How To Guide

Tessa Baker

Tessa Baker is a chef and a painter. However, she started with food and at the lowest rung – she was a waitress at the restaurant in London while still a teen. When she was about 15, her father suggested that she go to Switzerland and work as an apprentice chef. She finished her training and returned to England where she went to art school, but was not happy there.

She went back to cooking and worked as the head chef and only chef at The Howard Arms in Warwickshire, The General Trading Company and finally The Watermill Theatre in Newbury. She fell in love but was later dumped and then fled to France where she worked briefly in a motor yacht, then at St. Tropez and then finally on a boat sailing around the world.

Then she went to do art classes in Venice and finally had solo exhibitions of her paintings in Valbonne and in London. Now she works as a chef in summer and paints in winter, holding exhibitions in spring and autumn.

‘The two… Read More

Chefs are often now big names and are employed the world over now. A chef has many responsibilities, not just cooking.

A chef is much more than a cook, since he not only devises recipes, but may also be in charge of menu planning and if he runs his own restaurant also the interiors, ambience, etc. Depending on the type of place he is working at he may be turning out fast foods or cordon bleu cuisine. The status of a chef today is big and there are many celebrity chefs now

The Work

The work of a chef has come a long way, though cooks have been around for eons. The chef is responsible for the working of the whole kitchen whether he or she is working in a small restaurant or café, a take-out place, or in a star hotel. If he is working in a small place the chef may have to do all the work from buying the groceries or item needed for the food, to food handling and preparation and getting dish ready to be… Read More

Origin

The origin of the Nebelung is almost all natural. In the 1980’s, a female black domestic shorthaired cat by the name of Elsa meet a shorthaired blue Russian tomcat that could have been a stray. From this encounter a litter of kittens was born. In the litter was five solid black or blue shorthairs and solid blue longhair with a beautiful coat, long legs, and a Russian Blue-type body. Cora Cobb adopted the solid blue longhair and gave him the name of Siegfried after the hero in The Ring of the Nebelung. Awhile later Elsa and her beau the Russian Blue tom once again littered some more kittens. This time seven kittens were born, only one longhaired solid blue, this time a female. Cora also adopted this one and named it Brunhilde, Siegfried’s lady love in The Ring of the Nebelung opera. Neither cat was fixed and before long, they had a litter of their own. In May of 1986, this couple gave birth to a litter with three solid blue longhairs. In September of 1987, the TICA accepted… Read More

Origin

The Cretan Hound can be traced to the Greek Island of Crete with writings dating back 3500 years. Some believe the ancestors of the Cretan Hound may have been from Africa but this is more than likely the oldest dog breed in Europe. The Cretan people had many enemies trying to take over their land; they became very suspicious of strangers. The people were proud and were not very happy to share any of the unique species of animals found on their island. The Cretan Hound was often hidden away from the eyes of strangers. The dogs of course were discovered and are now considered not only awesome hunting dogs but great family pets as well.

Height and Weight

The Cretan Hound males stand around 27 inches and weigh around 44 to 66 pounds. Females stand around 19 inches and weigh about the same as the males.

Colors and Coat

The coat is fine, short, and close to the body. Coat colors include pure white, cream, sandy, fawn, grey, black or brindle, bi-colored or tri-colored.

Temperament and Living Environment… Read More

Origin

The Bergamasco Sheepdog has ancestors dating back 2000 years, which were home all along the Alpine chain. These dogs lived in the cold climate in the Vallese region of the Alps, described as coats that were thick, long, and shabby. As far as anyone knows, the ancestors were shepherds and cattle dogs that were home not only in the Alps but also from the Orient to the Western world. The dogs in most cases when the stock of sheep was sold, the dog went with the herd.

Height and Weight

The male Bergamasco Shepherd at adulthood, stands at 23 ½ inches and weighs around 70 to 84 pounds. Females on average are about 22 inches tall as adults and weigh around 59 to 71 pounds.

Colors and Coat

This breed of dog is considered to be of medium size. The unique appearance is the coat, which is thick, full, and forms mats or flocks. The matts or flocks begin at the spine and go down the flanks. Each year these matts or flocks grow longer until they reach the… Read More

Origin

The Colorpoint Shorthair is a Siamese only with different color of its markings. This breed as first seen in the 1940’s in the United Kingdom when breeders wanted to develop a cat that was close to the Siamese only with point in colors unlike the Siamese of traditional blue, chocolate, lilac, and seal.

