Scottish Fold – The Folded Barn Cat
The first documented and recognized ancestor of all Scottish Folds is “Sussie”, a folded-ear barn cat found on the McRae farm in the Tayside Region of Scotland. All Scottish Fold cats today can be tracked back to the McRaes’ Susie. Mary and William Ross, British Shorthair breeders who fell in love with Susie, were promised 1 of her kittens. In 1963, the Rosses were given a folded-ear white female they named’ Snooks’, who was bred with an unknown red tabby male. Her first litter produced one male kitten, ‘Snowball’ who was bred to a white British Shorthair, ‘Lady May’ and their litter produced 5 folded-ear kittens. Thus, begins the lineage of the Folds.
While several people became interested in developing and preserving the Scottish Folds, some problems were beginning to concern the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy (GCCF) in England. Accepted for showing originally in 1966, registration of Scottish Folds was closed in 1971. Concerned over the possible increase in ear mite infestation and deafness (both concerns later proved to be unfounded), the GCCF also became concerned about possible genetic difficulties. With the growing concern, the GCCF decided to ban further registration of Scottish Folds in England.
Originally, many Folds had foreshortened tails, which were inflexible. Dr. Rosemond Peltz, who served as the first genetic consultant for the American Scottish Fold breeders, offered the opinion that extremely careful breeding could diminish this undesirable defect. Breeders began to use more outcrossing and the gene pool increased. This produced longer, more flexible tails and the bone lesions and foreshortened tails began to disappear. Without the help and generosity of American and British Shorthair breeders who share their beautiful cats with Fold breeders, this breed might well be lost to the cat fancy and all those who love the ‘Foldie’.
In May 1977, Scottish Folds were given provisional status in CFA. A look at those early pedigree shows that several breeds were originally used to increase the gene pool and return the cats to their original barn cat’s hearty state. The Scottish Fold was granted championship status by The Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) in 1978.
The most prominent feature of any Scottish Fold is of course the ears, which fold forward and downward. The ears are usually small and tightly folded, giving the cat’s head a unique round silhouette. An incompletely dominant gene that affects the cartilage of the ears, giving a cap-like appearance to the head, produces the folds. Despite their folded ears, Folds still use their aural appendages to express themselves. The ears swivel to listen, lay back in anger and prick up when the treat bag rustles. Folds have large, round and broadly spaced eyes full of sweetness, well-rounded whisker pads and a short nose with a gentle curve in profile. The head is round and wide on a short neck with the males tending to be jowly.
Scottish Folds are medium-sized cats and can be either shorthaired or longhaired. The Fold’s body also gives the impression of roundness. It is well-padded and even from shoulder to pelvis. The tail is medium to long, tapered and in proportion to the body. The longhaired Fold has a medium-long to long coat that is soft and full of life, and boasts a full ruff, leg britches, toe tufts, ear furnishings and a huge plume of a tail. The shorthaired Fold has a short to medium-short, dense, resilient coat that stands away from the body. Not all Scottish Fold kittens will have folded ears. All Scottish Fold kittens are born with straight ears. It isn’t until the kitten is about 3 weeks old that a breeder will begin to know which kittens will have folded ears and which will not. There are degrees of folding, usually described as single, double and triple fold. A single fold is generally a ‘loose’ fold and is not a show quality. The most desirable fold is a triple fold, which is tight to the head. Owners of tightly-folded Scottish Folds need to check their insides of their ears frequently, as they can accumulate dirt and wax more easily. However, straight-eared Scottish Folds are sought after in breeding programs and still make wonderful pets.
Many Scottish Folds have the curious habit of sitting or lying in very strange postures – on their backs, sitting up like a ‘Buddha’ position or flattening themselves out like little bearskin rugs. Their small, folded ears are unusually expressive, more so than an average cat’s ‘normal’ ears.
They have soft, chirpy voices and chirping sounds are often heard coming from Folds, especially the young ones, although that have tiny voices and not very vocal. Kittens and adults tend to enjoy sleeping on their backs, which comes from their relaxed attitudes. Scottish Folds adapt to almost any home situation and are comfortable with other pets, children and strangers.
Scottish Folds are mellow, loving, sweet-tempered and adapt quickly to new environments and people. While Folds will deign to allow others to cuddle and pat them, they are very loyal and tend to bond with one person in the household, whom they will follow from room to room like devoted, lop-eared puppies. They thrive on attention and interaction with their chosen humans and are agreeable to almost any suggestion – as long as it can be accomplished from a reclining position.
Despite their devotion, they are not clingy or demanding cats and usually prefer to be near you rather than on your lap. They vocalize only when they have something very important to say like ‘Feed me’, but even their voices are usually quiet. They enjoy a good game of fetch now ad then and stay playful and kittenish well into adulthood. Scottish Folds are hardy cats, much like their barnyard ancestors.
Scottish Folds do not require as much grooming as longhairs do. Shorthairs remain glistening on one or two brushings a week and require infrequent bathing. Longhaired Folds need about 3 brushings a week and should be bathed once a month.
The folded ears can cause an increase production of wax buildup in some cats, making ear cleaning a necessary part of grooming for both long and shorthaired varieties. A Scottish Fold’s ears are no more difficult to keep clean than other cats’ ears. A few cotton swabs, cotton balls and some rubbing alcohol, oil or peroxide and swab the visible parts of the ears carefully. Do not plunge the cotton swab or ball down into the ear canal further than eye can see or you might do some permanent damage.
Scottish Folds adapt to almost any home situation and are as comfortable in a room full of noisy children and dogs as they are in a single person’s dwelling. They don’t usually panic at shows or in strange places and they adjust to other animals extremely well. They have indeed come a long way, from a simple and humble barnyard beginning to one of the most popular and pampered breeds of cat in many homes, as well as reaching winning status at many cat shows.
