The Cat Fanciers’ Association Announces Most Popular Breeds for 2018

February 8, 2019

The Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA) – the world’s largest registry of pedigreed cats – has recently announced their most popular cat breeds for 2018, according to the number of cats that were registered throughout the year. CFA, a not-for-profit registry, is the most well-known and influential cat registry in the world.

At the top of CFA’s list of the most popular cat breeds for 2018 is the Ragdoll.

True to its name, this cat with big, beautiful, blue eyes and a plush coat is known for being affectionate and loves being held like a, you guessed it, “rag doll.” This breed will follow their humans and curl up with them. Ragdolls are easy sweet and well-behaved cats that are perfect for families and owners leading busy lifestyles.

GC, BWC, NW S.RECAT CHINESE ORCHID XL
Pictured: GC, BWC, NW S.Recat Chinese Orchid XL, a blue point and white Ragdoll male, bred by Qinbing Xza and owned by Hanye Lu and Qinbing Xiz.

 

GC, BWR, NW TOXICATE FUZZY NAVEL
Pictured: GC, BWR, NW Toxicate Fuzzy Navel, a brown patched tabby Exotic female, bred and owned by Tracey Dalton.

Landing in second place is the Exotic.

This breed is bred to resemble the Persian, with one notable exception – a short, low-maintenance coat. The Exotic’s coat makes them ideal for owners who want the teddy bear look and sweet personality of the Persian, but who don’t have time to meet the grooming needs of a long-haired cat.

Rounding out the top three is the British Shorthair, a sturdy, dense-coated cat with large teddy bear eyes, and a calm, easy going personality -making it ideal for families.

British Shorthairs are known for inspiring a natural calmness in their owners. These extremely affectionate kitties will curl up in your lap and push their nose in your face for attention.

GC, BWC, NW ELVIS SIMBA OF GHOST YOYO
Pictured: GC, BWC, NW Elvis Simba of Ghost Yoyo, a blue and white British Shorthair male, bred by Li Ling Chung & Wu Haodi and owned by Li Xin and Haodi Wu.
GC, BWR, NW BRONTTI ROYAL TITANIUM
Pictured: GC, BWR, NW Brontti Royal Titanium, a blue point Persian male, bred and owned by Kevin Brown & Marcelo Motti.

Persians are the fourth most popular cat breed.

Known for their luxurious, long coats and big, expressive eyes, Persians are one of the oldest pedigreed cat breeds. Persians are talkative and you should expect them to “chat” with you. They’re also playful, joyous, and never demanding-often described as that unexpected ray of sunshine.

The fifth most popular cat breed is the Maine Coon Cat.

Weighing anywhere from 10 to 20 pounds, Maine Coon Cats are considered the largest of the domestic cats and are rugged working cats with shaggy, uneven fur.

Maine Coon Cats are exceptionally sweet cats (owners can expect a greeting every time they arrive home) and love any kind of attention-making grooming their long shaggy fur a breeze.

GC, BWR, NW SUNCOON SIMBA OF FUJICATS
Pictured: GC, BWR, NW Suncoon Simba of Fujicats, a cameo tabby and white Maine Coon Cat male, bred by Wayne Wiekhorst & Cynthia L Rogers, and owned by Leigh & Gregory Sorokin, Wayne Wiekhorst, and Cynthia Rogers.
GH, HNW GARY GALAVANT
Pictured: CFA’s Best Household Pet for 2018, GH, HNW Gary Galavant, a black and white longhair neuter owned by Payton Gomez, a high school student in Whittier, California.

CFA officially recognizes 44 pedigreed cat breeds and is considered the world’s gold standard of registries – only accepting those breeds that undergo a rigorous approval process.

In addition to 44 pedigreed breeds, CFA records the non-pedigreed, Household Pet which came in 12th place this year. These non-pedigreed cute cats are welcome at CFA cat shows that take place every weekend across the globe. #rescueismyfavoritebreed is a hashtag that resonates with CFA. The highly respected association is devoted to all feline friends and recognizes how beloved stray, shelter and non-standard cats are to their owners. The intentional breeding of mixed-breed, stray and rescue cats is not advocated in CFA, but the furry family member population itself is welcome to be recorded and is one of the most popular and competitive exhibition classes in the cat fancy.

Here’s the complete order of rankings, based on CFA’s registration totals during 2018:

RANKBREED
1  Ragdoll
2  Exotic
3  British Shorthair
4  Persian
5  Maine Coon Cat
6  American Shorthair
7  Devon Rex
8  Sphynx
9  Scottish Fold
10  Abyssinian
11  Oriental
12  Household Pets
13  Siamese
14  Norwegian Forest Cat
15  Cornish Rex
16  Bengal
17  Russian Blue
18  Siberian
19  Burmese
20  Birman
21  Tonkinese
22  Ocicat
23  Selkirk Rex
RANKBREED
24  RagaMuffin
25  American Curl
26  Japanese Bobtail
27  Manx
28  Egyptian Mau
29  Somali
30  Balinese
31  Singapura
32  Colorpoint Shorthair
33  Lykoi
34  Chartreux
35  Turkish Angora
36  European Burmese
37  Bombay
38  Khao Manee
39  Burmilla
40  Korat
41  American Bobtail
42  Havana Brown
43  LaPerm
44  Turkish Van
45 American Wirehair

The Cat Fanciers’ Association, Inc.™

The Cat Fanciers’ Association, Inc., a not-for-profit association of member clubs and the world’s most influential registry of pedigreed cats has been preserving, celebrating and protecting cats since 1906. CFA’s mission is to preserve and promote the pedigreed breeds of cats and to enhance the well-being of ALL cats. CFA promotes education, responsible cat ownership and proper care to the owners of millions of cats worldwide. CFA and its affiliate clubs work nationally with local shelters to help humanely reduce homeless and feral cat populations and to encourage voluntary neuter/spay of pet cats. To learn more about the Cat Fanciers’ Association or to find the nearest CFA cat show, visit https://www.cfa.org.

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