CFA Christmas Traditions
Cat Talk|December 2022
Every year in the late fall, holiday traditions tumble out of attics, closets, cabinets, and corners of our minds.
CFA Christmas Traditions

It seems that every group has its own way of celebrating the season. Consider the difference in families. Do you light Hanukkah candles, follow an Advent calendar, have an Elf on the Shelf? Does your family open gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? What is served for dinner on December 25th? Do you cook/ eat at home or do you go out for Chinese food? Do you celebrate with extended family, immediate family, with friends, or by yourself?

CFA is its own kind of family, one that borrows ideas from others but creates its own traditions. Some of these flow from the fact that our CFA family-appropriate activity often has scheduling challenges with modern, tightly scheduled family calendars. Our weekends are spent at cat shows, sometimes causing conflicts with family and friends who do not understand the hold our cats and competition have over us. Our friends and relatives are cranking up for holiday celebrations while we are traveling, grooming, competing, and enjoying our cats.

So how do we participate in the holidays when we are often away from home during that season? For some, the answer is to create our own celebration with our cat fancy family. We come up with our own Christmas traditions and take our celebrations to the shows. Over the years a series of holiday themed shows have blossomed on the December show schedule and become traditional.

Christmas Bells in Baltimore

This story is from the December 2022 edition of Cat Talk.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the December 2022 edition of Cat Talk.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM CAT TALKView All
No Kitten! Cats Are Part of the Military!
Cat Talk

No Kitten! Cats Are Part of the Military!

Felines have graced the decks of boats and ships back nearly to the beginning of time, roaming freely on passenger ships, war vessels, and merchant schooners, keeping vermin at bay.

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2024
Feline Summer Movie Fun!
Cat Talk

Feline Summer Movie Fun!

School is almost OUT! Huzzah! But raindrops are plunking against the window, the amusement and water parks haven’t opened yet, camping is out, and roasted hot dogs and S’mores are another month away.

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2024
Kittens Are Special...
Cat Talk

Kittens Are Special...

...and so are some of the show rules for them:

time-read
7 mins  |
April 2024
Genetic Pleiotropy and the Risks in Breeding Recessive Mutations
Cat Talk

Genetic Pleiotropy and the Risks in Breeding Recessive Mutations

Nearly everyone loves what’s rare and unique. A slight defect in the minting process of a coin can create a demand and a value well beyond the face value of the coin. The coin is functionally no different than its perfectly minted counterpart, but its scarcity and uniqueness alone make it more desirable than the rest.

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2024
Good Things Come To Those Who Wait
Cat Talk

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

Most new pet owners can hardly wait to get their new kitten home. How to explain why most breeders wait until the kitten is older? | Let's take a look at WHY breeders delay, and why new owners will be happier in the long run that they did.

time-read
10 mins  |
April 2024
Who's That Kitten?
Cat Talk

Who's That Kitten?

Your queen has successfully delivered her litter!

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2024
Kittens & Worms
Cat Talk

Kittens & Worms

You have settled in for the evening with your soft, sleepy kitten. As you rub her, you notice that her belly is large, round, and squishy.

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2024
GESTATION What Is Normal & What Influences Gestation.?
Cat Talk

GESTATION What Is Normal & What Influences Gestation.?

About 46.5 million households in the United States report owning cats in 2024.

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2024
Preparing Kittens For the Show Hall
Cat Talk

Preparing Kittens For the Show Hall

Socializing kittens and making sure they are confident for their new family is only a part of the job description for a show breeder.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2024
Library Cats felis cattus bibliotheca
Cat Talk

Library Cats felis cattus bibliotheca

Introduction - The Middle Ages, sometimes referred to as “The Dark Ages,” spanned approximately one thousand years, between 479 AD and 1450 AD. This time period is not generally considered to have been friendly to anyone, human nor animal, but it was especially hostile toward felines. Ignorance of knowledge and science was rampant among the majority of the population, with the ability to read limited to clerics and the wealthy. Myths, legends, and galliard songs spread widely throughout Europe as people migrated from place to place, searching for food and a safe habitat. Fear of the unknown and the unexplainable, particularly of witches and their cat familiars, was spread not only by the stories and songs, but by the Popes themselves. Without touching on the atrocities of medieval times, let us just say it was not the best time to be a cat.

time-read
5 mins  |
February 2024