By CATHY SCARBROUGH
Cat pedigrees are a map to the history of a cat. Colors, titles, breeds, birthdays and generations of
ancestor's names are all compacted on one piece of paper. So much valuable information!
And the value depends on what you are looking for. Some folks look at a pedigree and see all the titles
and awards of relatives. Others are looking to see if cats are related to others in the pedigree for
linebreeding or outcrossing.
Some are looking for colors to see if the cat carries dilute or golden. Some are looking at the numbers to
see if a cat is "pure" or colorbred, or if there is another color in the line. Some are looking at the
numbers to see how far back an Exotic or Himalayan line starts.
Others look at birthdays and want to know if that cat is still alive and thriving. More
want to know how inbred a cat may be. Still others are looking for certain traits that may or may not
resurface. Lots of information there if you know how to read it.
I have talked to many people who have these valuable bits of information and do not know how to read it.
Reading a CFA pedigree
When reading a CFA pedigree, the top will give you information on that particular cat, breed, name,
number, sex, color, birthday and a title at this point in time. I always wished that all our
pedigrees would be dated because that would at least give a progression of titles and names associated
with the cat. Titles change as the cats are shown. It is very possible, and highly probable, for parents,
grandparents and even greatgrandparents of a cat to earn titles after that pedigree is printed/written.
(To see the entire pedigree closer up, click on the image in the right. The image will open in a new
window.)
And cats change ownership.
In most registries, cats that change hands can easily change names. It is only a matter of sending some
money and have "of Cattery" added as an extension of an existing name and then, as the cat changes
hands, to have that change to "of NewerCattery." But the name is limited to 35 characters. Even if it is
"certified", meaning validated by the registry of that cat, some of these options can change. So a
pedigree can have variances over the lives of the cats. What is certified today may not be the same as
what is validated or finalized 10 years down the road. So our pedigrees change constantly when acquiring
new information.
The first four numbers of a cat registered in CFA tell the breed, color and sex. A zero in the leading
number means the cat is "pure" Persian. (Am NOT going into what determines "pure" here for sure!) A
"7" in the first position indicates that the cat is an Exotic (a short-haired Persian?) and that 7 leading
digit will never go away for any future offspring. A "3" in the first position means that the cat at some
time was bred to a Pointed Persian (a Himalayan) and that indication will never go away on the offspring
either. It is part of the history of the cat in the CFA association.
The second and third position of the number indicates the color of the cat. And the last digit of the first
four digits indicates the sex. If the last digit is an even number, the cat is a male. If it is an odd number,
the cat is a female.
For example, 0130-XXXXX is a Persian, Chinchilla, Male. 0133-XXXXX is a Persian, Shaded Silver,
Female. The last digits started with -001 and the last one I have is in the 9xxxxx, soon to be 7 digits
following. That is a lot of cats. But another numbering story.
Looking at the body of the pedigree, it will be divided into two parts: the sire and the dam. The males will
always be listed first. Therefore, the top part of the pedigree is the father of the cat, the bottom part is
the female.
Likewise, each branch of each generation attached, usually with brackets, the sire will always be attached
above the cat in question and the female will be attached below. Always! So when talking about a cat, the
sire is always first and then the dam. It is written Dad X Mom. Always.
Linechasing: an addiction?
Being a Persian (Exotic and Himalayan) linechaser by hobby, it still amazes me, but I no longer feel
threatened, when I ask for a pedigree and people get all out of sorts! These sacred numbers are on public
websites, in show catalogs and on pedigrees! And I belong to several linechaser lists who
allow no stone unturned. We are always looking for that next generation. Some cats have been chased
back as far as the 1890s.
Today, most linechasers are a dedicated group of individuals that get pedigree information from
studbooks, cat magazines, old handwritten pedigrees, yearbooks, almanacs, cat catalogs, journals,
websites. It is mostly done online, but not all linechasers have computers. There are
several linechasing lists, and one that is for silvers and goldens only. Pedigree software varies and it is
very competitive.
Why do we do it?
One thing that comes to mind is that at one time a cat did not automatically earn the title of Distinguished
Merit. DM is a title that is earned by a male who sired 15 Grand Champions or DMs. Or a female who
gave birth to five Grands or DMs. Each owner had to apply for the DM status.
Our group has "DM'd" over a handful of cats where the owner did not know the cat had earned the title.
Those owners were thrilled. And many a time, we have been able to provide CFA with information to
help them find data that has been scattered in their records. It is not unusual for a dedicated linechaser to
have more than 100,000 Persian cats in their database. It is one
of few lists where there is information is being constantly added too, voluntarily, with no emotional
overtures. Just the facts from written pieces of paper.
And it is fun.
To me, it is like a big jigsaw puzzle. Why do some feel so threatened when asked? I remember at one
time 25 years ago, I was told to protect that information. But for the life of me, I can't remember why
now! What can someone else do with it?
I do know that when the last studbook was published in the early 1960s, there are now big gaps in
pedigree information and that the line-chasers are forever on the lookout for catalogs and publications
from that era. So don't just pitch them out when cleaning that closet!
Pedigrees are to be shared, that is the history of the cat. They are to be studied, as they are a learning
tool. That pedigree is the only thing that distinguishes a registered cat from the cat of the streets. We
know who the parents and grandparents are!
Hey, might you be a linechaser, too?
Cathy Scarborough is a longtime breeder of shaded and chinchilla persians under the
cattery name Carictor.
