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ACFA
It's Inception, Aims and Progress...

The American Cat Fanciers Association was formed in 1955 by a group of Cat Fanciers seeking greater flexibility in the development of cats, the activities of cat lovers and greater freedom for growth and harmony with contemporary needs of the individual breeders and the broadening horizons of the Cat Fancy at large.  It was a group of Cat Fanciers in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area, comprised of individuals highly qualified in business management, organizations, legal expertise and knowledge of the Cat Fancy and Show procedures, who provided the prime force for this endeavor.  The founders of this Association, along with many others, believed that a more democratic organization would be able to move forward more rapidly than the organizations or associations current at that time, due to antiquated legislative rules, had been able to do.  Their dreams were not unfounded.

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Once the policies of this democratic Association were made known to the public, many of the leading breeders and fanciers, who long had resented the autocratic policies of the then existing organizations, joined ACFA.  They believed that within the parameters, as set forth, there was room for advancement of the Cat Fancy as an organization.  The members set up a Board of Directors who were to represent the various regions in developing the Association policies.  Such policies could not be written into the Bylaws, Show Rules or Registration Rules without the approving vote of the membership at large.  Separate Breed Sections proposed Standards of Perfection for each breed, and they, the breeders of the specific breeds, accepted or rejected the standard.  Once these standards had been set they were to be changed only by the approval of the members of the Breed Section concerned, comprised of the breeder/exhibitor members.

The Initiative:

Many exemplary changes, advanced ideas and policies were first introduced by ACFA.  Several of the modifications or policies that were popularized were:

 The double, triple and quadruple championship and grand championship were innovations first developed by ACFA.

 For the first time in Cat Fancy History, altered cats were accepted for championship competition.  These alters did not compete with the whole cats, but were given their own championship classification.  Still today, the alters compete in the Championship Shows under the same rules as any other championship cat.

ACFA was the first to introduce the ‘multiple’ ring Championship Show, a concept that is standard in all associations today.  However, until ACFA introduced the four ring Show, the common format was simply one Allbreed Ring and one Specialty Ring.  ACFA was the first to provide the exhibitor the opportunity to go to a show and have their cat judged “FOUR” times, not just twice.  ACFA then forged ahead to introduce the five ring show, six ring show, and then, the now popular Back-to-Back show with 8 to 10 rings in a weekend.




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In addition, ACFA was the first to require prospective judges to successfully complete ‘written’ exams before being licensed. Other firsts include: a training program for ‘trainee’ Judges, official Judges’ Schools [established for new and old judges alike], as well as special Breed Seminars for interested parties as well as Judges.

 ACFA has been innovative in recording and encouraging owners of Household Pets to enter our show halls and win titles and compete in year-end awards. Along with this concept, ACFA has also  been a leader in the Junior ACFA program, enlisting, training, educating and encouraging our young people to become involved in the Cat Fancy.

You will find that some / all of these concepts are practiced by all associations in existence today. 

ACFA Today:

Through the years ACFA has progressed with the times, yet never forgetting those precepts on which we were founded.  Here are but a few of the reasons we feel our Association is the best, most unique, service-oriented association of its type in the Cat Fancy today:

Every cat entered, judged and scored in an ACFA Show has a Master Show Record for that show year entered into the database of our computer.  For each win in the Show Ring during the Show Season, from Best of Color, through Best Cat in Show, it receives a specific number of points.  These points are tabulated and the ‘average points scored’ per ring are determined.  This final average is used to determine our End-of-Year Awards.  Awards start for the Top 3 Cats of Color of Breed and progress upwards through Top 3 Cats of Breed and then on to the Top winning cats, regardless of breed.  These awards are presented both on a Regional and Inter-American level.  The unique part of this system is that every cat fancier can afford to compete for the top awards each year.  Since it is not a ‘total’ point system, exhibitors need not incur the expense of campaigning a cat every weekend to be in competition, as is the case with most of the other award systems in place today.

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The ACFA Bulletin, published bi-monthly, is designed to provide the ACFA Member with the latest information about their Association.  It includes but is not limited to: reports on new policies and actions taken by the Board of Directors; a current Show Schedule; a Judges' list; a list of Breed Section Chairs; other Committee Chairs are listed; and more.  ‘ACFA Yearbook”, a yearbook depicting the End-of-Year award winners, is a publication of the finest quality, utilizing quality reproduction to best display the top winning cats.  It also contains breeder advertising, and many interesting articles and special features about cats and the Cat Fancy.  Both the Bulletin and the ACFA Yearbook are included with membership
brad ACFA is continually searching to find new ways that will make the registration of cats and litters simple and easy for our customers, and still maintain the highest degree of integrity in the Book of Registry.  In addition, we continue to investigate, and introduce, new services to aid our customers in other areas.  Our Central Office is available 24 hours a day 7 days a week through fax, email and voice mail. Our members receive special considerations and/or discounts from sponsoring companies; reduced member pricing on cat registrations, litters, Cattery name registrations and ACFA Yearbook advertising; and a free listing on our Website with a link to your Website so that your Cattery can achieve full exposure to those looking for a kitten.  Add this to the ‘personal touch’ you receive from the Staff at ACFA’s Central Office, it is evident that ACFA is sincerely concerned with the quality of service to the Fancier - whether they are a professional breeder, a hobby breeder or a cat-lover.


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American Cat Fanciers Association  © Copyright 1997-2005
P.O. Box 1949, Nixa, MO 65714-1949
Phone: (417) 725-1530   -  Fax: (417) 725-1533   -   Email