In order to achieve their goal, breeders crossed the Siamese with red colored Domestic Shorthairs, Abyssinians, and American Shorthairs. It took several generations and breeding to develop the Colorpoint Shorthair, we see today.

Height and Weight

The Colorpoint Shorthair is a small to medium breed with both male and females weighing around 7 to 8 pounds.

Colors and Coat

As stated before the Colorpoint Shorthair looks like a Siamese except for the point color. This breed comes in red point, cream point, lynx point, and tortie point.

Temperament and Living Environment

The Colorpoint Shorthairs are known for being very intelligent, loving and a bit mischievous. This is a breed of cat that enjoy being busy all the time when awake, chasing all kinds of pretend prey,… Read More

Origin

The Barbet is believed to be the beginning of many different water dog breeds including the American Water Spaniel, the Poodle, and the Portuguese Water Dog, to name a few. The actual origin is not known but in most cases began with the corded herding breed. Barbet comes from the French and means beard. Throughout history, you can find the Barbet working in various occupations, but mainly as an assistant to sailors. It is known most for its retrieval talents. The bloodline of the Barbet can be found as far back as 1891 in various publications.

Height and Weight

The Barbet male stands at 20 ½ to 25 ½ inches tall and weighing between 35 and 60 pounds. Female Barbet’s weigh the same but are about just a bit smaller.

Colors and Coat

The coat on the Barbet is long, wooly, curly and of course made for water. The accepted colors include solid black, brown, fawn, grey, pale fawn, white or more or less pied. Red fawn and pale fawn are also seen. Grey and white are… Read More

Origin

The Affenpinscher is a breed of dog with a history as far back as the 17th century. The breed’s ancestors include the Griffon Bruxellois and the Miniature Schnauzer. The name is derived from the German Affe meaning monkey dog.

Even though there is no exact lineage or data that proves their history; however, the first mention of a dog of this type was during the 1600’s. The dogs at that time were much larger and were used as ratters on farms throughout Germany. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the breed was miniaturized and became house pets. Today, even though the Affenpinscher is an excellent hunter they are mostly companion dogs.

Height and Weight

The Affenpinscher male and females both are around 10 to 15 inches tall and weighs 7 to 8 pounds.

Colors and Coat

This breed is known for the unique shaggy and wire coat with the hair on the face longer than the rest of the body. The color of the coat is black or dark gray in most cases, but can come in lighter gray,… Read More

Origin

The Munchkin is the famous unusually short leg domestic breed of cat. The breed was recognized in England in the 1930’s, being a breed created by a mutation that developed achondroplasia or possibly hypochondroplasia due to the size of the skull being affected as well. Hypochondroplasia is characterized by larger skull and short legs whereas achondroplasia is characterized by short legs. During World War II the breed literally disappeared

Sandra Hochenedel found a cat with very short legs living under a trailer in Louisiana in 1983. She took the cat in and named her Blackberry. Blackberry happened to be pregnant and half of her litter was born with short legs. Toulouse, one of her kittens was placed in a breeding program in North America.

Height and Weight

The Munchkin is a small cat characterized by very small legs weighing between 4 to 8 pounds.

Colors and Coat

Munchkins have varying coat colors as well as length of hair. The coat whether short or long has a silky appearance.

Temperament and Living Environment

This breed of cat is very affectionate… Read More

Origin

The LaPerm is a natural breed of cat developed from a spontaneous mutation. The owners of the first LaPerm, Linda and Richard Koehl, had a few farm cats on their cherry farm in Oregon. A litter of kittens was born to the brown tabby shorthair Speedy. In the litter, one female kitten was born bald with tabby markings on her skin. The kitten grew like any other kitten and was healthy. The fur when it grew in was a soft and curly. Due to this curly coat, the kitty was named Curly. Curly worked on the farm with the rest of the cats and kittens.

Curly gave birth to a litter of kittens underneath a tree during a rainstorm and that is about the time Linda heard a noise above the sound of the storm and went out in search of Curly. She found her protecting her newborn babies from barking dogs. Linda placed the kittens in her pocket, and carried her and her kittens to the warmth and protection of the barn. The next day, Linda went to… Read More

Origin

The Japanese Bobtail was first mentioned in a book by Engelbert Kaempfer first published in London in 1701/1702. This German doctor wrote about the fauna, flora, and landscape of Japan and mentioned this beautiful cat as well, “there is only one breed of cat that is kept. It has large patches of yellow, black, and white fur; its short tail looks like it has been bent and broken. It has no mind to hunt for rats and mice but just wants to be carried and stroked by women.”

