A moon boy from a fairy tale and a refined, bohemian English lady: that’s what typical Cornish Rex cats look like. These glamorous kitties leave no one indifferent. Some people stare in confusion at these curly-coated beauties, while others long ago crowned them winners of the Cat Universe beauty pageant. Below are the breed’s features and care tips.
Breed History
At first, the breed’s homeland didn’t accept these curly cats as a breed. If not for a lucky coincidence, the Cornish Rex might never have existed. The royal curly mutation had occasionally appeared in cats in England before, but when people saw how strange the animal looked, they thought it was sick, suspected mange, and put the curly kittens down.
Only on July 21, 1950, in Cornwall, England, when a tortoiseshell-and-white house cat named Serena had a litter of five kittens and one of them turned out to be a “curly Sue,” did that fateful coincidence happen. The kittens’ owner, Nina Ennismore, happened to be a rabbit breeder. She noticed how unusual the newborn was and took a close interest in him. The kitten was named Kallibunker. He was later bred back to his mother Serena, that litter also had curly kittens, and the rest was a matter of breeding technique.
The breed soon reached America (in 1957), and the CFA granted it championship status in 1964. The Cornish Rex began its triumphant march around the world!
Don’t forget to check out a very similar breed, the Devon Rex.
Cornish Rex Personality and Traits at a Glance
| Affection for family | ★★★★★ |
| Shedding | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Health | ★★★☆☆ |
| Playfulness | ★★★★★ |
| Vocality | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Good with kids | ★★★★★ |
| Friendliness toward strangers | ★★★★★ |
| Ease of grooming | ★★★★★ |
| Gets along with other pets | ★★★★★ |
| Intelligence | ★★★★☆ |
Cornish Rex Breed Overview
You could start and finish describing the Cornish Rex in three words: lightness, elegance, and height. And this is a case where the way a Cornish looks matches the impression it leaves once you get to know it better. More on personality later; for now, here’s how to tell you’re looking at an ideal Cornish Rex, that is, the breed standard:
- The Cornish Rex’s head is small and wedge-shaped, with prominent cheekbones:
- the nose is Roman, straight, with a well-defined, noticeable bridge, and the profile is long;
- the ears are large, set high, wide at the base, and pointed at the tips;
- the eyes are almond-shaped, slanting slightly upward from the nose. The eye color should be rich and go with the coat color; usually it’s greenish-gold, yellow, or green. “Si-Rexes” (Cornish Rexes with Siamese coloring) have only blue eyes;
- the whiskers and eyebrows are long and curly.
- The Cornish Rex’s body is the racing (greyhound) type. The size is usually small. Males are proportionally larger than females. The torso is long, and the back is arched; you can see the curve even when the cat is standing naturally. The chest, shoulders, and hips are the same width. The tail is very long and very flexible, tapering at the tip. Adult females weigh no more than about 6–7 lb, and males up to about 10 lb.
- The coat is pure astrakhan. That is, the short, silky, wavy coat is thick and deep, like a lamb’s-wool fur coat. The waves run from the elegant head along the back and sides all the way to the tip of the flexible tail. Unlike other Rexes, the Cornish Rex has thick, equally curly fur on the underside of the chin, the chest, and the belly. Bald patches are frowned upon and considered a serious fault.
- Color. The breed’s founder, that kitten from Cornwall named Kallibunker, was red and white, and apparently ever since, the attitude toward Cornish Rex colors has been pretty democratic. The breed standards allow any colors and combinations, including pointed, bicolor, and tricolor.
Personality
Who’s the smartest of them all? Owners of Cornish Rexes definitely champion their pets, noting clear signs of intelligence in their behavior. Cornish Rexes differ from ordinary cats not only in their special coat and ears but also in the fact that a Cornish isn’t the type of cat who “walks by himself.” Their personality is special: these big-eared cats get very attached to their owner, not the house, and that’s very endearing.
Another nice fact adds to their good karma: Cornish males don’t mark territory (most of them, even if they’re not neutered)!
In general, the Cornish Rex is a whole list of DON’Ts: doesn’t mark, doesn’t take revenge, doesn’t bite, doesn’t steal from the table. You can’t help but applaud such aristocratic manners! By the way, if a Cornish Rex kitten is taken out into the world from a young age, as an adult he’ll easily handle social outings and happily walk on a leash or ride in a special carrier bag (as long as it matches his eye color). They’re also very inventive and famous for making up their own games! After that, who could say Cornish Rexes aren’t intellectuals?!
Health
Cornish Rexes are long-lived kitties. Staying kittens at heart, they can live up to 20 years! The average lifespan is still about 15 years, though.
