Last year the Cat Fanciers Association initiated the Jr. Showmanship program, to entice young people to become more involved with the world of showing and enjoying cats. Our daughter, Ashley (pictured above during two different competitions), has shown two of our male Maine Coons, Ringo and Wolf, in Junior Showmanship, where she is required to discuss the breed, show how a judge evaluates a cat in the show ring and answer a variety of impromptu questions that test cat care, grooming, show rules and breed knowledge.

On the right (above), Ashley is pictured holding GP Artemea Ringo Kid of Carlacats at his last CFA show, where he obtained three second Best Cat in Show wins out of five finals. Judge Bill Lee gave Ringo one of these awards, while Ringo's grandson, GP Carlacats Red Cruiser, owned and shown by Carla Blair, received 4th Best Cat in Premiership in the same ring!

Ashley proudly holds CH Artemea Sir Charles Chile Pepper after a big win in Jr. Showmanship at the CFA International Cat Show, November 2002.

The last few months have been an exciting time for us with the Artemea Maine Coon Cats. At the conclusion of last year's Jr. Showmanship season, Ashley learned that she had won the title of Top Junior in the ten-state Northeast Region of CFA. This qualified her for an expenses-paid trip (sponsored by CFA and Friskies-Purina) to the CFA International Cat Show in Houston, Texas in November, 2002, to compete for the National title.

We are very proud to report that Ashley and Artemea Sir Charles Chile Pepper did a fantastic job -- taking Second Place in the entire U.S., and just missing the Grand Prize by ONE point! (We are also pleased to say that while many breeds were represented at the show, the little girl who took the overall title ALSO was showing a Maine Coon! This just goes to show how wonderful this breed is as a family cat and companion!

Kudos to Ashley and to Charles!

 

Pictured is CH Artemea Jillian the Temptress, winning against the "big males" at a CFA show. Although female Maine Coons sometimes have a harder time getting the judge's eye due to their smaller size, a good Maine Coon is a good Maine Coon!

Show quality is often difficult to ascertain when a kitten is young and still developing, so we always find kitten classes at the show the most fun to watch, especially since kittens often change so much between shows!