~Highlander Cattery - GC, NW Shubacoons Desdemona of Highlander, DM~

A Dreams Begins...

It all started at last year’s CFA Annual Awards Banquet.

I was there to celebrate and cheer for the Maine Coon, GC, NW Shubacoons Lincoln Park.

While there, I picked up my little bundle of joy, a female Maine Coon kitten from Paul and Ramona Shuba. Her name was Shubacoons Desdemona of Highlander - Desi for short.

Desi was the progeny of GC, NW Mckittycreek T Ruxpin of Shubacoons and Shubacoons Spumoni of The Cat Spa and a half sister to Lincoln park.

Wow, what a doll she was - irresistible. I was dreaming at the banquet that night, “I wish that some day that could be me on that awards stage for the first time.” Little did I know that destiny was listening to my wish...

Best Kitten

I started showing Desi in August in the kitten class. At her first show, a judge said to me, “That is one hot cat!”

Desi was only four months old and a female, but I thought perhaps she could earn a regional win - so off to another show we went... and there she made her first a BEST Kitten!

A Show Girl

Desi loved to show and was always ready to perform when asked. I was excited about her show possibilities. Should I go to one of the biggest cat shows in CFA, National Capital?

Desi said yes, so off we went.

What a great time I had. Although nervous, my friends, co-owners, and sister surrounded me and cheered me on. There was a class of 32 Maine Coon kittens, and 172 allbreed kittens present. Desi received Best of Breed in five rings and made six finals. We were well on our way to a regional kitten win!

Into The Nationals

The next two shows she continued her winning ways and gained momentum. By the next epoints she was in the top 25 Kitten nationally! It was near the bottom, but still, I could not believe it.

My friend and long time mentor Sharon Powell of The Cat Spa and Ramona Shuba of Shubacoons said to me, "You are going to wind up 5th highest scoring in the nation.”

Being the pessimist, I just grinned and said, “Sure, I will believe it when I see it.”

A Little Help From My Friends...

Few campaigns are without a bump or two. In the middle of Desi's kitten career, I was hospitalized with kidney stones. Kitten careers are short and we couldn't afford to miss too many weekends.

Ramona and Paul volunteered to take Desi to a few shows while I recovered. Desi excelled at those two shows and moved up even higher in the standings.

I was now getting very excited. Desi just kept on with her winning ways. By November she was ninth Best Kitten in the nation.

The Finish Line

Desi finished her kitten show career in Hamburg, New York receiving two Best Kitten awards in tough competition and bringing her total to 30 Best Kitten awards, astounding all of us. Not shabby for a female in a breed where males usually dominate :-).

The national standings came out and she was 4th highest scoring Allbreed Kitten nationally. I could not believe it. Could it be true? Yes it was!

Maine Coon History!

Not only was she fourth highest scoring allbreed kitten in the nation and highest scoring long hair kitten, but to date she also is the highest scoring and ranking Maine Coon kitten EVER in the history of CFA, passing her daddy GC, NW Mckittycreek T Ruxpin of Shubacoons who previously held this title. Desi is her father's second national winner. He produced GC, NW Shubacoons Lincoln Park and a year later, Desi followed in Lincoln’s national-winning footsteps.

With Gratitude

I, along with her breeders and co-owners, are proud to have Desi represent her breed and to have earned such an honor.

I have so many people to thank for this win;

To Bill and Sharon Powell, co-breeders, for mentoring me and starting me in breeding cats, I love you both.

Paul and Ramona Shuba and Bill and Sue Storten for their generosity and trust. Without you, I would not have this cat or this win.

To all of my supporters, too many to mention.

To the judges who used her in their finals and made it possible for us to achieve this win.

To my mom and sister. Every weekend they were there for me, cheering me on, hugging me through the tears. Your turn is next.

And to my love, Edwin. He always took care of the cats at home and loved me through it all while I was on the road.

And of course, to my sweet Desi, now GC, NW Shubacoons Desdemona of Highlander, DM. Your presence brings such joy into my life.