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2009 Show Season Begins New 32
Divisions
There are times when you may have issues getting a cat or kitten
registered through the normal processes in TICA. A breeder dies
before getting you the paperwork, someone stops returning phone
calls, etc. I have heard many reasons during my time as Great
Lakes Regional Director.
TICA does have a process for getting these cats registered in what
is called the Foundation Registry. The Foundation Registry
Application is a form that three Allbreed judges need to sign that
states that the cat or kitten sufficiently meets that standard as
a breeding cat.
Here is the process you would need to go through in order to try
and "Foundation Register" a kitten or cat. Please keep in mind
that in most breeds, the kitten itself, nor any of the
offspring would be considered SBT Pedigreed until the 4th
generation, and therefore could not be sold as SBT Pedigreed cats,
nor could they be shown.
1. Find a show that is somewhere that you are able to go to, using
the TICA show calendar, located at
www.TICA.org .
2. Make sure that at least 3 Allbreed judges will be judging the
show.
4. RECOMMENDED STEP: E-mail the Allbreed judges before you even
enter the show to see if they would be open to evaluating the cat.
They have no obligation to look at nor sign off on the cat at the
show, so checking ahead of time will save you time and money. Your
Regional Director can help you locate a show that has 3 Allbreed
judges judging.
5. Enter the show you have selected. Your cat will be entered as
Exhibition Only, but will be required to pay the same fees as any
other cat in the show. (Most shows cost about $6 per ring, and
have 10-12 rings, so the fees are generally around $60-$80 per
show) You will likely also want to purchase an extra 1/2 cage, so
you cat will have room to relax. This generally costs around $25.
6. Come to the show EARLY, with the cat, and set up your cage.
(Check in generally starts at 7:30 am at most shows)
7. Introduce yourself to the judges that have agreed to evaluate
the cat, and ask them to let you know when the best time is for
them to evaluate him. He will not be on the regular judging
schedule. Some may do it before the show, at lunch, or after they
have finished judging for the day.
8. If you get the required 3 signatures, follow the instructions
on the form you have printed out.
Please keep in mind that this is NOT an easy process. And it is
NOT a guarantee that your cat will get the required signatures to
be Foundation Registered.
You will have to explain the story behind having no registration
papers over and over, and a lot of judges will not sign off on the
kitten based on liability, in case the cat was not meant to be
bred. Believe it or not, many people try this process when they
buy a kitten as a pet with a spay or neuter agreement, then try to
bypass the breeder in order to get "cheap" breeding rights, so
judges are leery.
Please contact your Regional Director if you require further
assistance or guidance through this process.
RW & IW Titles
- What do they mean, and when can I use those titles?
A lot of people are not sure how the titles RW (Regional Winner)
and IW (International Winner) work - when you are able to use
them, or what qualifies you as an RW or IW. I, myself have
misused the IW title when I was first starting out, so I felt it
was appropriate to write an article on proper use for all of our
newcomers, or to brush up the old timers!
All of the Regional and International award letters are
generally mailed out by July, after the results have been
certified. These include Top 20 Regional Winners, Top 25
International Winners (new this year), and Breed/Color Award
Winners.
Here is how you can accurately advertise your wins to other
breeders, perspective pet buyers, etc...
IW - INTERNATIONAL WINNER
With International Awards, if you receive one of the following,
you may add IW to your cats' title prefix, and state that your
cat is an International Award Winner to your friends, on your
web site, on your business cards, or indeed to whomever will
listen to you.
If you are among the Top 25 (used to be Top 20 until this
year) of the following categories Internationally when the end
of season results are verified, your cat is an IW, or
International Winner:
Allbreed Kitten
Longhair Championship Cat
Shorthair Championship Cat
Allbreed Championship Cat
Allbreed Alter
Allbreed Household Pet Kitten
Allbreed Household Pet Adult
If you received a letter or certificate stating that your cat
received an International Breed or Color Award, congratulations!
You may state the following accurately: "My cat is an
International Color Award Winner" or "My cat is an International
Breed Winner," but there are no TITLES added to your cats' name
for that.
The IW, or International Winner title is reserved solely for the
top 25 in each class listed above - among all cats shown in TICA
worldwide.
RW - REGIONAL WINNER
With Regional Awards, if you receive one of the following, you
may add RW to your cats' title, and state that your cat is a
Regional Award Winner to your friends, on your web site, on your
business cards, to your mother who thinks you are crazy (in my
case), in the middle of a knife fight on the street, or... well,
you get where I am going with this...
If you are among the top 20 of the following categories within
your region when the end of season results are verified, your
cat is an RW, or Regional Winner:
Allbreed Kitten
Longhair Championship Cat
Shorthair Championship Cat
Allbreed Championship Cat
Allbreed Alter
Allbreed Household Pet Kitten
Allbreed Household Pet Adult
If you received a letter or certificate stating that your cat
received a Regional Breed or Color Award, congratulations! You
may state the following accurately: "My cat is a Regional Color
Award Winner" or "My cat is a Regional Breed Winner," but there
are no TITLES added to your cats' name for that.
