The Girls
GP Melodygarden Starlight (Sire: GC Melodygarden Lunar Eclipse, Dam: CH Melodygarden Northern Exposure) Ellie is a beautiful example of a shaded tortieshell American Shorthair. The splash of color between the eyes and forehead is to be desired and a plus in the show ring. Ellie is very shy but loves to curl up and snuggle on a human lap. She is small in type but still holds her own.
GP Melodygarden Starbright (Sire: GC Melodygarden Lunar Eclipse, Dam: CH Melodygarden Northern Exposure) Trudy is a shaded silver American Shorthair and is the littermate to GP Melodygarden Starlight. Trudy doesn't know a stranger and is everyone's friend. Trudy's head type and sweet, open expression are stunning. Long time CFA Judge David Mare said Trudy was the best shaded silver ASH he had ever seen in his over 25 years of judging.
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The American Shorthair Look
BREED STANDARD
The ASH breed standard as defined by CFA, requires that the cat be able to be divided into three equal parts viewed from the side from the tip of the breastbone to the tail. Thirty points for the head, thirty points for the body, thirty-five points for the coat, color and eyes and five points for eye color. Well-developed shoulders with a strong muscular body is the standard. GP Melodygarden Starbright in the cardboard box above shows the correct ear placement, eye shape, eye placement and muzzle shape. We prefer the "extreme look" as opposed to the "moderate look." The moderate look has a longer muzzle and the more moderate a cat is, the closer it looks to a domestic house cat. If the extreme look becomes too extreme, the face runs the risk of having a break in the bridge of the nose. The goal is to maintain the standard, producing a face that has "a sweet open expression." GP Mericat Macon Marmalade is what you would call "in the middle," neither extreme nor moderate.
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Another issue often encountered is the ear set. Some are too high with perpendicular ears and others are set too low giving a flat look to the head and ears.
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Some judges prefer the extreme look over the moderate and vice versa. Over the last ten plus years the American Shorthairs in CFA scoring in the Top Ten of the breed, as well as the Breed Winner, lean to the extreme look. TICA leans to the moderate look but in recent years have been adopting some of the extreme characteristics. Again, this is a debateable issue and all breeders and judges have their preferences.