Cat pedigrees are a map to the history of a cat. Colors, titles, breeds, birthdays and generations of
ancestor's names are all compacted on one piece of paper. So much valuable information!
And the value depends on what you are looking for. Some folks look at a pedigree and see all the titles
and awards of relatives. Others are looking to see if cats are related to others in the pedigree for
linebreeding or outcrossing.
Some are looking for colors to see if the cat carries dilute or golden. Some are looking at the numbers to
see if a cat is "pure" or colorbred, or if there is another color in the line. Some are looking at the
numbers to see how far back an Exotic or Himalayan line starts.
Others look at birthdays and want to know if that cat is still alive and thriving. More
want to know how inbred a cat may be. Still others are looking for certain traits that may or may not
resurface. Lots of information there if you know how to read it.
I have talked to many people who have these valuable bits of information and do not know how to read it.
Reading a CFA pedigree
When reading a CFA pedigree, the top will give you information on that particular cat, breed, name,
number, sex, color, birthday and a title at this point in time. I always wished that all our
pedigrees would be dated because that would at least give a progression of titles and names associated
with the cat. Titles change as the cats are shown. It is very possible, and highly probable, for parents,
grandparents and even greatgrandparents of a cat to earn titles after that pedigree is printed/written.
(To see the entire pedigree closer up, click on the image in the right. The image will open in a new
window.)
And cats change ownership.
In most registries, cats that change hands can easily change names. It is only a matter of sending some
money and have "of Cattery" added as an extension of an existing name and then, as the cat changes
hands, to have that change to "of NewerCattery." But the name is limited to 35 characters. Even if it is
"certified", meaning validated by the registry of that cat, some of these options can change. So a
pedigree can have variances over the lives of the cats. What is certified today may not be the same as
what is validated or finalized 10 years down the road. So our pedigrees change constantly when acquiring
new information.
The first four numbers of a cat registered in CFA tell the breed, color and sex. A zero in the leading
number means the cat is "pure" Persian. (Am NOT going into what determines "pure" here for sure!) A
"7" in the first position indicates that the cat is an Exotic (a short-haired Persian?) and that 7 leading
digit will never go away for any future offspring. A "3" in the first position means that the cat at some
time was bred to a Pointed Persian (a Himalayan) and that indication will never go away on the offspring
either. It is part of the history of the cat in the CFA association.
The second and third position of the number indicates the color of the cat. And the last digit of the first
four digits indicates the sex. If the last digit is an even number, the cat is a male. If it is an odd number,
the cat is a female.
For example, 0130-XXXXX is a Persian, Chinchilla, Male. 0133-XXXXX is a Persian, Shaded Silver,
Female. The last digits started with -001 and the last one I have is in the 9xxxxx, soon to be 7 digits
following. That is a lot of cats. But another numbering story.
Looking at the body of the pedigree, it will be divided into two parts: the sire and the dam. The males will
always be listed first. Therefore, the top part of the pedigree is the father of the cat, the bottom part is
the female.
Likewise, each branch of each generation attached, usually with brackets, the sire will always be attached
above the cat in question and the female will be attached below. Always! So when talking about a cat, the
sire is always first and then the dam. It is written Dad X Mom. Always.
Linechasing: an addiction?
Being a Persian (Exotic and Himalayan) linechaser by hobby, it still amazes me, but I no longer feel
threatened, when I ask for a pedigree and people get all out of sorts! These sacred numbers are on public
websites, in show catalogs and on pedigrees! And I belong to several linechaser lists who
allow no stone unturned. We are always looking for that next generation. Some cats have been chased
back as far as the 1890s.
Today, most linechasers are a dedicated group of individuals that get pedigree information from
studbooks, cat magazines, old handwritten pedigrees, yearbooks, almanacs, cat catalogs, journals,
websites. It is mostly done online, but not all linechasers have computers. There are
several linechasing lists, and one that is for silvers and goldens only. Pedigree software varies and it is
very competitive.
Why do we do it?
One thing that comes to mind is that at one time a cat did not automatically earn the title of Distinguished
Merit. DM is a title that is earned by a male who sired 15 Grand Champions or DMs. Or a female who
gave birth to five Grands or DMs. Each owner had to apply for the DM status.
Our group has "DM'd" over a handful of cats where the owner did not know the cat had earned the title.
Those owners were thrilled. And many a time, we have been able to provide CFA with information to
help them find data that has been scattered in their records. It is not unusual for a dedicated linechaser to
have more than 100,000 Persian cats in their database. It is one
of few lists where there is information is being constantly added too, voluntarily, with no emotional
overtures. Just the facts from written pieces of paper.
And it is fun.
To me, it is like a big jigsaw puzzle. Why do some feel so threatened when asked? I remember at one
time 25 years ago, I was told to protect that information. But for the life of me, I can't remember why
now! What can someone else do with it?
I do know that when the last studbook was published in the early 1960s, there are now big gaps in
pedigree information and that the line-chasers are forever on the lookout for catalogs and publications
from that era. So don't just pitch them out when cleaning that closet!
Pedigrees are to be shared, that is the history of the cat. They are to be studied, as they are a learning
tool. That pedigree is the only thing that distinguishes a registered cat from the cat of the streets. We
know who the parents and grandparents are!
Hey, might you be a linechaser, too?
Cathy Scarborough is a longtime breeder of shaded and chinchilla persians under the
cattery name Carictor.
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