Beyond ‘crazy cat lady': Dispelling myths at Catsachusetts show

Boston Globe

29-04-2025

'People still somewhat stigmatize cat owners,' said Christian Cherau, northeast regional director of the
He has heard all the hissing about cats.
A black Bombay cat meows during the judging at the Catsachusetts Cat Convention.
'They're dirty; they can't be trained. That they can be mean; their kids aren't good with them; that they fight with dogs,' he said. 'I think we can prove every one of those myths wrong.'
The show, held last week in Boston,
featured 120 cats including 36 different breeds.
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'People don't know a lot about cats,' Cherau said as the feline faithful checked in. 'They don't know there's a breed of cats. They don't know that cats can do tricks, that they can be trained, that they can be bathed, that they're not just going to be dependent on to catch a rat.'
Cat judging is done on seven tables, each equipped with a scratching post. It's hands-on and not a parade. There's also an agility ring and therapy cats, who are both contestants and stress relievers. The Westminster Dog Show in Madison Square Garden, it is not. The event took place at a dry ice rink in East Boston. But it is a fun event, not snooty, or high pressured. There's even a category for house cats.
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Although the cats are kept briefly in cages during the judging, they spend most of their time in cushy minishow houses where they are pampered.
Judge Harley DeVilbiss, has a Salvador Dali/Rollie Fingers handlebar mustache and beard that attract the curiosity of some cats.
Meteora, a Cornish Rex gets up close and personal with judge Harley DeVilbiss' handlebar moustache during the Catsachusetts Cat Convention.
One cat, a Cornish Rex named Meteora, licks the judge's face and even gets tickled by his stache. The judge awards the cat a first-place ribbon, saying the flattery 'didn't hurt.' He also issues a suggestion: 'You could use a TikTok. I'm sorry. She needs a Tic Tac because her breath was bad.'
Elsewhere in the Porrazzo Memorial rink, an Ocicat named Riverspot's Comet of Sunflame leaps through hoops at the agility ring. It looks like he's reenacting Bobby Orr's 1970 Stanley Cup-winning goal.
'A lot of people think they can't be trained. He does sit, stay, rollover. He plays fetch. He jumps through his hoops,' said trainer Kim Dustin of Somersworth, N.H.
Dustin also walks her cats with a harness, prompting snarky remarks from some.
Amber Lilyestrom of Lee, N.H. combs the hair of Juniper, a Himalayan cat.
'There are a lot of people who have dogs who think that I shouldn't be on the same trails as them,' she said. 'They give me crap for having a cat even on the trail.'
Traveling with cats can be
a problem. Some hotels worry about scratched-up furniture and exposing guests and employees who are allergic to cats.
'There aren't a lot of cat-friendly spaces,' Dustin said. 'A lot of hotel chains will say they're pet-friendly. They mean dog-friendly. They don't mean cat-friendly. So that frustrates me.'
Kathy Lynch of Arlington knows she looks like King Kalvyn, a Shaded Silver Dollface Persian.
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'Actually, after I got that cat, I let my hair go gray, so I look more like him,' Lynch said. 'And then I had this silver tinsel installed in my hair so that I could actually be a shade of Silver Persian myself.'
Gus, a Siberian forest cat, he has been a therapy cat for six years with 'Caring Hearts Pet Therapy."
She's a professional cat sitter. Single with eight cats.
'Everybody I know says when they die someday, they'd like to come back as one of my cats and be treated to the royal life.'
There's also plenty of good karma here.
Last year, Gwyneth Hayes of Caring Hearts Pet Therapy, a nonprofit Pennsylvania volunteer group,
brought her two cats to 160 nursing homes, hospitals, schools, and libraries last year.
Juniper, a Himalayan cat, poses with some of the ribbons she's won.
She says 30 percent to 40 percent of people in nursing homes don't have anybody that visit them. 'Being able to bring that joy and make every visit count is what it's all about,' Hayes said.
But she still sees the antifeline feelings everywhere.
'People . . . are more willing to accept a dog than cats' she said. 'It's just because cats are seen as unpredictable, even though they're not. You can see their body language and read them really well.'
Linda Manning of New Haven, hugs King Fisher, a Maine Coon Polydactyl, after the judging. Maine Coons are the only long-haired cat breed native to the United States. One was awarded Best in Show in a legendary cat show in Madison Square Garden in 1895. It was an era where cats shows were gaining in popularity. Today, social media loves both cats and dogs. But on the streets, cat women take more grief (except for Michelle Pfeiffer and Halle Berry).
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'I mean, you still get to hear, 'Oh, it's the crazy cat lady,' ' Manning said. 'But [cats are] wonderful. They can tell what your feelings are. If you approach every cat (negatively) like, you're not going to care about me, the cat's going to be like, 'yeah'. Give them a chance.'
Amber Lilyestrom of Lee, N.H., a brand and business coach for female entrepreneurs, loves both dogs and cats.
'If you earn the love of a cat, then you're doing something right,' Lilyestrom said. 'There's a level of patience required, I think, with cats. It's a different energy. But I think it's special that when a cat chooses you, it's a really beautiful thing.'
Kathy Lynch of Arlington says she dyed her hair to look more like King Kalvyn, a Shaded Silver Dollface Persian.
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Stan Grossfeld can be reached at