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Nebelung Out of the Blue
Some cat fanciers look at breeds that exist
and say, "Why?" Others dream of breeds that do not
exist and ask, "Why not?" Such was the reaction of Cora
Cobb after a pair of unplanned matings between two unpedigreed,
shorthaired cats produced a couple of blue, semilonghaired
kittens.
The first kitten, a male, was born in Denver,
Colorado, on August 24, 1984. His mother was a black cat named
Elsa that belonged to Cobb`s son Carl. The kitten's father was a
neighborhood dandy "that looked like a Russian blue,"
said Cobb.
As the furry, little, blue tyke was growing
up, Cobb began to feel that he was something special.
"Everything about him was bigger than life and more
beautiful than the other cats in the litter or than any other
cats I had ever seen," Cobb told this writer in 1990.
"I wanted to have him be my friend and companion."
She named the kitten Siegfried and counted
herself lucky to have such a wonderful chum. Then, just five
months later, luck struck once again when Siegfried's parents
produced another chance-encounter litter and there was another
semilonghaired blue kitten--this one a female--in the brood.
"I didn't know if there would ever be
another cat like Siegfried," said Cobb. "I thought he
was a fluke because his parents were shorthairs. Then his sister
was born, and she was beautiful, just like him. At first I didn't
realize she was a female, but one day when I was talking about
what I was going to name "him," my son's fiance said,
'It's a girl. It doesn't have . . ..'
"At that moment," Cobb recalled
later, "it was like a big light went on in my head. Without
really thinking, I said, 'I'm going to make a new breed out of
these cats.' That was a tribute to the love I felt for Siegfried
and for this little one who would be his mate. I guess I just
wanted more cats like these in the world."
For the benefit of any pedigree scholars in
the audience, let the record show that Elsa, the mother of
Siegfried and his sister Brunhilde, was herself the product of a
chance encounter, this one between a cat named Terry, who had
been "taken in"--and let out to roam from time to
time--by one of Cobb's friends, and a longhaired black male,
address and particulars unknown.
"He was probably Angora," said Cobb,
"because these cats [Elsa, et. al.] have nothing like
Persian in them. Anyway, Terry had only one litter; and my son
Carl took one of those kittens--Elsa--while he was living with me
in Denver."
When Cobb moved from Denver to El Paso, Texas,
in September 1985, she took Siegfried, Brunhilde, and her dream
of establishing a new breed with her. The following May,
Brunhilde gave birth to a litter of three, all of which were blue
longhairs. Though she hadn't known what would happen when she
bred Siegfried to Brunhilde, Cobb had decided that "if they
bred true," she would begin working to get her new breed
established.
"Of course," she added,
"knowing the genetics that I know now, I realize they
couldn't have done anything but breed true" since long hair
and a blue coat are both recessive traits.
"Shortly after Brunhilde's litter was
born, I borrowed a copy of Cats magazine," said Cobb.
"I wanted to contact cat associations to see what it took to
start a new breed. Luckily the first place I called was The
International Cat Association (TICA). A lady there recommended
that I talk to the genetics committee chairperson, Dr. Solveig
Pflueger, who told me that I should set up a breed standard. I
sent to TICA for a copy of their breed standards so I could find
out what a standard was."
In addition, Cobb's new breed was going to
need a name. She decided on Nebelung, which is German for
"creatures of the mist." For a cattery name she chose Nebelheim,
which means "home of the mist." Since Pflueger had
suggested that Nebelungs be known popularly as longhaired Russian
blues, the standard Cobb wrote is the same "word-for-word as
the Russian's, except for the introduction and the part about
coat length." In September of 1987, 16 months after
Brunhilde's litter had been born, TICA accepted Nebelungs for
registration.
For their part, Russian blue breeders did not
accept the idea quite as readily, and Cobb had some difficulty
obtaining the registered breeding stock necessary for her
project; but on a visit to a TICA show in Dallas in 1987, she met
a breeder with a supreme grand champion Russian blue male. The
breeder and her cat were willing to accept one of Brunhilde's
daughters for stud service, and this breeding produced a litter
on June 10, 1988.
(The kittens from a breeding between a
Nebelung and a Russian blue will be shorthairs, unless the
Russian blue is carrying a longhair gene. By breeding two of
these shorthaired, first-generation kittens together or by taking
a shorthaired, first-generation kitten to a longhaired cat, the
desired Nebelung coat length can be secured--in one out of four
cases in breedings between shorthaired, first-generation kittens,
in two out of four cases in breedings between a shorthaired,
first-generation kitten and a longhaired cat.)
There have been other Russian blues
conscripted in the service of Nebelungs in the meantime, and
other breeders have joined Cobb in working to get the breed
recognized. What's more, at least one free-roaming cat with the
proper conformation has been added to the mix; although Cobb is
quick to point out that such foundation cats will have to be
approved by the Nebelung breed committee. "You can't bring
just any old cat in and say it's a Nebelung because then the
whole breed would deteriorate in no time."
In 1990 Cobb estimated that "perhaps in
five years" breeders will have registered enough Nebelungs
and have shown them in sufficient numbers to merit championship
status in TICA. "As I figured it might, it has been a bit of
trouble," she allowed, "and there have been some
frustrations." Her predication was accurate, however, and
within that time TICA became the first association to grant the
Nebelung championship status. Thus far, no other associations
have followed suit.
The greatest obstacle Cobb has had to
overcome, however, has been the loss of two good friends.
"Siegfried and Brunhilde are both deceased now," said
Cobb. "Brunhilde died while she was pregnant. I don't know
why. I'll never get over her. She was the most sweet cat I've
ever known." Siegfried, the inspiration for the Nebelung
breed, was, unfortunately, "allowed out." He was killed
by a car in the parking lot of the apartment where Cobb lived.
It Looks Like ...
The Nebelung is a fine-boned cat with a long,
firm, muscular body that is lithe and graceful without being
tubular in the manner of the Oriental breeds. The Nebelung's head
is a smooth, medium wedge, neither long and tapering nor short
and massive. The muzzle is blunt without an exaggerated whisker
break. The top of the skull is long and flat in profile,
descending gently to a point just above the eyes and continuing
at a slight downward angle in a straight line to the tip of the
medium-length nose. There is no stop or nose break, and the
length of the nose should be shorter than the length of the line
from the top of the skull to the eyes.
Wide-set, vivid-green eyes, at least one eye
width apart, confer a broad look to the Nebelung's face. The eyes
are round. Large ears--wide at the base, and more pointed than
rounded --crown the Nebelung head. The ears are set far apart, as
much on the side of the head as on the top.
The Nebelung has a semilong coat that stands
out from the body. An even blue throughout, the soft, silky coat
should have silver-tipped guard hairs that give the Nebelung a
silvery, lustrous appearance.
Personality
Nebelungs are affectionate, gentle, unassuming
cats. Fastidious about their personal appearance, they make
excellent companions--quiet, yet playful, somewhat shy, but
extremely devoted to their people. Their sensitivity and
intelligence are also much remarked upon by those who know them.