Cats Go From Pest to Pet

HISTORY This Week

The HISTORY® Channel

History, Education, Society & Culture

4.6 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 14 October 2024

⏱️ 26 minutes

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Summary

October 18, 1887. At the Crystal Palace in London, hundreds of cats are ready to be judged. This is the first show put on by the National Cat Club, an organization seeking to bring order to the competitive cat world. But the NCC has another goal, to bring legitimacy and attention to a new idea: having a cat as a pet. Even just a couple of decades before this, you’d rarely find a cat living in a person’s home. Cats were on the streets – living near humans, not with them. They’re pretty much seen on the same level as the mice they catch. But now, cats are starting to get their due. So, how did cats overcome their image problem? And who were the artists who helped us fall in love with our feline friends? Special thanks to Kathryn Hughes, author of Catland: Louis Wain and the Great Cat Mania. To stay updated: historythisweekpodcast.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	The History Channel Original Podcast.
0:05.0	History this week.
0:07.0	October 18, 1887.
0:10.0	I'm Sally Helm.
0:15.0	In a big room at London's Crystal Palace under gorgeous high glass ceilings, there sit rows and rows of cages full of
0:27.7	four hundred and twenty nine cats. There are thin cats and fat cats, long-haired and short, Persian cats, Siamese, a cat
0:41.0	a cat named Lucifer reclining on an embroidered cushion.
0:45.0	All of these cats are waiting to be judged.
0:50.0	Cat shows have been happening in England for almost 20 years.
0:54.0	And that's about the same amount of time that British cats have had any respect.
0:59.0	Before that, they were seen as not much better than vermin, almost on par with the rodents they killed.
1:06.5	The cat shows have been part of an effort to change that.
1:10.5	And this one is the first to be put on by the National Cat Club.
1:17.0	Up until now, the world of competitive cat breeding has been chaotic, unregulated. The early cat lovers have been fighting each other,
1:26.6	arguing about the rules, like what does long haired really mean? How long does the hair have to be? One owner actually got busted for dipping his
1:36.3	black and white cat in yellow dye to enter it in the tortoise-colored category.
1:46.8	The National Cat Club wants to clean things up.
2:02.0	Bring order to this lawless cat world. On offer today for the prize winners are some fine silver sugar bowls and cash, not to mention the respect of other cat-loving peers. And when the judging is done,
2:04.0	the grand prize goes to Mr. Clark's
2:07.0	Snow White Persian cat, Major.
2:12.1	He's noted for his pure white color and majesty of tale.
2:18.0	Mr Clark credits Major's beauty to a diet of cool boiled milk for breakfast and tea,
	...

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