Catwalk: Tales from the Cat Show Circuit (2018)

January 24, 2019 11:35 AM

Meet the fascinating felines and the people who pamper then in this whimsical look at the ins and outs of Canada's competitive cat show circuit, where the claws come out when a Turkish Angora and an adorable fluffy red Persian face off to take home the national award for Best in Show.
posted by PussKillian (10 comments total)

I have a bit of an embarrassment squick so I wasn't sure how I'd feel, but in the end this was a warm-hearted (dare I say...fluffy?) documentary about the race between Bobby and Ooh La La to be Top Cat. Featuring Maestro, Mr. Sandman, and many other Good Kitties.
posted by PussKillian at 11:38 AM on January 24, 2019

We just watched this last night. I started watching thinking maybe it was an episodic reality show (I didn't pay much attention, just saw it and said YES CATS NOW) and didn't realize it would be a whole documentary. Maybe slightly more cat show than I really needed... but I enjoyed the focus on all the different people and learning their story, and wow, Oh La La is an amazing brick of cat.
posted by Secretariat at 12:17 PM on January 24, 2019

I struggle sometimes when people champions breeds that are come significant animal welfare issues (french bulldogs, for example). Would this one be okay for me, or would I get too cross?
posted by smoke at 12:51 PM on January 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

The cats all appear comfortably healthy and there are some lovely shelter cats too.

I would happily watch a sequel or series of this. Cat Ladies forever!
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 2:30 PM on January 24, 2019 [1 favorite]

Be prepared to see some really over the top Persian cats... but while they’re impractical and require a lot of care, this shows what that care is like, and the cats seem happy and well suited to their lot in life. And yeah, many other types of cats, not all purebreds, and you get to see lots of cats being normal outside of a show atmosphere too. Even though many of these people are cat breeders, it really humanized that side of things. To me it ended up seeming more like a quirky hobby or fascination rather than a puppy mill type situation.
posted by Secretariat at 2:40 PM on January 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

Thanks everyone, I look forward to watching this with the kids!
posted by smoke at 3:18 PM on January 24, 2019

Oh my God, I somehow missed that this was set in Canada. These people are the most Canadian Canadians and I love them.

The cat agility course was a highlight.
posted by merriment at 3:24 PM on January 24, 2019 [3 favorites]

If you want more and want to see this kind of thing for dogs, 7 Days Out on Netflix has a dog show episode I really enjoyed. For one on ferret showing (yes, really!) there's The Pursuit of Excellence: Ferrets, which is also downright delightful.
posted by fiercecupcake at 12:49 PM on January 25, 2019

I struggle sometimes when people champions breeds that are come significant animal welfare issues (french bulldogs, for example). Would this one be okay for me, or would I get too cross?

It would not be ok. there are deliberately bred persian cats in the doc with the awful face/breathing/eating problems. you can check out the still pictures of them, which are very hard to look at.
posted by queenofbithynia at 11:00 PM on January 25, 2019 [1 favorite]

the cats seem happy and well suited to their lot in life.

they suffer extraordinarily. it is obscene.
posted by queenofbithynia at 11:49 PM on January 25, 2019