More Vintage Cats

~ YesBiscuit

This story of a wild cat brought to the first Crystal Palace cat show (which would become a most prestigious show) in England in 1871 caught my eye:

Source: Weir, Harrison. (1889). Our cats and all about them. Tunbridge Wells: R. Clements and Co.
Two images from: Animal life and the world of nature: a magazine of natural history throughout the world, Volume I, July 1902 – June 1903
Source: Animal life and the world of nature: a magazine of natural history throughout the world, Volume I, July 1902 – June 1903
Three images of a non-traditional family from The Country-Side, November 16, 1907.
The Country-Side, December 21, 1907
A picture accompanying a front page article entitled “London’s cats and how to deal with them” printed in The Country-Side, October 31, 1908. The full article is available here or for a summary: Cats are disease spreaders and bird killers and most should be killed with the few remaining pets regulated by law. So sayeth the editor of The Country-Side, E. Kay Robinson.
The Country-Side, June 19, 1909
The Country-Side, August 14, 1909.

Honorable mention:

The Country-Side, October 31, 1908

2 thoughts on “More Vintage Cats”

  1. “…caught in a trap by the foreleg, which was much injured…”, that poor terrified Scottish wildcat. I hope it did not get turned into a trophy after the exhibition. Looks like not much has changed in more than 100 years, except the Persian cats, which now have squashed in noses and breathing problems. Sadly not the attitudes towards strays – they are still regarded as disease carriers and bird murderers, and killing them advocated as a solution. Luckily, there are also cat ladies, then and now, looking after some. It seems to have occurred to nobody that if cats killed all those gazillion birds and wildlife they are accused of, there would be none left my now. Compare that to the efficiency of humans in exterminating birds and other species, like the passenger pigeon and many others.

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    1. That’s exactly what I thought when I read this. Nothing much has changed. Except now there are flawed studies full of estimates and extrapolations that are used to “back up” those claims. Every day I watch birds dine on the leftover cat food in a yard where we feed ferals. No birds are ever caught.

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