Long before this publication, in 1602, authorities in Japan decreed that cats had to be set free to rid the population of rodents that were killing the silk worms. It became illegal to buy or sell a cat. At this time, this breed was soon the street cat of Japan, home on farms and on streets throughout Japan.

Elizabeth Freret imported the first three Japanese Bobtails to the United States in 1968.

Height and Weight

The Japanese Bobtail’s are medium sized cats with long and slender bodies. The males weigh around… Read More

Origin

The California Spangled Cat can be traced back to Tanzania, Africa in the 1970’s by way of Paul Casey, a Hollywood scriptwriter. Mr. Casey could not believe the poaching that he witnessed while in Africa of leopard for their skins. He was motivated even more by Louis Leakey, an anthropologist and chose to develop a breed that would look similar to these wild cats with the hopes of generating more awareness of protecting these spotted cats in the wild. His thoughts were that if a person owned a spotted cat, they would not wish to wear clothing made from other spotted cats. It took Mr. Casey until of the 1980’s to develop the California Spangled Cat with several different breeds contributing to the result including American and British Shorthairs, Abyssinians, Angoras, Manx, and Siamese. Today, the sad news is that there are not many of this purebred breed of cats remaining.

Height and Weight

The California Spangled Cat is a medium sized cat with males weighing around 12 to 15 pounds and females weighing around 8 to 10 pounds.… Read More

Origin

The Burmese as you might guess originated in Burma. This elegant cat breed is known for is silky shining fur and its golden eyes. The Burmese arrived in the United States in 1930 in San Francisco, California by Dr. Joseph C. Thompson. The cat he owned was named Wong Mai. Dr. Thompson mated Wong Mai with a cat as similar to her as he could find, the Seal Point Siamese. She gave birth to a litter of kittens that were Siamese in color, intermediate colored, and solid brown like herself. In 1936, the breed was recognized in the United States.

Height and Weight

The Burmese is a small to medium size bred that has a muscular frame. They are a bit heavier than they look. This breed is not long and slender like the Siamese, but is more heavily boned.

Colors and Coat

The Burmese coat is short, fine, silky, and close to the body. The coat colors recognized include original brown (rich brown mahogany color), chocolate (light cream chocolate-colored), blue (steel grey), lilac (light dove-grey), red… Read More

Origin

The Egyptian Mau is a breed of cat that at one time was worshipped as deities, protected by laws, cherished as pets, and even mummified and mourned for at their death. This was in ancient Egypt where you can find the history of these cats depicted on the walls in paintings dating back more than 3,000 years.

The only difference between the Egyptian Mau’s of today and their ancestors is their origin. The Egyptian Mau’s in North America were imported by the exiled Russian princess, Nathalie Troubetskoy in 1956.

This breed is a beauty with striking features that show us the reason the ancient Egyptians fell in love with this cat.

Height and Weight

The Egyptian Mau is a medium size cat at adulthood. Adult males weigh between 7 and 12 pounds and females weigh between 6 and 8 pounds.

Colors and Coat

The coat of the Egyptian Mau is fine, short, dense, silky, and resilient. Coat colors can be silver, smoke, or bronze. The forehead is market with the M pattern.

Temperament and Living Environment

This breed of… Read More

Origin

The Devon Rex is a new breed of cat discovered in Buckfastleigh, Devonshire, UK in 1960. This cat was discovered in a litter of kittens near an abandoned tin mine. The individual that found the kitten believed the cat was related to the Cornish Rex, but test mating proved otherwise.

This unique cat has curly very soft coat and does resemble the Cornish Rex even though they are not related.

Height and Weight

The Devon Rex is a muscular and strong breed with both male and female weighing around 6 to 10 pounds. They are average sized with upturned noses.

Colors and Coat

The coat of the Devon Rex is the first thing everyone notices which is soft wavy or curly fur. The coat has been described as a short rippling coat, velvety soft, and can be in a variety of colors.