At present (and this is very rare), no genetic diseases have been found in Cornish Rexes! If breeders keep treating the breed with care and don’t “improve” it irresponsibly, the Cornish Rex will continue to have robust health and a strong immune system.
Of course, pay attention to the room temperature. If your home is really cold, no one is safe from colds, including a shorthaired curly cat. In that case, he could be at risk of upper respiratory infections or cystitis. Be careful, and when it’s cold in the house, keep your pet warm.
IMPORTANT! Cornish Rexes are very sensitive to anesthesia. They take longer than other breeds to come out of anesthesia and can react unpredictably to drugs. So never treat your cat yourself (and never give any cat human medicines like acetaminophen/Tylenol, which is toxic to cats), and tell your vet about this breed trait.
Care and Living Conditions
The Cornish Rex list of DON’Ts goes on: they don’t sweat, they don’t shed… A very convenient breed to keep! You could add that they don’t cause allergies, but that point is worth a closer look. Of course, Cornish Rexes leave almost no fur around the house. But allergies are often triggered not by fur but by a special substance found in cat saliva. When an ordinary cat grooms itself, it spreads that substance further, since its fur flies all over the house, and eventually the whole home becomes an allergy hazard. A Cornish Rex’s fur doesn’t fly around, and regular baths wash the saliva substance down the drain, so the chance of an allergic reaction is much lower than with an ordinary kitty.
It’s best to bathe a Cornish Rex once every two months, using a special shampoo. Wash your pet with massaging strokes in the direction of the fur, then dry him quickly and thoroughly (Cornish Rexes hate drafts).
According to owners, the cat’s ears need special attention. Dip a cotton swab in mineral oil and gently clean the ears, touching only the visible part of the ear. Do this weekly.
Care for the eyes, claws, and teeth is standard. Wipe the eyes with a cotton pad moistened with a vet-approved eye cleaner, trim the claws when needed, and brush the teeth once a week with a special cat toothpaste. What a handsome boy!
Feeding
As always, whether or not to feed commercial food is up to you. The main thing is to remember that meat should make up the bulk of the diet (80%), and the rest should be vegetables plus treats. If you cook for him yourself, buy lean meat and freeze or cook it first (this helps avoid the risk of worms). And don’t forget to change the drinking water.
An alternative is a high-quality food such as ACANA.
TIP! If a Cornish Rex is your very first kitten, don’t rush to buy a cute double bowl. It’s inconvenient; it’s much more practical to have a separate dish for food and a separate one for water.
Cat nutritionists (yes, they exist) recommend giving Cornish Rexes a couple of “light days” a month so your pet doesn’t turn into a curly sausage. In general, owners agree: it’s better to slightly underfeed a Cornish Rex than to overfeed him!
Photos
This curly breed is famous for all sorts of color combinations, but there are a few main colors.
White, shining like snow in a picture. It comes with a pink nose and paw pads. A white kitty with blue or golden eyes: what could be more beautiful?
If the cat is black, he’s black through and through: no other shades allowed, a black-and-white photo only! Or rather, black-and-black! The little dot on the face, the nose, and the paw pads are black (brown is OK too), but the eyes are golden!
A blue (gray) Cornish Rex is blue from nose to tail tip with no color change. Even his nose leather is gray, and only his eyes are golden.
Red is a rich color. It’s dense, bright, and very glossy. Traditionally, the nose and paw pads are the same red shade, and you can even see flashes of it in the eyes.
A cream (or pinkish) Cornish is pink all over: coat, nose, and paws. You could fall in love with one from a photo alone!
Where to Buy a Cornish Rex Kitten in the US
Good news: the Cornish Rex isn’t a rarity in the US, and you can find it with breeders across the country.
There are well-established Cornish Rex catteries that will offer you excellent, healthy kittens. Note that a registered cattery is responsible for the kitten’s pedigree, which is always reassuring.
Read: a list of unusual cat names.
So, how much does this “little lamb” with registration papers cost? In the US, a pet-quality Cornish Rex from a CFA- or TICA-registered breeder usually costs about $800–$1,500, and show-quality kittens from top bloodlines cost up to about $2,500. That’s the price for good genes, a great look, and a sweet temperament.
Choose a Cornish Rex cattery:
- CFA (Cat Fanciers’ Association) Find a Breeder – https://find-a-breeder.cfa.org/;
- TICA (The International Cat Association) breeder listings – https://tica.org/find-a-cat/find-a-cat-breeder-listings/;
- Constantine-Cattery (CFA; a small, in-home Cornish Rex breeder).
The Cornish Rex is a great companion, a fun family member, and all in all, “my precious”!
