The Norwegian Forest Cat has evolved through the centuries as a product of its own environment. They had to feed, defend, and protect themselves from the elements of the forests. Only the cats that were good hunters and fast to escape from predators survived. Norwegian Forest Cats that survived their first winter had the correct, semi long, water-repellent coat and were well proportioned, strong and intelligent. These no nonsense traits carry into the show ring. The Norwegian Forest Cat is an intelligent, alert breed that is not fond of overhandling. A Norwegian Forest Cat is big and built strong.
Their hind legs are higher than their front legs, in proportion with their body. They are muscular and heavily boned. Their heads are triangular with all three sides equal when measured between the outer base of each ear and from these points to the chin. The profile is long and straight with no break or stop and displays a strong chin.
Their eyes are expressive, large, wide almond-shaped, and set on an oblique tilt. Their ears are large, open and set in line with the triangular shape of the head. They may be well tufted and have lynx tips. Their tails are long, flowing and carried high. The length of the Forest Cat is semi-long, which means that it should not be as long as a Persian coat. The Norwegian Forest Cat is known for its dense, rich fur with a woolly undercoat covered by long, coarse guard hairs. The coat is warm and water-repellent.
A fully coated cat has a full ruff and britches. In the summer, the coat is short. The coat feels dense, especially on tabbies. Solid, bicolor and tricolor cats often have a softer coat. The males are large and imposing, often weighing 12-15 pounds or more. The females can be considerably smaller. The Norwegian Forest Cat is a slow growing breed and can take up to 5 years to fully mature.
Norwegian Forest Cat Breed History
The Norwegian Forest Cat is also known as Norsk Skogkatt. The word “Skogkatt” first appeared in Norwegian fairytales in 1841. “Norsk” is Norway, “Skog” means forest and “katt” means cat. The Skogkatt is a natural breed cat. It is not known how long the Skogkatt has been in Norway. It is assumed they are descendants of shorthaired cats brought in from England by the Vikings and longhaired brought by the Crusaders. The first time a Skogkatt was shown was in 1938. A Forest Cat Club was started in Norway around 1935, but WWII interrupted any advancement of the Norwegian Forest Cat as a recognized breed. In 1973, Pans Truls and Pippi Skoggpus were just two Skogkatt’s from somewhere outside Oslo.
The first time a Norwegian Forest Cat was shown was in 1938. A Forest Cat Club was started in Norway around 1935, but WWII interrupted any advancement of the Skogkatt as a recognized breed. In 1973, Pans Truls and Pippi Skoggpus were just two Skogkatt’s from somewhere outside Oslo. After the war, Carl-Frederik Nordane, past president of the Norwegian Cat Association took up the cause to get the Norsk Skogkatt listed as a recognized breed.
In 1977, Nordane traveled to Paris where he made a presentation of the Skogkatt to the FIFe General Assembly. Due to Norway’s quarantine laws, the presentation was given by slides of Pans Truls and Pippi Skoggpus. The cats so impressed the FIFe ( Fédération Internationale Féline )officials that FIFe conferred championship status upon the breed. The Norsk Skogkatt was officially recognized by FIFe on November 25, 1977.
Two years after the breed was recognized in FIFe, the first breeding pair was imported to the United States. Sheila R. Gira Windom was the proud new owner of Mjavo's Sala Palmer of Mycoon and Pan's Tigris of Mycoon. This first litter of Norwegian Forest Cat kittens was born in cattery Mycoon on March 21, 1981. In August 1984, TICA became the first North American registry to grant champion status to the Norwegian Forest Cat.
The following excerpt is taken from a breeder’s letter from Norway, reprinted from Skogkatt Newsletter, Winter 1980-1981: “..we who have worked with this breed from the very beginning are so very fond of the cat’s natural abilities that we first of all, want a healthy, strong cat with all it’s natural instincts and it is a blessing for us that a cat can stay out proposing for the weeks without being near a comb and return without a lump in his coat…,a cat that never lets a fox or hawk take it by surprise, a cat that gladly goes for a swim if there is a fish out there that he wants.”
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