The mechanics of a cat show are not especially difficult. The terminology has merely been arranged to make them look that way.
A ring is a separate show
Each judge starts over. One may adore the cat, another may find it perfectly adequate, and a third may look at the same animal as though opposing counsel has just cited an unpublished case.
An allbreed ring compares longhairs and shorthairs in the same final. A specialty ring keeps longhairs and shorthairs separate. Either way, each ring produces its own results. There is no single show-wide jury verdict.
The basic classes
Kittens compete from four months until they turn eight months. They can win ribbons, make finals, and accumulate seasonal award points, but there is no CFA Champion title for a kitten.
At eight months, a registered intact cat begins adult competition as an Open in Championship. A spayed or neutered adult begins as an Open in Premiership. The altered titles are called Premier and Grand Premier; the unaltered titles are Champion and Grand Champion.
“Open” does not mean an amateur category. It means the cat has not yet completed the first adult title.
Championship, then and now
When I was a kid, you needed six actual Champion ribbons as the best Open in class.
CFA called them Winners Ribbons. Whatever name you put on the cloth, you had to beat the other Opens in your class to get one.
This was easy if you showed up with a rare or unpopular breed and happened to be the only Open of your color and sex. It was brutally difficult if you had a chocolate point Siamese. You could have a very good cat and meet a wall of other very good chocolate point Siamese in every ring.
Bluebell never got much past her championship. At that time in CFA, completing the title required more than merely appearing: you actually had to win at least your color class.
Now you need six rings without disqualification as an Open.
The precise CFA term is a Qualifying Ring. In Regions 1–9, those qualifying rings must be earned under at least two judges. A ring qualifies so long as the judge does not disqualify the cat or otherwise withhold an award, including for wrong color.
It is a threshold title. It confirms eligibility and clears the cat into the next stage. It does not mean the cat defeated the entire hall in mortal combat.
What all the ribbons mean
The first ribbons are class placements. A judge starts within a color and sex grouping: blue for first, red for second, yellow for third. A blue ribbon may mean the cat beat several competitors. It may also mean the cat was the only one standing there. Blue is pleasant; context is probative.
The judge then selects Best and Second Best of Color, followed by Best and Second Best of Breed or Division. A separate Best Champion or Best Premier award identifies the highest-ranked non-grand adult in the breed or division and can produce points toward a grand title.
After class judging comes the final: the judge’s top cats from the entire Championship, Premiership, or Kitten entry in that ring. These are the large rosettes and the moment spectators recognize as winning. A cat can be Best Cat in one ring and absent from the next judge’s final. Judges are allowed to disagree. They have built an institution around it.
Champion is qualification. Grand is competition.
After the first title, the arithmetic becomes real. In mainland CFA competition, a cat needs 200 grand points for Grand Champion. An altered cat needs 75 for Grand Premier. The points must come under at least three judges, and the cat must have at least one Best, Second Best, or Third Best Champion or Premier award—or an overall final.
Grand points are principally based on cats defeated. Best Champion or Premier receives one point for each eligible Open or Champion—or Open or Premier—it defeats. Lower Champion or Premier placements receive declining percentages. Best of Breed or Division and finals can also generate grand points. If several awards in one ring produce points, CFA credits only the highest result from that ring.
This is why “the proud recipient of 72 grand points” means something different from saying the cat earned its championship. Seventy-two points is a running total of competitive results. The first title is the admission ticket, but the cat still has to be handleable by the judges without biting or clawing anyone. That is not a given. Championship may not mean much competitively, but it means more than showing up.
There are two point systems hiding under the same word
Grand points accumulate over the cat’s career until the cat becomes a Grand Champion or Grand Premier. Regional and national award points belong to a show season and come from defeating cats in breed awards and finals. Those lead to initials such as RW and NW, not GC or GP.
So “How many points did she get?” is not a complete question. Points toward what? The cat fancy has never met one ledger it could not improve by adding another ledger.
The result sheet needs context
At one 2018 show, Ollie made the final in five of six rings as a Grand Premier. Bianca made only one final, but she was fourth-best shorthair in it. Polly finally earned ribbons, including second-best of breed in a large Oriental Shorthair class, and completed her six qualifying rings. Dresden was told to lose more weight.
Those were four different results at the same show. “Got a ribbon” does not tell you enough. Neither does “didn’t final.” You need to know the class, the competition, the ring, the judge, and what the cat was trying to accomplish.
At a difficult show in 2019, we made no finals. I learned not to bathe my cats in well water too close to the show because their coats were not good enough. Two girls still completed their championships. I was discouraged, corrected the grooming problem, and went to the next show.
The result is evidence. It is not a complete biography of the cat.
The short version
- Each judge’s ring is a separate show.
- An adult starts as an Open.
- Six clean qualifying rings make a Champion or Premier in Regions 1–9.
- Beating other eligible adults earns grand points.
- Two hundred points make a Grand Champion; 75 make a Grand Premier here.
- A final is one judge’s top group in that ring. It is a major win, not a separate title.
- When your cat grands, tradition requires cake at the next day or the next show. This is the most sensible rule in the fancy.