WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF DEVON REX
WHERE DID THEY COME FROM? In 1959 a lady by the name of Miss Beryl Cox was aware of a stray tomcat living in a deserted tin mine near Buckfastleigh in Devon, England This tom had an unusual short curly coat. At this time, Miss Cox happened to take in a straight-coated tortoise & white female stray who was pregnant. In September 1959 she delivered 4 kittens at the bottom of Miss Cox's garden, one of which had the same curly coat as she'd observed in the stray tom. She named the male kitten Kirlee. Repeated attempts were made to cross him with a recently discovered curly coated breed of cats from Cornwall (Cornish Rexes), but they always produced straight haired kittens, so it was concluded they were of a different gene type. Kirlee was then mated with a straight haired queen and their litter produced a curly coated female. All Devon Rexes can trace their ancestry back to Kirlee. WHAT ARE THEY LIKE? Pixie like in appearance, the Devon Rex is a small to medium sized cat. Their body is muscular, with hind legs longer than the forelegs. The head is wedge shaped with large eyes, broad cheekbones, strong chin & a short muzzle. The ears are large & low set. The coat is short, soft & curly. It contains all three types of hair; guard, awn & down. Whiskers & eyebrows are usually short & crinkled. It is not uncommon for a Devon to have balding tendencies. Kittens can be born almost nude and some will only develop very short coats. As adults they can be very spare or patchy in summer and only develop a thick wavy coat in winter. The Devons have been referred to as the "Pixies of the cat world." A cross between a cat, a dog, a monkey and Dennis the Menace, these delightful little creatures will capture your heart and your imagination. Wonderfully cute in both antics and appearance, the first things that capture your eye are the magical face and soft curly coat. These little pixies are alert and inquisitive, showing interest in all that is around them. By the same token, these active babies are also very much people cats and are strongly devoted to their owners, claiming a lap and a snuggle whenever the opportunity arises. They purr incessantly, chortle and coo when intrigued by the birds outside the window and wag their tails when happy. Devons are an outgoing breed and will run to meet you at the door to tell you how much they love and missed you!! They love sleeping under the covers with you and many will brave the waters of a shower or bath just to be near their person. They are driven to be with people from the moment they first toddle out of their kitten box at around 3 weeks old. Devons are an intense personable cat. They are clowns, they are lovers........and they want to be involved in every aspect of their people's lives. They have a gentle voice, a need to be with people, shed almost unnoticeably and seem to be well tolerated by allergy sufferers. Devons thrive on company & can become destructive if left for long periods on their own. They get along with other family pets including dogs & are great with children. Because of their high activity levels, they are not recommended for people who want a quiet & docile cat.