Temperament and Living Environment

The Devon Rex is a very active and alert breed. This breed is playful, loving, and affectionate. This type of cat enjoys being hugged, cuddled, and kissed. They are very loyal to their… Read More

Origin

The Chartreux is a handsome breed of cat with a history dating back as far as the 16th century. The Chartreux also referred to as the French cat has a legend surrounding their birth. Many believe that the Carthusian monks raised this natural breed as a companion. As to how the monks found the cats it is believed that feral mountain cats, from an area that we know as Syria, were brought to France by way of Crusaders during the 13th century. Many of the cats were given homes in the Carthusian monastic order, thus the legend of the monks having this breed for companions. On the other hand, some believe this breed of cat was given their name for a well-known Spanish wool from the 18th century.

The first documentation of the Chartreux was seen in the 18th century by French naturalist Buffon. The breed was close to extinction after World War II, but the effort of European breeders kept this beautiful breed for this fate. In 1971, the first Chartreux were seen in the United States when… Read More

Origin

The Norwegian Forest Cat is a breed of cat known to have originated in Northern Europe as a natural adaptation to the cold climate. Ancestors of this breed are believed to the Maine Coon and the longhaired Manx.

In Norway, the Norwegian Forest Cat is known as the Norsk skogkatt, translated to mean Norwegian Forest Cat. The cat was known as nothing more than just a standard house cat until the end of the 1930’s. A few of these cats were shown in Germany at which times the judges showed favor. During World War II the cat show industry was pretty much non-existent and the breed was forgotten. However, in the 1970’s an interest brought back the show cats and the love of the Norwegian Forest Cat.

Height and Weight

The Norwegian Forest Cat is a large breed of cat with males weighing 13 to 22 pounds and females weighing 6 to 11 pounds. This breed is slow to mature and will not reach this weight until adulthood which is between three to four years of age.… Read More

Origin

The Bengal is a new unique breed of cat that has what is known as wild marking speaking of the large spots, rosettes, and a light/white belly. The body of the Bengal is similar to that of the wild Asian Leopard Cat. It is believed the origin of the Bengal derived from the crossing of a domestic cat possibly the Abyssinian, American Shorthair, Burmese, or Egyptian Mau with an Asian Leopard Cat.

The domestic cat we see today inherited the exotic wild spotted pattern mentioned above from the Asian Leopard Cat found in central Asia. The credit for this breed of cat goes to Jean Sudgen of the United States when Jean crossed a black shorthaired domestic cat with a female Asian Leopard Cat in 1963. In 1984, the domestic Bengal cat was recognized by the International Cat Association.

Height and Weight

The Bengal is a medium to large exotic domestic cat. They can vary in size with the males usually between 14 to 20 pounds and the females around 10 to 12 pounds. This bred is very muscular… Read More

Origin

The Balinese is an oriental cat that has Siamese style points or markings with long hair. The Balinese does resemble the Siamese but are not as talkative. If you go back through history you will find the Balinese registered as a longhaired Siamese as far back as the 1920’s. during this time, a long haired kitten was born in a Siamese litter and considered to be more of a misfit than a show cat and were sold only as pets. In the 1950’s this changed. Two breeders, , Mrs. Marion Dorsey of Rai-Mar Cattery in California and Mrs. Helen Smith of MerryMews Cattery in New York, decided to start a breeding program for these longhaired cats. Helen named the cats Balinese as in her opinion they reminded her of the grace seen with Balinese dancers and the name longhaired Siamese did nothing for these graceful and loving cats.

Height and Weight

The Balinese is a medium sized cat breed weighing between six and eleven pounds.

Colors and Coat

The Balinese has two varieties just as their ancestors… Read More

Origin

The American Curl is a very new American breed only discovered in 1981. A longhaired silky black stray kitten with unusual ears appeared on the doorstep of Joe and Grace Ruga’s home. Of course, you know the rest, the kitten just had to be fed and then she decided this was home. Finally, Grace gave her a name, Shulamith. In December of 1981, Shulamith, gave birth to her first litter of kittens. Two of your four babies had curled ears.

This was the beginning of the American Curl. The genetic trait was caused by a dominant gene and was inherited. This very strong gene would appear in every kitten if only one parent had curled ears.

Height and Weight

The American Curl is a medium sized cat that normally weighs between 5 and 10 pounds. This sweet kitty does not reach adulthood until around 2 to 3 years of age.

Colors and Coat

The American Curl has two types of coats, longhaired and shorthaired. The tails on both have longer flowing hair. The coat colors can be… Read More