed profile brochure, "Javanese have the sensual look and appeal of the native dancers whose image the name evokes, but their highly stylized appearance may be misleading the uninitiated. This dainty, fine-boned feline possesses a character that casts its owners into the role of chattels without even trying. Just try to walk from one room to the next without your Javanese at your heels - or between your feet.

"The Javanese never seems to grow up, these little fur people are perpetual kittens. Your Javanese will spoil you if you don't spoil it first."

CFA is the only organization recognizing the Javanese. Others call it a Balinese.

"Because its still a minority breed, we've been able to maintain control of its genetics," says Isaak, who claims its strength is rooted in the Northwest. The Progressive Javanese Cat Club, the national breed club, lists approximately 15 members.

According to Isaak, only about 35 Javanese are shown annually. Typical entry fields for Northwest shows range from one to five.

Isaak's prices begin at $175 for pet-stock animals and $450 for show quality.

Shelby is one of four local felines that will be honored at the CFA's 86th awards fete. Others include Grand Champion Dacarine Sungai of Jurong, No. 1 Singapura, owned by Steve Bobbink and Brian Hegre, Seattle; Grand Champion Truebrit Selsey Bill, No. 2 British shorthair, owned by Colin and Jo Cornwall, Issaquah; Grand Champion Purrsay's A Jewel, seventh best cat, third best kitten, No. 1 bi-color Persian, owned by Judi Lawson, Bellevue.

The association has scheduled meetings Wednesday through Friday, beginning at 9 a.m. each day, and possibly Saturday, at the Seattle Sheraton Hotel & Towers. The Saturday awards banquet begins at 6 p.m.

The world's largest registry of pedigreed cats (1.2 million, including approximately 75,500 last year), the association has 625 member clubs worldwide, with 25 in Washington state.

The top 10 registered breeds last year were Persian, 52,837; Siamese, 3,188; Maine Coon, 2,844; Abyssinian, 2,542; exotic shorthair, 1,329; Oriental shorthair, 1,236; Scottish fold, 1,205; Burmese, 1,066; American shorthair, 1,050, and Birman, 915.

Last season, CFA clubs conducted 381 shows, attracting 89,507 entries.

Mail information regarding dog events to Classified Division, attn. Marilyn Fairbanks, Dog Events, The Seattle Times, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111. Be sure to include a public phone-contact number.