iPurrcats’s third International Cat Association (TICA) show at the San Mateo Event Center brought together over a hundred cats of all shapes and sizes to compete for prizes and to perform for visitors.
Nov. 2 marked the third cat show that has been run by iPurrcats in San Mateo, connecting cat owners and lovers alike from all over the country during the two-day event.
“I like the idea of educating the public about the cats and having people come and get excited,” said Ann-Charlotte Joseph, one of the event’s coordinators.
In addition to the competition, the cat show is designed to connect rescuers with potential foster owners, let the public see and learn about a plethora of fabulous felines, and to bring together owners and cats from all over the world to meet each other and have fun.
One competitor was Kitty Ruttan with her curly-haired Kittycats “Jojo” Jovian, who had already taken one final in the show.
“She’s just a baby, so my goal is that she enjoys it,” Ruttan said. “It’s so when she comes out to shows as an adult she won’t be freaked out.”
Ruttan has been showing cats since she was 14 years old in 1975 and still participates in them as much as she can.
“This is my third competition in three weeks,” Ruttan said. “One in China, one in Las Vegas, and one here. I’m so ready to go home.”
Megan Antijuncti was there with her 5-year-old cat Tarjae, who she retired from competing six months ago and now brings for demonstrations to the visitors.
“He was the sixth-best cat in the world for household pets,” Antijuncti said. “I thought it would be more important for him to come out and be an ambassador on how to show a household pet.”
Among those looking at and playing with Tarjae was Anita Policante with full cat makeup and her two children, Avery and Francesco.
“We love cats, and we were looking for a cat show,” Policante said. “Petting the cats was my favorite part. I especially like Bengals and then Ragdolls.”
The cat show has had around 1,500 visitors attend each of the previous shows in 2016 and 2018, and will probably reach a similar total by the end of tomorrow’s festivities, according to Joseph.
The event aimed to help connect cat rescuers with potential foster owners. One such rescue service present was Give Me Shelter Cat Rescue, who had already won several awards.
“Our goal here is mainly to gain exposure and also to better understand what a cat show is since we’ve never participated in one before,” said Jennifer Krase, who was in charge of the shelter’s table. “Our rescue has a lot of cats in foster homes, but we also have adoption centers located in San Francisco.”
Many of the owners seem to enjoy coming to these competitions more as a way to meet other cat lovers than to win medals. Denise Spraker is one such owner, who came with her kitten Gigi to have fun rather than to compete.
“I come to hang out with my cats and to hang out with other cat people,” Spraker said. “That’s what I always look forward to.”
