International Cat Show plans October return after 'very successful' first Windsor weekend

Photos by Ian Longthorne.

Windsor Leisure Centre welcomed a major feline celebration as the kiTICAts Cat Club brought its International Cat Show to the royal town for the first time over the weekend.

They have now secured another date for October to bring the show back to Windsor.

Esteemed judges travelled from the USA, Austria and Poland to take part in the two-day event, known as The Noble Whiskers Gathering.

The show, held on Saturday, February 7, and Sunday, February 8, saw pedigree and domestic cats and kittens judged under the rules of The International Cat Association (TICA).

Classes included kittens aged 4–8 months, adult cats, neutered cats, and non-pedigree household pets.

Judging took place across both days, beginning with colour assessment, followed by division and breed placements, and culminating in the highly anticipated finals.

Judges then announced their top 10 kittens, cats and alters of all breeds throughout the weekend.

Designed as a family-friendly event, the show allowed visitors to meet breeders and owners, learn more about feline care, and see both rare and familiar breeds up close.

Visitors browsed a range of pet-related stalls, including The Luxury Cat Towers, Cazami Cat Wheel, HappyTumz, Kitty Kabinz, Tabbies and Tigers, and WWF.

Adding star appeal to the weekend was Neville, a Siberian cat recently featured in the Sunday Times and previously involved in campaigns for Pets at Home and John Lewis, who met fans in person.

Children enjoyed a ‘Tail Trail’ and a junior exhibitors’ ring, giving them the chance to show their cats and answer questions from the judges.

kiTICAts, one of the UK’s newer cat clubs, is led by president Maria Bunina.

Based in Henley, Maria has more than two decades of experience as a TICA exhibitor and has been breeding Siberian cats for 23 years.

She is also an All-Breed Cat Judge with TICA and chairs the TICA Siberian Breed Committee.

During the show, she judged the Male Congress, a special class for entire males yet to achieve Supreme Grand Champion status.

Maria said the event was ‘much bigger’ with people travelling in from ‘quite a distance’.

“We’re cat people; we do this regularly. For us, it’s a hobby, and we’ve been doing this for years," she added.

“But for some visitors, they would never have assumed that there’s such a thing as a cat show.

“It was really busy – the vendors were really pleased, and people walked away happy.

“People really wanted to see the cats, or some people were curious, and it was their first time.

"I think everyone had a great time. It was very successful.”