218 felines, some in elaborate outfits, compete in Monroeville show
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
For people who love cats, the Steel City Kitties show this weekend offers something for everyone. Purebred cats of all sizes, colors and breeds — and non-pedigreed household pets — on Saturday strutted for the judges and charmed and enchanted the spectators who came to see them, pet them and pose for selfieswith them.
They’ll be back on Sunday to do it all again at the Monroeville Convention Center, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. More than 3,000 spectators went through the doors on Saturday.
The 218 feline competitors ranged in size from a 4 1/2 pound Cornish rex named Zsa Zsa to an 18-pound Maine coon named Coopurr. The show, sanctioned by the Cat Fanciers’ Association, is an important one on the year-round show circuit, attracting some of the top-ranked show cats in the country, some from asfar away as California.
Zsa Zsa is currently the No. 1 One Cornish rex in the country, said her owner,Kathy Pritchard of Spotsylvania, Va. That distinction may have been lost on spectators who were more interested in seeing her don a fancyball gown, necklace and hat.
Zsa Zsa and her sister Eva, 16months-old, and their mother, Gia, 4, are “CFA Ambassador Fashionista Cats,” said the sign in their setup area where they rest when they are not competing at the show tables. Unlike dog shows, there are no rings or leashes.
Also on display with the chocolate brown kitties were 200 elaborate outfits, including Victorian ball gowns. They wear costumes while riding atop a stroller, up and down the aisles. They each go through multiple costume changes throughout the show.
Ms. Pritchard says she dresses up the large-eared cats to entertain spectators and encourage them to go to more shows. She encourages spectators to feel their soft coats that have marcel waves.
Next to the Cornish rex was Smudge The Mustache Cat, as she is known on her Facebook page. Rescued eight years ago by Dawn Strosko of Armbrust, Westmoreland County, Smudge goes to five or six cat shows each year.
Competing in the Household Pet Division, she wins a lot of ribbons and attracts a lot of attention with her distinctive face — white with a black mustache and goatee.
The Maine coon, Coopurr, 3, is also local, owned by Alice Schepp of South Fayette. He is ranked 8th in the show circuit’s Great Lakes region and is 30th for all 42 breeds of cats competing in shows in the United States and beyond.
The 18-pound long-haired brown mackerel tabby looks like a lynx, with his tufted ears, and Mrs. Schepp is happy to let people pet him and pose with him.
The show also features vendors selling an array of items including cat toys, wearable cat-themed art and cat-shaped cookies.
The Monroeville Convention Center is at 209 Mall Plaza Blvd., 15146. Admission is $8 adults, $7 seniors, $6 children and kids under 5years-old get in for free.