The RW, or Regional Winner title is reserved for the top 20 in
each class listed above - among all cats shown in TICA in your
region.
It has been a wonderful show season of traveling, meeting making
new friends, and seeing some awesome cats! Many from breeders
and shelters/rescuers that I had not met before. I am grateful
every day to those of you who choose to show your cats in our
association. You make us what we are, and each one of you
assures a great future for our association! Thank you!
Lifetime Achievement Award (LA),
Outstanding Sire (OS), & Outstanding Dam (OD) Awards - How to
qualify and apply!
One thing I am asked about often is how TICA's Lifetime
Achievement (LA), Outstanding Sire (OS), & Outstanding Dam (OD)
Awards work, so with this show season wrapping up, this is
probably a great time to be sure everyone knows how to apply for
these titles. I'll try to be brief, but y'all know me....
Lifetime Achievement: (Standing Rules 901.4.2 and all sub
categories - I removed all numbering to make for ease of
reading, and inserted comments here and there, as noted)
"The TICA Board of Directors shall establish the Lifetime
Achievement program to recognize cats who have excelled in the
show ring. These special cats will be awarded the title LA on a
certificate, suitable for framing, and will be recognized in the
TICA TREND, the Yearbook, and in the Annual Awards Program. Cats
certified as earning this award shall be eligible to use the
title LA before their name in the following fashion LA OD SGC
Babsy's Baby."
Personal note - once your cat has achieved LA, there is no need
to use the abbreviations RW or IW, since they are a requirement
of earning the LA.
"Eligibility: All eligible cats must have received at least one
Top 25 International award as a kitten, cat or alter and two
International top 25 or Regional top 20 awards as a kitten, cat
or alter. (Example: A regional top 20 kitten and top 20 cat in
1998 and a top 25 international alter in 1999 would make the cat
eligible for this title.) Two titles may be achieved in 1 year,
i.e., top kitten and cat or alter. However, a Regional award and
an International award on the same cat (See Show Rule 21.73) in
the same year counts as only one title."
(Basically, your cat can not in any way earn the title LA in
just one show year. Example, we had a cat that received an IW &
RW as a kitten and that same year earned an IW & RW as a
Championship cat, so she was ineligible for this award.)
"Ownership of the cat may change from year to year. The award is
for the cat, not the owner, although the current owner will be
requesting the award."
"For pedigreed cats, awards shall be earned in the kitten class,
the championship class and the alter class. Years of awards need
not be consecutive. For Household Pets, awards shall be earned
in the Household Pet Kitten class OR in the Household Pet
class."
"There is no time limit for claiming the LA title. You may claim
it for deceased cats if you choose to do so."
To then claim the title, the current owner of the cat must send
the following:
A copy of the TICA registration of the cat claiming the title
A completed application form
A check or money order, made payable to TICA, for $10
Proof of the wins as evidenced by any one of the following:
1. Copies of the certificates issued by Executive Office.
2. Photocopies of the Yearbook or TICA TREND with the year and
region, if applicable, clearly identified.
3. Photocopies of any plaques received.
4. Letter from Executive Office verifying the award (an
additional research fee of $10 will be required).
If you cannot provide the above proof of wins, you can pay the
EO to research your wins. Research fee applies. The LA
application form is on the TICAEO.com web site.
As a side note, please understand that LA's claimed now based on
qualifying wins from the 2007-2008 show year, since proof cannot
possibly be provided until after the show year ends and
certificates required to prove LA status are awarded, will not
be acknowledged at the Annual Awards banquet in 2008, but will
be in 2009.
Outstanding Sire (OS) and Outstanding Dam (OD) Awards:
From Standing Rule 907.1
"Outstanding Sire and Dam. The titles earned by altered
offspring shall count toward the requirements for Outstanding
Sires/Dams. A male cat which has sired ten Grand Champions is
entitled to apply for the prefix "Outstanding Sire." A female
cat which has given birth to five Grand Champions is entitled to
apply for the prefix "Outstanding Dam."
The forms for applying for these titles are available on the EO
website, and you can apply as soon as you have enough offspring
that have been confirmed as a Grand Champion or higher. The OS
or OD is the listed in your title immediately following RW, IW,
or LA, if that applies, and before the earned championship
status (CH thru SGC), if that applies.
Here are a few examples:
(No offense if someone actually has cats named these pretend
names)
LA OD SGC Brushmytail Justusedlitterbox
RW OS DGC Slobberykatz Needahanky
IW OS SGC Getmeajacket Itscoldinhere (A Sphynx, of course)
CH OD Shouldashownmemore Lookatmykids
OS Noshows Forme Iguess of Leftathome
If you still have any questions about these processes, please
contact your regional director.
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